Box Score KEENE, N.H.--Middlebury College junior guard Dylan Sinnickson (Sands Point, N.Y.) scored a career high 28 points and hauled in 14 rebounds to lead the Panthers to a 92-86 win over Keene State College in a non-conference men's basketball game at Spaulding Gym on Tuesday night.
Keene State was led by 20 points and seven boards from sophomore Nate Howard (Cheshire, Conn.), and 18 points from Tre' Tipton (Stamford, Conn.) Freshman Jeff Lunn (Nashua, N.H.) netted 16 points on 8-for-12 shooting, and sophomore Nick Gagliolo (Peabody, Mass.) scored a season high 10 points.
In addition to Sinnickson, the Panthers got 23 points and five assists from senior Joey Kizel (Short Hills, N.J.), 14 points from Hunter Merryman (San Marino, Calif.), and 10 from James Jensen (North White Plains, N.Y.)
The Owls raced out to a quick 9-2 lead. Nate Howard started proceedings with a dunk off a pass from Tre' Tipton, and Lucas Hammel (Methuen, Mass.) fed Tom Doyle with a nifty pass for a layup that forced the Panthers into a timeout.
Keene State pushed the advantage to seven points (26-19) on Hammel's drive to the hoop, but five straight points from Middlebury's Hunter Merryman trimmed the deficit back to two points. The Owls slowly restored their advantage, as Hammel scored again, and Nate Howard converted a conventional three point play to stretch the lead back to 35-26. Tipton knocked down a pair of foul shots with 11 seconds left in the half, but Merryman responded with a three just ahead of the halftime buzzer. KSC led 48-41 at halftime, shooting a sizzling 52.6% (20-for-38).
The Owls ran the lead out to 10 points on Tipton's jumper at the 16:09 mark of the second half, but the Panthers scored the next 17 points to take the lead for good. Kizel and Sinnickson combined for 13 points during that span.
Consecutive baskets by Lunn drew Keene State within 66-63 with 9:41 to play, but Middlebury pushed the lead back to 77-70 on a jumper by Sinnickson. Gagliolo swished a three with 3:08 on the clock to pull KSC within 82-79, but Sinnickson iced the game with a triple of his own with 1:33 to play, and the Panthers went 7-for-8 from the free throw line in the final minute to salt away the win.
Middlebury held a slight 44-43 edge in rebounds, and a big advantage at the charity stripe, where the Panthers connected on 29 of 40 attempts.
"It's a disappointing result," said head coach Rob Colbert. "But we are playing harder, we're executing better, and some guys are playing in different spots. It's an interesting adventure, trying to make sure we have everyone going at the same time as possible, and results aside, I like where we're headed. We keep talking to the kids about the process, not the outcome, and competing with a team like Middlebury tonight, we definitely took a step forward."
Keene State will hit the road in their next contest, traveling to LEC rival Rhode Island College for a 3 p.m. start on Saturday, February 8. Middlebury will host Colby College at 8 p..m. on February 7.
At halftime, the Keene State College athletic department honored several members of the men's and women's cross country teams, who won their respective Little East Conference championships this past fall, as well as members of the men's and women's swim team, including members of the men's team who earned All-America honors at the 2013 NCAA Championships. The women's team won their eighth straight LEC title earlier this winter.
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