PROVIDENCE, R.I.--Freshman guard Chris Donaldson hit a jumper with 11 seconds remaining to propel the Rhode Island College men's basketball team to a 70-68 victory against Keene State College in a Little East Conference contest played at The Murray Center on Saturday afternoon.

Records

• Keene State: 10-5, 3-2 LEC
• Rhode Island Col.: 8-7, 2-3 LEC

How It Happened

Keene State was led by sophomore forward Ty Nichols with a game-high 22 points, seven rebounds, six steals and five assists. Junior guard Dizel Wright was also in double-figures with 16 points, seven boards and four assists in the setback.

Sophomore forward Benjamin Vezele paced RIC with a team-high 19 points and 11 rebounds, while senior forward Domonique Bull also had a double-double with 15 points and a game-high 15 rebounds. Junior guard Malcolm Smith was also in double figures with 15 points, three steals, two boards and two assists in the victory. 

The two teams traded leads throughout the early stages of the game with the score tied, 14-14, midway through the first half. Keene State then used a 15-6 run to take its largest lead of the first half, 29-20, on a conventional three-point play from Wright with 4:29 left. RIC cut into the lead in the late stages of the stanza, closing to within four points after a layup by freshman guard Chris Farrington made the score 34-30 heading into the locker room at halftime. 

The Anchormen knotted the game, 39-39, on a layup by Bull with 16:25 left in the contest. Again, the two teams battled back and forth with the score tied for the 10th time in the contest, 59-59, with just less than four minutes remaining.  RIC surged ahead, going up 67-61 on a layup from Bull with 1:46 to go.  Nichols converted a three point play on the Owls' next possession, and Wright got KSC within one on a layup with 1:04 to go.  

After Donaldson missed twice, a layup by Matt Ozzella put the visiting Owls up 68-67 with 17 seconds left in the game. But Donaldson made amends,  providing the heroics for RIC with what would prove to be the game-winning jumper, making the score 69-68 with 11 seconds left.

Bull then added a free throw for RIC for the two point advantage (70-68) before a last second three-pointer from Keene State senior guard Jaquel Edwards just missed at the buzzer.

In The Paint

• Keene State had a tough outing at the free throw line, connecting on just 14 of 29 attempts (48.3%) .  The Owls also shot just 39.1 (25-for-64) from the field.
• The loss ended KSC's four game winning streak against the Anchormen.  The Owls have eliminated RIC from the last two LEC tournaments, including a win in the championship game in 2015, and ousting the Anchormen in the semifinals a season ago.
• Nichols reached the 20 point mark in a game for the third successive contest, and sixth time this season.  His current team leading average of 18.5 points per game is the highest scoring average for a KSC player since Tom Doyle averaged 19.5 points per game in 2014-15.  No Owl has cracked the 20 point per game average since Derek D'Amours did so at a rate of 23.6 points per game in the 2009-10 season.

Up Next

• The Owls conclude a three game road trip with a visit to Plymouth State on Wednesday, January 18 at 7:30 p.m.
• The Anchormen head to UMass Dartmouth on the same day, tipping off with the Corsairs at 7:30 that evening. 

Portions Courtesy Rhode Island College