WILLIMANTIC, Conn. – For the 14th time in program history, the Keene State College men's basketball team will play for the Little East Conference championship.  The trio of Octavio Brito, Jeff Hunter, and James Anozie combined for 46 points on 16-for-33 shooting to go along with 28 rebounds as the No. 3 seed Owls never trailed in a 79-56 romp over No. 2 seed Eastern Connecticut State University in the tournament semifinals Thursday night at Geissler Gymnasium.

Records

• Keene State:  19-6
• Eastern Connecticut:  18-8

Postgame Player Interview (Jeff Hunter) (click here)

How It Happened
KSC put in the first seven points of the game, led by that margin at halftime, and then by as many as 26 points late in the second half as they handed the Warriors just their second loss at home this season (and first since November) in a big spot and in a big way.  It was Eastern's worst home loss in four years dating to an NCAA tournament second round game against Middlebury College on March 3, 2018, and just their second loss in Willimantic in their last 19 tries.  Keene State mostly cruised to an 89-74 win over ECSU at Spaulding Gymnasium on January 24, but then hit a rough patch, losing three of their next four games that included a tough three-point loss at Geissler Gymnasium on February 2.  That slide resulted in the Owls finishing with the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament, but they now stand one win away from the NCAA tournament after reaching the Little East Conference championship for the sixth time in head coach Ryan Cain's seven seasons and seventh time in the last eight overall.  Since KSC joined the Little East Conference prior to the 1997-1998 season, they have made a league-best 14 title game appearances, five more than the next closest program (Rhode Island College, 9).

The Warriors had little answer for the Owls' starting five, as each one finished with a net rating of at least plus-13.  KSC outscored ECSU by 26 when Hunter was on the court, as he scored 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the floor (5-7 FT) and grabbed 11 rebounds.  Anozie was plus-22 and Brito plus-20.  Ryan Donahue provided a valuable nine points on 3-of-3 shooting from deep off the bench, while Jeric Cichon also had nine.  Nate Siow finished with nine points, five assists, and two steals as the Owls did what they have done all year – feature an incredibly balanced offensive attack.  After Keene State sprinted out to leads of 16-6 nine minutes into the game and 19-8 eleven minutes into the game, Eastern did hang around, getting back within four after a 7-0 burst that took less than a minute.  However, KSC pestered the Warriors offense all night, forcing them into 16 turnovers (tied for second most all season), including consecutive miscues with six minutes in the half that led to Brito runouts for a 29-17 lead at the 5:56 mark.  Down 30-19 with 4:41 left until halftime, Eastern stayed in the game at the break with a closing burst that got them within 35-28.  KSC's lead got as low as five with 48 seconds left after layups by Max Lee and Meikyle Murray, but two Anozie free throws stemmed the tide.

The Owls came out of the locker room attacking the basket with success, as Hunter and Anozie scored KSC's first seven points to quickly balloon the advantage back out to 44-32, and Keene State proved to be the far superior team in the second half, shooting 50 percent (15-for-30) from the field while limiting the Warriors to just 36 percent (10-for-28).  The Owls' defense swallowed up the ECSU offense in all three matchups, holding them to under 40 percent from the field in all three and to two of their three worst shooting performances of the season (36.1 percent, 35.0 percent) in the last two meetings, both in Willimantic.  After Keene State's opening surge, their lead never dropped below eight again, and after Jalen Williams' second-chance jumper with 11:23 left made it 54-45, the Owls delivered a crushing 14-2 run over the next five minutes, capped off with a three-point play by Hunter that was followed with a Jordan Santos trey that made it 68-47 with 6:20 to go.  Layups from Siow and Hunter two minutes later push the edge to 72-48, and KSC was well on their way to a fourth consecutive win and a 9-4 mark away from Spaulding Gymnasium on the season.

Murray, who did not play in the first of the two regular season matchups, paced Eastern with 23 points on 9-of-21 shooting, five rebounds, two blocks, and two steals.  Williams added 14, but shot 5-for-14, and was the only other Warrior in double-figures as ECSU was denied a chance at picking up their sixth league championship and fourth since 2017.

Brito finished with 17 points (5-11 FG, 6-6 FT), six rebounds and two steals for the Owls.  Anozie had 14 points (6-14 FG, 2-3 FT) and 11 boards, and how hopes to add an exclamation point to his career on Saturday with a second league championship.

Inside the Paint

• These two teams are no stranger to each other in the postseason, having met five times in the Little East tournament since 2017 (three times in the championship, twice in the semifinals).  KSC has won the last three and seven of the 12 playoff meetings overall.
• The Owls' somewhat odd trials and tribulations at Geissler Gymnasium continue.  In a place where they have won just one time in their last 11 tries in the regular season, they are now an impressive 7-2 there in the postseason since 2015, beating ECSU twice and winning a pair of league titles (over Rhode Island College and the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth) at the venue.
• After a four-game span where he totaled 20 points in late January and early this month, Brito now has scored in double-figures in five of the past six games.  He has 56 points and 32 rebounds in the last three games.
• Anozie put up a second consecutive double-double for the first time this season.  He has four overall.  The ever-steady Hunter picked up another and has 11.

Up Next

• Keene State will get a third crack at top-seed and 24th-ranked UMass-Dartmouth on Saturday (February 26) in the Little East tournament championship game at 2:00 p.m.  The Owls dropped both regular season matchups, including a tight 84-81 battle on February 9 where a KSC comeback bid came up just short.  Keene State will be looking for a bit of revenge, as they also fell to the Corsairs in last year's title game.  It will be the 11th postseason meeting between the two programs.  They have split the first 10.  UMD punched their ticket to the title game with a 98-86 semifinal win over No. 4 seed Plymouth State University tonight.
• The Warriors' season is over.  They started the campaign 2-3, but won 16 of their final 21 games and were again in the thick of the conference race.  They are not expected to lose anyone from this year's team heading into the 2022-2023 season.