KEENE, N.H. – Senior
Octavio Brito scored 20 points or more for the third consecutive game and the Keene State College men's basketball team sprinted out to a 22-point lead less than 12 minutes into the game as they went on to post an 89-60 blowout victory over the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in their home opener on Saturday afternoon at Spaulding Gymnasium.
Highlights
Postgame Interview (Coach Enright)
Postgame Interview (Octavio Brito)
The win is the fourth straight to open the season for the Owls (4-0) and third against a team winning record. And it did not take long for KSC to assert themselves, as they opened a 17-4 lead only 4:51 into the game in a surge that was capped by five consecutive points including a triple by Brito. MIT (4-3), who entered off an 80-68 loss to No. 8 Tufts University on the road earlier this week after the Jumbos pulled away late, trimmed what turned into a 19-4 deficit to seven with 12:52 to go in the opening half thanks to an 8-0 burst. However, their momentum dissolved rapidly, as the KSC hit back with a 15-0 romp over the next 4:19, making 5-of-7 shots from the field and forcing six Engineer turnovers. Five different Owls scored during the surge, which was polished off with a
Mason Jean Baptiste steal and
Wesley Odiase transition dunk.
A jumper by Jean Baptiste with 6:38 to go pushed KSC in front by 24 (38-14) before Keene State eventually carried a 50-33 advantage to the locker room, shooting 50 percent from the field and recording a plus-12 margin in turnovers (16-4). The Owls had a whopping 11 steals in the opening half, paced by three from Brito and two apiece from
Nate Siow and Jean Baptiste.
MIT fell behind by double-digits for good less than 10 minutes into the game, and was never closer than 15 at any point after the midway point of the opening half. Isaac Dobie opened the scoring after the break for the Engineers to make it 50-35, but the Owls got six points from Odiase during a 13-4 burst that saw them shoot 6-of-11 from the floor and pushed the lead back to 63-39 with 13:24 to go. The Engineers trailed by more than 20 for the final 10 minutes, and by as many as 29 in the closing seconds when
Michael Coggins made a pair of free throws to set the final margin. KSC finished an impressive 15-for-16 (94 percent) at the foul line and 12-of-32 (37.5 percent) from the foul line. They racked up an eye-popping 32 fastbreak points and outscored MIT off turnovers 38-14.
Brito's 20-point effort came on 8-of-17 shooting from the field, including 6-for-9 from inside the arc. He added five rebounds, four steals, and three assists. He has 77 points on 27-of-52 (52 percent) shooting over his last three games, two of which helped him earn the USBWA Division III Player of the Week honor this past Monday. Siow (4-7 FG, 4-4 FT) added 13 points, three assists, and three steals, while Odiase made 5-of-6 from the field to score 13 points and added four rebounds and two assists. Jean Baptiste (5-10 FG, 2-6 3-PT) finished with 12 points. Ten different Owls recorded a steal in the game.
Isaac Dobie paced MIT with 11 points (4-8 FG) and five boards while Jackson Weiland and Wyatt Mowery each scored 10 points off the bench, but the Engineers were limited to just a 1-for-14 showing from three and lost their fourth straight in the series. KSC has posted a plus-97 point differential in those victories, including a 119-81 victory on the road on November 25 of last year.
Keene State returns to action for an important road game this Wednesday (December 4) at Tufts University. Tip-off is at 7:00 p.m. The Jumbos (5-1) were ranked No. 8 in the most recent D3hoops.com Top 25 poll, but suffered a 74-61 home loss to the Worcester Polytechnic Institute this afternoon. KSC fell to the Jumbos 65-63 at home last December after seeing a seven-point lead with eight minutes to go slip away. The new D3hoops.com Top 25 poll will be released on Monday, though it is likely the Owls will be looking for their second win over a nationally-ranked team this season when they visit Medford for the first time since 2009.
