KEENE, N.H. – Mitch Shettles scored 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the floor in 18 minutes while Octavio Brito added another double-double as the top-seeded Keene State College men's basketball team placed five in double-figures to ease to a comfortable 95-75 win over No. 4 seed University of Massachusetts-Boston in a Little East Conference tournament semifinal matchup on Thursday night at Spaulding Gymnasium.

The victory moves the Owls (21-5) one win away from league history, as no team has ever won four consecutive LEC championships.  There had been only one three-peat until KSC notched one of their own last year – and it came before the Owls were in the league when the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth won three straight tournaments from 1993 through 1995.  Keene State can ensure they stand alone in less than 48 hours if they take care of business – for the third consecutive year – against second-seeded Western Connecticut State University, who trailed for over 38 minutes of game action before tying the game with 20 seconds to go, eventually eliminating third-seeded Rhode Island College 81-68 at Feldman Arena.  The Anchormen wasted a 31-15 lead and still led 62-55 with 1:39 left, but were done in by 32 turnovers and 11-of-23 shooting at the free throw line.  WestConn was 3-for-21 from three and committed 18 miscues, but was 36-of-48 at the charity stripe in a game that took nearly two and half hours.

There was much less suspense in KSC's semifinal win tonight, as they sprinted out to a 19-7 lead in just 5:26 – making five threes in that span – and never looked back, ultimately shooting a sizzling 10-of-15 from deep in the opening 20 minutes.  UMass-Boston (14-12) got a layup from Mark Barrett at the 14:08 mark to stop an 11-0 Owl surge and make it 19-9, but that was as close as the visitors ever got, trailing by double-figures for the final 34:34 of game action after coming off a quarterfinal game against No. 5 seed University of Southern Maine in which they led 55-35 at halftime and pummeled the Huskies 108-93.

Shettles scored five in a row halfway through the first half to push his team's lead to 30-10 a little over 10 minutes into the game, and a layup and dunk on consecutive trips by Ryan Blakey and Wesley Odiase made it 34-12 with 7:49 to go until the break.  The Owls led by as many as 23, including when Brito buried a triple with 3:15 left that made it 45-22.  He connected from deep again in the final seconds of the half to send KSC to their locker room with a 54-32 advantage.  It was another gashing of a UMass-Boston defense at Spaulding Gymnasium – with the visitors having allowed 287 points in their last five halves (57.4 avg) in Keene.  For Shettles, it continued an impressive surge over the past six contests, shooting 51 percent (27-53) from the field and 16-34 (47 percent) from beyond the arc.  The Owls additionally got multiple treys in the first half from Brito (3-4), Spencer Aronson (3-5), and Mason Jean Baptiste (2-3).

UMB chipped the deficit down to 61-47 in the opening six minutes and change after the break, but the Owls had an answer every time to prevent any threat, this time getting a Shettles three to push the lead back to 17.  After two Brito free throws with 11:01 to go made it 68-50, the Beacons used a 9-2 burst capped by layups from Davon Sanders and Raphel Laurent to get within 11, only to see Liam Johnston bury a three on KSC's ensuing possession after a timeout.  Nate Siow then scored four in a row to make it 77-61 with 7:11 left, and the Owls were well on their way to a 17th league title game appearance since they joined the league prior to the 1997-1998 season – by far the most in the league in that span, nearly double RIC and WCSU's nine.

Keene State has won seven LEC championships overall in program history, taking home the trophy in 2004, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2022, 2023, and 2024.  With a win Saturday they can also ensure their 10th NCAA tournament appearance.  They have made the Sweet 16 in each of the past two seasons.

The Owls and WestConn split their season series, playing drastically different games.  WCSU won the most recent meeting at Feldman Arena 74-73 on February 15, doing just enough to prevent KSC from erasing an 18-point second half deficit.  The Owls obliterated the Wolves 100-62 at Spaulding Gymnasium on January 16, leading 44-12 in the first half and by as many as 43 while making 18-of-43 from three-point range.  Keene State leads the all-time series 42-21 including 25-9 in the Elm City.

KSC's balance overwhelmed the Beacons to get to the final, as they placed five in double-figures paced by Shettles, who also grabbed five rebounds.  Jean Baptiste (6-13 FG, 2-5 3-PT) and Leo Chaikin (4-7 FG, 6-6 FT, 5 reb., 2 asst.) each added 13, while Brito had 13 points (4-8 FG, 3-6 3-PT), 15 rebounds, and three assists.  Aronson tossed in 11 points, three rebounds, and three assists.  The Owls had 20 assists on 33 made baskets and only 10 turnovers (UMB had eight).

The Beacons got 23 points (9-16 FG, 1-2 3-PT, 4-5 FT) and six boards from impressive rookie Laurent, while Xavier McKenzie had 18 points on 7-of-16 shooting, five rebounds, and two assists.  Barrett had 12 points (5-12 FG), six rebounds, and three blocks, but UMass-Boston remained at two title game appearances (1997, 2006) all-time.  They have dropped 52 of 61 all-time meetings against Keene State including nine straight.

The Owls will now gear up for Saturday's (March 1) Little East tournament championship game, which tips off at 1:00 p.m.  It will be the third straight year KSC hosts WCSU in the final, having beaten the Wolves 83-79 in overtime in 2023 and 84-68 last year, avenging their lone conference loss.  They will get a chance to exact another measure of revenge again this time around as March Madness looms.