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Keene State men escape, edge St. Joseph's (Vt.) 84-83
RUTLAND, VT. 2/2/12 – Two days after an historic victory, the Keene State men's basketball team needed an historic comeback, wiping out an 18 point second half deficit to defeat St. Joseph's College of Rutland, Vermont 84-83 on Thursday night.
Playing in a pint-size gym reminiscent of the move "Hoosiers", the Owls dug themselves a hole as large as the Grand Canyon, falling behind 52-36 at halftime and trailing by as many as 18 points (56-38) one minute into the second half.
The Owls, who knocked off Middlebury (77-76), the top team in Division III on Tuesday, didn't come ready to play against the Saints, a member of the United State Collegiate Association.
Keene State Coach Rob Colbert called it an across the board breakdown. "We just didn't compete. It was embarrassing, said Colbert about his teams' first half performance. "The guys finally realized that they we were in trouble and started to play. They're a very good team. We didn't deserve to win."
"I think we underestimated them a little bit," said junior Anthony Mariano (Naugatuck, Conn.). "They played a lot of guards, so it was difficult for our big men to match-up, so we tried different line-ups."
"We didn't come out ready to play. Some of the guys were thinking about our last win," said junior Ryan Martin (Wayne, Me.). "We talked about not doing it, but unfortunately that's what happened. Hopefully it's a lessoned learned and something we won't do again."
Keene State used an assortment of stifling presses to get back in the game, cutting the deficit down to four points (71-67) after three straight baskets by senior Ollie Hunter (Bedford, N.H.), who provided the Owls with a much-need shot in the arm off the bench. "Sometimes a team needs a little spark, a little inspiration, a little fire and that's what I try to bring to this team every day," said a harassing Hunter, who pestered the Saints in multiple turnovers that turned into points. "I just tried to bring some intensity and it worked out for the best."
The Saints, who used their last time out with six minutes to play, couldn't do anything as their lead slipped away.
The Owls took their first lead of the game (80-79) with 1:34 to play on a three-point basket by Mariano. "In the first half my shots weren't dropping, but I knew I had to stick with it, said Mariano, who had missed his first five shots from behind the arc. "I just stepped into it and let it go. I knew I needed to knock it down."
A couple of free throws by Hunter put the Owls up 82-79. After Rahiem Smalls made it a one point game with two shots from the line, junior Eric Fazio (Hopewell, Junction, N.Y.) gave the Owls' some breathing room with a lay-up that made it 84-81 with 40 seconds to go.
In the Saints' next possession, Brendan Rios was fouled and hit both of his shots to make it 84-83.
With 36 seconds left and a one second deferential on the shot clock, the Owls put the ball in the hands of Martin, who did his best Marques Haynes impression, dribbling out the clock and preserving the win. "I was expecting them to foul me but they didn't do it, so I just kept dribbling around," said Martin.
Hunter finished with a team high 20 points for the Owls (16-4), who extend their winning streak to seven games. Martin had 18 points to go with five assists while Fazio, who was 5-6 from the field, chipped in with 14 points. Junior Rashad Wright (Agawam, Mass) had a game high 10 rebounds along with seven points.
Rios had a game high 22 points for St. Joseph's (16-6).
Despite a sluggish first half, the Owls still managed to shoot 50% from the field. They had a tough night from behind the arc (4-15, 27%) and continued to struggle from the line (16-23, 69%). KSC had a slim 38-37 rebound advantage.
Following the game the Owls said they learned a lesson. "You can't take any team for granted," said Hunter. "You have to go hard every game."
"It's getting late in the season and we can't underestimate anyone," said Mariano. "It's not going to get any easier for us. We have some big conference games to finish the season."
Keene State returns to home to host Southern Maine in a Little East game on Saturday.
