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Owl hoop teams host Huskies on Saturday
KEENE, N.H. 2/3/12 – Going down the stretch and heading to the finish line of the regular season, Keene State men’s and women’s basketball teams will continue to jockey for position in the Little East Conference standings when they host the University of Southern Maine at Spaulding Gym on Saturday.
The Little East doubleheader begins with the women game at 1 p.m. followed by the men’s game at 3 p.m.
“Every game has a lot of significance now,” said KSC women’s coach Keith Boucher. “You get to this time of year in the conference and every game takes on more meaning.”
That certainly holds true for the Keene State women’s basketball team (13-5, 7-2 LEC) that finds itself tied for second in the LEC standings with Southern Maine (16-4, 7-2 LEC). Both teams enter the game on a roll. KSC has won its last five games while USM extended its winning streak to six games with a 73-67 win over Colby on Tuesday.
The Owls will be playing their first game since defeating UMass-Boston 75-33 last Saturday.
“When you’re playing well you don’t want to stop, but at the same token, you want to give your body some rest,” said Boucher. “It came at a good time because mentally the players were a little drained. So I’m hoping that we come out on Saturday and pick up where we left off.”
This will be the second meeting between the two teams this season. The Huskies handed the Owls a 65-58 defeat in Gorham back on Jan. 7. “The first time we played them we didn’t shoot well or take care of the ball,” said Boucher. “We’re going to have to make some perimeter shots- something we didn’t do in the first game.”
While Rode Island College (18-2, 9-0 LEC) has run away from the pack, a win by the Owls will put them a game up on Southern Maine for second place. “There are still a lot of games to play, but this is the big one,” said Boucher.
The Keene State men’s basketball team (16-4, 8-1 LEC) will be looking to strengthen its grip on first place in the LEC. The Owls, who have won seven straight, dug themselves out of an 18-point hole in the second half to edge St. Joseph’s Vt. 84-83 on Thursday.
Displeased with his team’s performance against St. Joseph’s, KSC Coach Rob Colbert expects to see a different Owl team on Saturday. “I expect them to compete,” said Colbert. “Our ability to defend and play with great energy and enthusiasm has been a trademark of our program this year and I expect to see that against Southern Maine.”
Southern Maine (9-10, 2-7 LEC) is no pushover. The Huskies have won their last two games, upsetting Western Conn. (85-84) last Saturday and getting by Colby 56-44 on Tuesday. “We can’t take anyone lightly, everyone is fighting for their playoff lives,” said Colbert. “We’re fighting for playoff position and to get in the NCAA tournament. We need to set the bar in terms of intensity and motivation and make everyone else match it.”
Keene State defeated Southern Maine 79-60 earlier this season in Gorham.
