KEENE, N.H. (November 11, 2023) – The Western New England men's basketball team saw recent Sweet-16 goers, the Owls of Keene State College, open their 2023-2024 campaign with a bang, taking down Western New England by a final score of 105-69 from Spaulding Gymnasium on Saturday evening. Keene State came into the week ranked fourth in the D3hoops.com top-25 poll.
Records:
- Western New England: 1-1
- No. 4 Keene State College: 1-0
How it Happened:
Gavin Greene splashed a three-pointer from distance to get Western New England started, as the Golden Bears would battle with one of the top teams in Division III through the first three minutes of the game. The teams would exchange points, with
Jake Harrison and
Mike Resnick getting to the lane to buy a bucket for the blue and gold while Mason Jean Baptiste started off the game with some scoring for the Owls. The Owls would quickly go up by six when Tahmeen Dupree found fifth-year Jeff Hunter for a throw down at the rim to go up 13-7. The Golden Bears would see
Andrew Byfield get to the paint to go down by just two before Keene would quickly build their lead to 11 when Baptitse dropped another triple, giving the hot-shooting Owls a 22-11 lead. The Owls would hold their double-digit lead for the remainder of the first half and would see their largest lead of the first half expand to 24 points when Octavio Britto splashed a three with two seconds left as KSC took the 53-29 lead at the end of the first half.
A dominant offense quad, the Owls continued their attack on Western New England, holding at least a 24-point lead for the remainder of the game.
Gavin Greene and
Nate Kasper would combine for four points in the early stages of the second half, though the Owls would continue to respond on their offensive side of the ball. Mason Jean Baptiste would splash four three-point shots in the game, while Octavio Brito would take 17 shots, scoring ten of those in the game while hammering home five three-point shots to lead the way for KSC. Brito would finish the night with 27 points and three rebounds. Jeff Hunter contributed another double-double for Keene State, grabbing 13 points and 11 rebounds. Alonzo Linton played 24 minutes for KSC, getting 16 points and ten rebounds. Western New England saw three score in double figures, with
Jake Harrison leading the way with 17 points and nine rebounds while collecting three assists.
Gavin Greene dropped 16 points for Western New England while grabbing five rebounds.
Andrew Byfield was the only other Golden Bear to grab double digits in scoring, finishing the game with ten points. WNE shot 38% from the field, while Keene State shot 52.8% while dropping 15 three-pointers.
Inside the Lines:
- This is the first meeting between the two teams since the 2014–2015 season, when Keene State had the upper hand, 80–69. Western New England has not hosted Keene State since the 2009–2010 season.
- The Golden Bears scored 69 points in back-to-back games, this time resulting in a loss.
- WNE recorded 20 turnovers in the game. WNE grabbed just three steals.
Up Next on the Schedule:
- WNE stays on the road and will take on their second Little East Conference opponent of the season when they visit Eastern Connecticut State University on Wednesday, November 15 at 7:00 p.m.
