SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (November 16, 2024) – The Western New England men's basketball team had a lead with just over four minutes remaining in the contest over the tenth-ranked Keene State College Owls before seeing KSC go on a quick 9-0 run in a minute and a half to avoid an upset in their first game of the season, as the Golden Bears would fall 83-78 in their home opener. Tim Restall led the way for Western New England with a career high of 37 points and ten rebounds, the most points in a game since 2019-2020 for WNE.

Records:

• Western New England: 1-2
• No. 10 Keene State College: 1-0

How it Happened:

In a game filled with fouls and drama, the Owls of Keene State opened the game with their first three-point shot on their first offensive possession of the game when sharpshooter Spencer Aronson got the game started. Tim Restall, who was a force to be recon with all afternoon for the Golden Bears, opened up with the first layup of the game on an assist from Brian Geitner to get WNE on the board. Keene State would be hot from distance in the opening half as Wesley Osiase would splash a three to give the Owls a four-point lead, 8-4. Western New England's first or just two three balls of the first half came from Luka Vlajkovic, who dropped KSC's four-point lead into a one-point lead with 13 minutes to play in the first half. From there, the Owls would continue to fire their outside shots and would continue to make them as Nate Siow and Odiase would give Keene their largest lead of the game. That lead continued to grow to double figures for the first time in the game as Octavio Brito nailed a two-pointer from just outside the key for the Owls, who took a 24-11 lead with 8:28 to play. Arik Dagan would launch and hit a triple for the Golden Bears on the next play of the game, which got Western New England back within ten points of the tie. KSC's lead jumped back up to 13 overall after a quick rebound would be grabbed by KSC's Mason Jean Baptiste, who would toss the ball quickly up the floor where Aronson would find nothing but net again, forcing a timeout by the Golden Bears. Following the timeout, the Golden Bears would begin to find their game again, starting with a made dunk from Brian Geitner on an assist from Tim Restall. Jake Harrison would be on the board with a made layup while both Vlajkovic and Restall contributed points to get Keene State's lead to just six with 3:21 to play. The Owls would string together another run that bumped their lead to ten after four straight free throws would go down, two from Mitch Shettles and two from Ryan Blakey. Despite that, Western New England would close out the half with the final three points, as Vlajkovic and Restall were on the scoreboard again. Keene State would take a 35-28 lead after one half of play. The Owls dropped six of their 12 three-point shots in the first half while shooting a surprisingly low 11/34 on the opening frame. Western New England never carried a lead in the half while turning the ball over 11 times. Keene State turned over the ball just once. WNE out-rebounded KSC 17-10 in the opening half.

Keene State grabbed a quick four points to open the second half, which pushed their lead back up to 11. The teams would exchange points as Jake Harrison and Tim Restall would continue to dominate for the Golden Bears on the offensive end. After another triple from the Owls, Restall would begin taking over the game, getting a tip in layup plus a foul shot to get WNE back within seven with still 15 minutes remaining in the second half. Back to back three point shots from the Owls would look to be daggers in the game as Aronson and Jean Baptiste would fire down the three's. Western New England would then go on a 6-0 lead, not letting the Owls' run deter them. Restall would continue to work underneath the hoop, getting another and-one with 12:23 to play, getting KSC's lead down to four. Restall would score six straight points on the run for the Golden Bears, which got Western New England back within one, the closest they have been since the score was 3-2. Luka Vlajkovic would give WNE their first lead of the game at 59-58 when the junior drove to the cup for a score. The Melrose, Massachusetts, native would come away with four straight of his own as the Golden Bears would pick up a 12-0 run to flip a Keene State seven-point lead into a five-point lead for the Golden Bears with 8:26 to play. With the tenth-ranked team in NCAA Division III on the ropes, the Owls would get fouled on back-to-back possessions and come away with four made foul shots from fifth-year Jean Baptiste to drop WNE's lead to just one. Vlajkovic would pick up the next four points for WNE to get the Golden Bears a four-point lead back, though a massive three from Aronson would spark a run for the Owls that would eventually give the Owls a two-point lead with 5:27 remaining. The back-and-forth game would see Western New England's Restall score the next layup to even the score 69-69 while Nate Kasper picked up a pair of free throws to take a two-point lead for WNE. Keene State's Joshua Williams would take over from there, scoring seven of the next nine points for the Owls, quickly expiring WNE's lead and giving the Owls a 78-71 lead. Western New England would attempt to come back, getting with three twice after Restall added four more points to his career high night, while Cody Palazzesi would connect from three with just 27 seconds to play to give the Owls an 81-78 lead. KSC's Williams would ice the game with the two final free throws of the game, which gave Keene State an 83-78 win over the Golden Bears.

Inside the Lines:

• The Golden Bears were led by Tim Restall, who put up a career high 37 points on 16/23 shooting while also coming away with ten rebounds. Restall also came up with two assists and two blocks.
• Luka Vlajkovic scored 19 points, also a career high, shooting 7/14 from the field, hitting one of three from distance while coming up with seven rebounds and one assist.
• The Golden Bears shot 51.7% from the field in the game, going 31/60 overall. WNE would be doomed by their free throw shooting, leaving ten points on the board after going 13/23 overall. Western New England also shot just 3/13 from deep.
• Three Owls were in double figures on Saturday afternoon, with Mason Jean Baptiste leading the way with 18 points. Both Spencer Aronson and Wesley Odiase had a six-point lead. KSC's Joshua Williams, who played just nine minutes in the game, picked up nine points, all coming in the late stages of the second half to give the Owls the win.
• KSC shot 34% from the field as a team, 32% in the first half, and 36% in the second half. The Owls were lifted by their three-point shooting, going 12/30 from deep while hitting all but five of their free throws, going 27/32.
• Western New England recorded 20 second-chance points in the game while KSC had just six. Western New England out-rebounded the Owls 47-30 in the game.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• Western New England will continue their road schedule on Tuesday, November 19 at 7:00 PM, taking on Worcester State University, whom the Golden Bears have been snake bitten by in the last three matchups.