NEW LONDON, N.H. – November 30, 2017 – The Colby-Sawyer College men's basketball team could not overcome an impressive shooting night by the Keene State Owls on Thursday evening. Keene State won 100-88.

Keene State, which was picked second in the Little East Conference preseason poll with one first place vote, improves to 4-2. The Owls, who reached the Elite 8 last season before falling to the eventual national champions, will open conference play at home against UMass Boston on Saturday at 3 p.m. Colby-Sawyer evens its record to 2-2 and will travel to Green Mountain on Saturday for a 3 p.m. North Atlantic Conference opener.

Keene State shot 62.5% percent from the floor (35-56) and 68.4% from beyond the arc (13-19). Colby-Sawyer won the rebounding battle 39-26 and shot

The Owls were led by junior Ty Nichols (Springfield, Mass.). He finished with 27 points on 10-of-14, nine assists and six rebounds. Freshman Sidi Diallo (Lowell, Mass.) contributed 21 points, five rebounds, five assists and three blocks. Freshman guard DeVon Beasley (Andover, Mass.) added 16 points off the bench on 6-of-7 from the floor and 4-of-4 from beyond the arc.

Colby-Sawyer received a career-high 24 points from senior Taylor Grande (Bedford, N.H.). He was 8-of-15 from the floor and 6-of-11 from three. Grande moved into 10th in career three-pointers with 126. Sophomore Patrick Coffey (Westford, Mass.) added 18 points and eight rebounds. Sophomore Dana Bean (Franklin, N.H.) chipped in 12 points and three blocks, while junior Jourdain Bell (Manchester, N.H.) registered 11 points, six assists and five rebounds.

The first half featured five ties and three lead changes. The game was tied 14-14 five minutes in when Keene State rattled off 14 straight points, capped by a Ben Olson (Derry, N.H.) jumper in the paint, to take a 28-14 lead with 11:30 on the clock. Colby-Sawyer answered with a 16-5 spurt to pull within three at 33-30 with 7:08 to play in the half. The Chargers received a jumper from Pat Coffey at 2:17 to tie the score for the fifth time, but Keene State ended the frame on a 9-3 run to take a 52-46 lead into the locker room.

The Owls continued the momentum from the ending of the first half to race out to a 20-point lead, seven minutes into the second. Colby-Sawyer was able to pull within 10 with five minutes to play, but Keene State did not relinquish the double digit advantage en route to the 100-88 victory.  

For the latest on Colby-Sawyer Athletics, follow the Chargers on Facebook (www.facebook.com/CSCathletics), Twitter (www.twitter.com/CSCathletics) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/CSCathletics).