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            KEENE, N.H. -- Junior forward Derek D'Amours (Agawam, Mass.) sank a pair of free throws with 13 second to play to deliver the Keene State College Owls a 79-78 win over the University of Southern Maine Huskies in Little East Conference men's basketball action Saturday afternoon at Spaulding Gymnasium.

            The win was the fourth straight for the Owls who improved to 8-1 overall and 2-0 in the Little East.  The Huskies fall to 6-3 and remain winless in the LEC at 0-2.

            Coming off the bench, D'Amours scored the Owls final six points of the game en route to his team-high 31 points.  D'Amours was 9-for-17 from the field, including 4-for-9 from three-point range, and 9-for-10 from the free throw line.  Sophomore guard Ryan Martin (Wayne, Maine/Maranacook) chipped in with 11 points, while sophomore forward Rashad Wright (Agawam, Mass./South Kent) added 10 points and 12 rebounds.

            USM senior guard Corteze Isaac (Germantown, Md./Northwest) matched D'Amours for game-high scoring honors tossing in 31 points.  Isaac was 10-for-23 from the field and 9-for-11 from the free throw line.  Junior forward Sean Bergeron (Kennebunk, Maine) added 14 points, while senior guard Devin Chambers (Memphis, Tenn./Oak Hill) chipped in with 12 points and seven rebounds.  Senior forward Otis Smith (Altamonte Springs, Fla./Ocoee) added 10 points and 11 rebounds.

            Trailing by five, 72-67, with 3:15 to play, the Owls' rode D'Amours hot hand to the win.  On the Owls' next possession, D'Amours wrangled an offensive rebound and scored the put-back to pull KSC to within three.  A layup from Wright got the Owls to within a point, but Isaac responded for the Huskies with an offensive rebound and the put-back for a 74-71 lead with 1:30 to play.

            D'Amours produced the fifth tie of the half, 74-74, on a three-point play on a layup and the free throw with 1:26 to play.  The teams battled back and forth over the next minute with the Huskies gaining a one-point lead, 78-77, following a layup from Chambers with 16 seconds to play.

            D'Amours was able to draw a foul while driving to the basket and calmly sank two free throws.  The Huskies had two chances for the win in the final seconds of the game, but missed both shots.

            Southern Maine returns to action on January 1 (2:00 p.m.) at the Catholic University Holiday Tournament.  Keene State is at the Johns Hopkins University Tournament on January 3 (2:00 p.m.) for its next contest.

-cac-