With the win Keene State remains undefeated in the Little East with a 5-0 mark and improve to 13-1 overall, earning its ninth consecutive victory. Suffering their fifth consecutive loss, the Huskies dip to 4-10 overall and remain winless in the conference at 0-5.
Kathan and Drouin were the only two Owls players to score in double-figures as Keene State used a well-balanced attack to down Southern Maine. Junior guard Anthony Licitra (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury) and sophomore center Eric Malkowski (Warwick, R.I./The Prout School) each scored eight points while junior guard David Sontag (Mount Vernont, N.H./Souhegan) added seven points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Junior forward Drew Coppenrath (Barnet, Vt./St. Johnsbury Academy) paced Southern Maine with 14 points and six rebounds. Sophomore guard Martin Jordan (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Hollywood Hills) chipped in with nine points off of the bench.
Kathan scored 11 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the opening half as the Owls jumped out to a commanding 40-26 lead at the break. The Owls outscored Southern Maine 15-5 in the opening five minutes of the game and led by 18 points, 29-11, following a three-pointer from Sontag at 8:16 of the first half.
Southern Maine cut the Keene State lead to 11, 37-26, with 2:34 left in the using an 8-2 run keyed by a pair of three-pointers from Coppenrath and freshman guard John Sewall (Bath, Maine/Cheverus), but the Owls scored the final three points of the half to regain a 14-point advantage heading into the second half.
Both teams traded baskets in the opening four minutes of the second stanza, before Keene State held Southern Maine scoreless for a six-minute stretch to lead 67-35 with 8:22 remaining. The Huskies were never closer than 25 points the rest of the way as the Owls used stifling defensive pressure to hold Southern Maine to just seven second half field goals.
Keene State won the battle on the boards with a dominated 55-39 advantage on the glass, grabbing 18 offensive rebounds in the game. The Owls finished the game shooting 38.2 percent (26-for-68) from the field and 74.3 percent (26-for-35) from the free throw line. Southern Maine shot just 27 percent (17-for-63) from the field.
Keene State returns to action on Tuesday (January 16) when it hosts Eastern Connecticut at 7:30 p.m. in an LEC contest. Southern Maine hosts Plymouth State University for an LEC match up on the same date and time.