Jan. 26, 2008
Box Score
KENNESAW, Ga. - Ronell Wooten scored a game-high 23 points and Shuan Stegall added 21 points as the Owls won their second straight game, defeating Lipscomb, 79-72, at the KSU Convocation Center on Saturday night.
The win is the second straight for the Owls who now have their longest win streak of the season under their belt. Kennesaw State defeated Belmont on Thursday, marking only the third time in three years that an A-Sun team has swept Belmont and Lipscomb at home and the second time the Owls have accomplished that feat.
Kennesaw State beat the Bruins and the Bisons at home in their first two Atlantic Sun Conference games in 2005. Gardner-Webb followed with wins over both Nashville-based teams in February of 2006.
In a game that saw five ties and five lead changes, Kennesaw State (5-15, 3-4 A-Sun) overcame a nine-point, second half, deficit with a 15-4 run. Down, 45-36 with 12:30 left to play, Jon-Michael Nickerson and Ryan Daugherty started things off with back-to-back three pointers to bring the Owls within three points.
After a pair of free throws by Stegall, Lipscomb (8-13, 2-5 A-Sun) had a mini, 4-0, spurt to build a 49-44 lead. However, the soaring Owls would answer immediately on a jumper by Kelvin McConnell, a three-pointer by Wooten and a slashing lay-up by Daugherty, giving KSU a 51-49 lead with 9:41 left.
The game would see four more ties over the next five minutes before Stegall would take control of the game. The Owls senior rattled off 11 consecutive points over seven minutes as the Black and Gold built a five-point advantage. Wooten would nail a three-pointer on the Owls next possession, one of five on the night for the KSU senior, as Kennesaw State built an insurmountable, 65-57, lead with 1:49 left.
Things looked tough for the Owls immediately after intermission as Lipscomb's Adnan Hodzic muscled his way through the paint in the first five minutes of the half, scoring 10 of the Bisons first 12 points as Lipscomb turned a, 31-28, halftime deficit into a 40-34 lead with 14:43 left in the game. Hodzic finished the game with 23 points.
Stegall and Wooten scored over 20 points in a game for the second time this season as the pair shot 50 percent from the field and grabbed 15 rebounds. Wooten scored 28 points and Stegall scored 23 in the Owls loss to Florida A&M on Nov. 24 at the Convocation Center.
McConnell, Thursday night's hero, scored 13 points and dished off three assists while J.D. Pollock scored eight points, grabbed three rebounds and had three assists. Daugherty and Nickerson each had five points.
The Owls will be back in action on Tuesday evening, January 29 when they host Savannah State at 7:30 p.m. at the KSU Convocation Center. The game can be heard live on SuperTalk 1230/1340 AM or it can be viewed on the web on ASun.TV.com.
