Feb. 5, 2009
Box Score
KENNESAW, Ga. - Kurtis Woods scored a game-high 24 points and connected on four three-pointers for the Owls, but it wasn't enough offense for the Black and Gold as Mercer stopped Kennesaw State, 75-56, at the KSU Convocation Center on Thursday evening.
Kennesaw State (6-15, 2-10 A-Sun) fell behind early in the game as Mercer quickly challenged the Owls with long-range, hot shooting. The Bears, who defeated the Owls last Thursday in Macon, Ga., scored 11 points in the first three minutes on a pair of three-pointers and a long-range trey by E.J. Kusnyer as they built an eight-point lead.
The Owls would not be able to get on track in the first half as they saw Mercer (12-11, 6-6 A-Sun) steadily increase their lead to double-digits. James Florence, who scored a team-high 20 points for the Bears, hit a three-pointer and Kusnyer followed a Woods jumper with another trey as Mercer built a, 25-13, lead with 10:13 left in the half.
Mercer would take a 14-point lead into halftime and in the second half they extended their lead to 26 points with 10:42 remaining. The Owls would make one final run at the Bears, who outscored the Owls by only five points in the second half, as they trimmed the lead to 15 points.
Kennesaw State shot 51.9 percent in the second half, including going 5-for-9 from three-point range. However, they couldn't overcome a first half in which they shot 34.6 percent from the field including 3-for-10 from beyond the arc.
"I was really proud of how our guys played in the second half," said Kennesaw State head coach Tony Ingle. "We shot well, played with intensity and never gave up. We needed to come out and play better in the first half, but we kept coming at them in the second."
The Bears had five players score in double-figures aside from Florence's 20-point effort. Brian Mills scored 14 points with Michael Ellis adding 13, Kusnyer had 12 points and Daniel Emerson added 11 points.
Kelvin McConnell, who scored his 500th career point against Campbell last Saturday, scored 11 points for the Owls. Jonathan Whipple added nine points while Spencer Dixon had a game-high six assists.
The Owls will continue their homestand on Saturday evening when they host North Florida at 7:30 p.m. at the KSU Convocation Center. The game can be seen live on ASUN.TV and can be heard on ESPN Radio 1230-WFOM with Craig Corbin (play-by-play) and Scott Webb (color analyst) carrying all the action.
