By: by Mark Toma
Box Score
KENNESAW, Ga. – Markeith Cummings scored a game high 24 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season, but Kennesaw State couldn’t hold off Jacksonville as the Dolphins upended the Owls, 75-67, on Thursday evening at the KSU Convocation Center.
Although the Owls (12-16, 7-10 A-Sun) suffered their fourth consecutive loss, they clinched a spot in the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament by virtue of Belmont’s, 79-70, win over Stetson.
After falling to Jacksonville by 39 points on Jan. 4, the Black and Gold came out strong at the Convocation Center, leading for the first nine minutes of the game. After three short possessions in which they exchanged one-point leads, the Owls took a 35-29 lead into halftime.
Kennesaw State twice pushed its lead to as many as nine points before the Dolphins (16-10, 12-5) rallied back to take a five-point lead with 12:21 left in the game. Back-to-back three-pointers in less than a minute by Kelvin McConnell and Spencer Dixon gave KSU a 52-51 lead with 11:32 remaining.
A pair of free throws by Kurtis Woods pushed the Owls lead to three points before the Dolphins slowly seized control. A pair of jumpers by Ben Smith and a three-pointer by Russell Powell gave the Dolphins a 58-54 lead with 8:14 left.
Trailing 58-55 and after a blocked shot by Zadrian Gibson, Cummings (7-for-14) was able to bring the Owls back once again as he tore down an offensive rebound in between a pair of Jacksonville defenders, followed with an off-balanced fall away shot in the paint before being fouled and converting the free-throw to tie the game.
Cummings’ basket would be the last the Owls would make over the next seven minutes as they missed 10 consecutive shots. Jacksonville’s Will Alston broke the tie with a jumper, Smith followed with a traditional three-point play and Lehmon Colbert followed with a tip-in for a 7-0 run that did in the Owls as KSU would get no closer than five points the remainder of the game.
Colbert had a double-double for the Dolphins, scoring a team-high 18 points while grabbing 11 rebounds. Smith added 16 points while Ayron Hardy scored 12 points. Dixon scored 13 points for the Owls while Woods added 11 points. McConnell and Jon-Michael Nickerson each scored seven points.
The Owls shot 37.5 percent from the field while Jacksonville shot 46 percent on 29-for-63 shooting from the floor. The Dolphins also held a, 41-36, rebounding advantage including an 18-14 edge on the offensive glass.
The Black and Gold will be back in action on Saturday night for the final home game of the season when they take on long-time rival North Florida on Senior Night. Kennesaw State will honor seniors Junior Ajayi, Jon-Michael Nickerson and Jonathan Whipple prior to Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. tip-off.
The game can be heard live on 920 am WGKA and on-line at www.920WGKA.com. Craig Corbin, play-by-play and Scott Webb, color analyst, will call the action beginning with the Peachtree Orthopedic Clinic Pregame Show at 7:00 p.m.
