By: by Mark Toma
Box Score
KENNESAW, Ga. – If you weren’t at Thursday night’s game between Kennesaw State and Mercer not only did you miss another thrilling finish, but you also missed a record-breaking attendance mark and the solidification of the newest rivalry in the Atlantic Sun Conference.
Before a record-setting crowd of 2,378 fans and a sold-out student section, the tenacious Owls defeated Mercer, 66-63, for their sixth straight win while pushing the Black and Gold to the .500 mark overall and over .500 in the conference for the first time since the 2005-06 season.
“We couldn’t have won this game without our crowd,” said head coach Tony Ingle. “The crowd was incredible and it was an unbelievable environment.”
After last week’s game which saw 15 ties and 13 lead changes in a, 71-69, Kennesaw State win, the latest version of KSU and Mercer saw seven ties and 10 lead changes and the hometown Owls fighting back from an 11-point deficit in the first half.
The Owls (12-12, 7-6 A-Sun) led by six points with 3:06 left after the Black and Gold’s leading scorer, Spencer Dixon, hit a lay-up to give Kennesaw State a 55-49 lead. A pair of free throws by Daniel Emerson and a three-pointer by Jeff Smith brought Mercer (11-12, 7-6 A-Sun) to within a point with 2:15 left in the game.
Kurtis Woods and Emerson exchanged baskets over the next minute before Dixon hit four straight free-throws to give KSU a five-point bulge with 44 seconds left. Mercer’s E.J. Kusnyer quickly hit a three-pointer to bring the Bears to within a basket.
Matt Heramb and James Florence each hit a pair of free-throws as the lead stayed at two points. Heramb made one of two free-throws before Florence raced the length of the floor in three seconds to bring Mercer to within a point with seven seconds left.
Jon-Michael Nickerson sealed the win for KSU with a pair of free-throws as Kusnyer’s potential game-tying, three-pointer skimmed the net as time expired.
Florence led all scorers with 19 points, while Emerson scored 16 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. Smith added 10 points for the Bears. Kurtis Woods scored nine points, Zadrian Gibson added nine points and eight rebounds while LaDaris Green had eight points and eight rebounds.
Kennesaw State made just 3-of-20 three-pointers in the game for a season-low 15 percent, but were 15-for-20 from the free-throw line including a 9-for-10 run in the final minute. The Owls out-rebounded Mercer, 44-35, and had a 25-15 advantage on the offensive end with green and Gibson grabbing six each. KSU had just nine turnovers in the game and only four in the second half.
The Owls will be back in action on Saturday evening as they conclude their four-game homestand with a 7:30 p.m. meeting with USC Upstate. The Spartans are the last team to defeat Kennesaw State, taking a 66-62 decision from the Owls on Jan. 17 in Spartanburg, S.C.
Saturday night’s game can be heard live on 920 am WGKA and is also available on-line at www.920WGKA.com. Craig Corbin, play-by-play, and Scott Webb, color analyst, call the action beginning with the Peachtree Orthopedic Clinic Pregame Show beginning at 7:00 p.m.
