By: by KSU Sports Information
Box Score
Postgame Notes
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Markeith Cummings scored a game-high 21 points as the Kennesaw State men's basketball team fell, 98-52, in its Atlantic Sun Conference opener to Belmont at the Curb Event Center Thursday night.
"In my first time seeing Belmont in person, they might be on the same level with Wisconsin in how unselfish they are," said KSU head coach Lewis Preston following the loss. "There were two telling statistics. One is that they had an assist to turnover ratio of 30 to four. The other is that their bench scored 43 points to our four."
Belmont (4-2, 1-0) jumped on Kennesaw State from the opening tip, scoring the first 11 points of the contest. The Owls finally got in the board with a dunk from Aaron Anderson, keeping the deficit at nine. The Belmont advantage would bounce between nine and 12 points over the next three minutes, as Belmont would connect on a 3-pointer and the Owls would answer with a 3-pointer on th eother end.
KSU (2-4, 0-1) trailed, 22-13, after a 3-point connection from Cummings, but the Bruins would soon build the lead back into double digits. A 16-5 run by the Bruins allowed the home team to stretch the lead up to 18, 36-18. The Owls would get as close as 14 again in the half, but Belmont would be up, 48-31, after the first 20 minutes of action.
In the second half, Belmont would turn the ball over just one time. The Bruins had 20 made field goals over the second 20 minutes, getting 17 assists as a team in the process. The Owls tried to keep the deficit at a manageable level, but the Bruins continued to come at Kennesaw State in waves. Of the 14 players who took the court for Belmont, 11 scored at least two points.
Spencer Dixon had 11 ponits for the Owls in the loss, marking his fourth straight game with at least 10 points. Cummings and Dixon each had a team-best four rebounds. Dixon, Cummings, Delbert Love and Nick Turner each had three assists for Kennesaw State.
Five players scored in double figures for Belmont, led by J.J. Mann's 17. Kerron Johnson had a double-double with 13 points and 10 assists, while Mick Hedgepeth had a game-high 12 rebounds.
"This game is a 40-minute game. We have to continue to play with heart and we have to play tougher," said Coach Preston. The beautiful thing is we have a chance to come out [Saturday] and see what we're all about against Lipscomb. We're going to focus our energy towards that and move on."
The Owls will be back in action Saturday when they travel two miles down Belmont Boulevard to take on Lipscomb. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m., with live audio beginning at 12:45 p.m. on
KSU All-Access.
