By: by Scott Lipsky
Box Score Post Game Notes
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Markeith Cummings led all scorers with 18 points and LaDaris Green had his sixth consecutive double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds, but the Kennesaw State Owls would fall short on Friday evening, dropping a, 75-60, decision to the Jacksonville Dolphins at Veterans Memorial Arena. The loss was the second in a row for the Owls.
Trailing 44-30 at halftime and not getting closer than 10 points at any point in the second half, the Owls (8-19, 6-11 A-Sun) had trouble mounting a big run that would get them squarely back in the contest. After letting the Dolphins (18-8, 11-5 A-Sun) take a, 58-38, lead with 12:54 remaining in the game, the Black and Gold made perhaps their strongest push of the game, going on an 11-1 run over the next 3:30, capped off by a three-point basket by Artie Marine from the top of the key and a nice one-handed floater off the glass, making it a, 59-49 game with 9:24 left in regulation.
Jacksonville would begin to pull away soon after the Owls run, however, calling a timeout and then having senior Ayron Hardy, who led his squad with 15 points on the evening, drill a three to make it a 13-point deficit. The lead would grow to 19 over the next several, putting the decision squarely in the hands of the home team.
The Owls got off to a slightly quicker start against Jacksonville on Friday evening than they did the last time the two teams met on Jan. 22 in Kennesaw, when the Dolphins made seven straight shots after missing their first of the night and the Owls missed their first five and had to play catch-up early. Green, who continues to lead the A-Sun in rebounding, showed some of versatility in the easy going, hitting a three-pointer from the left side and then finding Cummings underneath the basket with a nice lob pass on the next possession, making it 5-5 1:45 into the game.
It was at that point when Jacksonville began to separate themselves from the Owls, going on a, 7-0, run over the next 1:28 to give themselves a 12-5 lead. The Black and Gold would cut the deficit back to four a few minutes later, but an 8-0 run by Jacksonville soon after put them up by 13 with 9:04 to go in the half, part of a first half in which the Dolphins shot 51.7 percent from the field (15-for-29).
Spencer Dixon added 14 the Black and Gold, who are now in a tie for seventh in the A-Sun with Campbell. They lead Stetson by one game, as the top eight eligible teams at the end of the season qualify for the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament.
Delwan Graham added 13 for the Dolphins and Tevin Galvin had 11 points and 11 rebounds to help the squad to their third win in their last four games, solidifying their spot in third place in the A-Sun standings.
The Black and Gold remain in Jacksonville this weekend, as they take on North Florida across town at 4:15 p.m. on Sunday.
