By: by Scott Lipsky
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KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State Owls departing seniors Kelvin McConnell and Matt Heramb will both play their final game at the KSU Convocation Center on Saturday evening, when they try to help the Owls to a victory in their regular season finale against the Belmont Bruins at 7:30 p.m.
With their spot in the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament already guaranteed, the Owls (8-21, 6-13 A-Sun) will be playing for seeding on Saturday evening, with the chance to lock down a number seven or number eight seed in the tournament, depending on how they fare against Belmont (26-4, 18-1 A-Sun), and depending on the results of the other four games going on in the conference on Saturday evening.
A win for the Black and Gold will guarantee them a number seven seed, while a loss the by the Owls will give them an eight seed, unless Florida Gulf Coast loses their last two games, per tiebreaker scenarios.
For McConnell, Saturday evening will bring back a lot of good memories and will mean a lot to him to play in front of the home crowd for one final time. However, the game will leave him with even better memories if they can come away with a win. A former walk-on, the Smyrna, Ga., native quickly became a stalwart in the Owls rotation during his freshman season and set the program record for career games played on Thursday evening with 121.
“I’ve really enjoyed playing for four years with coach Ingle and my teammates. The Kennesaw community has been great to me during my entire time here,” said McConnell, who is also second on the Owls all-time list with 211 three-point baskets. “I’m really appreciative of the entire program; the coaching staff, my teammates, the managers, the fans, everyone. It’s my hope that we can play well tomorrow and I can help us go out on top into the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament.”
Heramb played his last two seasons of his collegiate career with the Owls after transferring from Auburn. He has played some of his best basketball as of late, most recently scoring 16 points and grabbing nine rebounds against North Florida on Feb. 20.
“It’s kind of mixed emotions for me. On one hand, I’m definitely happy to be graduating and taking on whatever comes next in life,” Heramb said. “On the other hand though, I will miss playing here at the KSU Convocation Center in front of the home fans and with my teammates.”
Sentimentality aside, the Black and Gold will be facing one of the best teams in the country in Belmont on Saturday evening. The Bruins have already locked down the number one seed in the A-Sun Tournament as well as the regular season conference title, guaranteeing them a spot in the NIT if they do not make it to the NCAA Tournament. Belmont is currently ranked third nationally in the Mid Major Top 25, and have received votes in either the Associated Press or USA Today/Coaches Top 25 for six consecutive weeks.
While the Black and Gold have the leading scorer and leading rebounder in the conference in Markeith Cummings and LaDaris Green, respectively, balance is the name of the game with Belmont, their leading scorer being sophomore guard Ian Clark at 12.5 points per game and their leading rebounder being Mick Hedgepeth at 5.7 rebounds per contest. The keys to the Bruins’ success has been fresh legs, as they have nine players on their roster averaging 15 minutes or more per game.
Belmont leads the all-time series, 8-2, having won the last five contests. The Owls were last victorious on Jan. 24, 2008, when they topped the Bruins, 81-79. Both of Kennesaw State’s wins over the Bruins have come at home.
Saturday night’s game can be heard on Talk 920 AM and www.talk920.com, with play-by-play voice Craig Corbin and color analyst and Owls great Scott Webb calling the action. The Atlantic Sun Conference’s subscription video streaming service, Asun.tv, will carry the game live, with Dave Albert calling the play-by-play.
Tickets for Thursday night’s game are 10 dollars for adults and six dollars for youth in eighth grade or younger. Admission to all KSU athletic events are free for KSU students with a valid student ID.
