By: KSU Sports Information
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Coach Tilley Pregame
KENNESAW, Ga. – The Kennesaw State women’s basketball team is now at the halfway point of its Atlantic Sun Conference schedule as every game from here on out takes on a sense of urgency starting with the Lady Owls matchup against Jacksonville on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
Kennesaw State (8-11, 3-5 A-Sun) will be looking to earn a weekend split come Saturday afternoon as it dropped a hard-fought league game to North Florida on Thursday, 66-57.
With KSU up 27-20 with 2:30 left in the first half, North Florida started an 18-1 run that extended into the beginning of the second half in which Kennesaw State could never fully recover from. Redshirt-freshman guard
Taylor Mills led all scorers in the game with 16 points, to go along with four rebounds.
The Lady Owls couldn’t find a way around the Ospreys frustrating zone defense shooting only 20 percent (5-of-25) from three-point land in the loss. The 25 three-point attempts were the most attempts from behind the arc for KSU since it also put up 25 in its loss to Georgia State on Dec. 14.
Looking ahead to Saturday, Kennesaw State has out-rebounded its opponent in six-straight games and it will need to continue that trend against Jacksonville as head coach
Colby Tilley stressed in his pregame comments.
“Jacksonville is very solid defensively and on the glass,” coach Tilley said. “They are one of the top offensive rebounding teams in the conference so if we can control the boards on both ends, and take care of the basketball; I think we will have a good chance.”
Junior forward
Sametria Gideon is always a force inside, but she has had some excellent success recently against the Dolphins as she is averaging 16.5 points and 12.5 rebounds in her last two games against JU.
The Dolphins (7-12, 5-3 A-Sun) are coming off a 76-65 win at Mercer on Thursday. JU returns two starters from a team that went 15-17 last season. Jacksonville was picked to finish sixth in the A-Sun Preseason Coaches Poll, and it is led by senior guard Crystal Bell who leads the team in scoring at 12.8 ppg.
Fans are encouraged to come to the KSU Convocation Center early on Saturday as Atlanta Dream star Lindsey Harding will be signing autographs during the pregame festivities. Fans should also be on the lookout after the game as members of the Kennesaw State women’s basketball team will also be signing autographs.
