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KENNESAW, Ga. – Senior forward
Markeith Cummings scored a game-high 23 points and collected nine rebounds, and freshman guard
Yonel Brown contributed 16 points and six assists to lead the Kennesaw State men’s basketball team to an 82-43 exhibition victory over visiting Piedmont Thursday at the KSU Convocation Center.
Junior center
Brandon Dawson added 10 points for the Owls, who saw five newcomers see action. Kennesaw State never trailed in the game as it out-rebounded its NAIA opponent, 43-31, totaled 14 steals and forced 24 turnovers.
Second-year head coach
Lewis Preston, who has emphasized improved defense since the Owls opened practice for the 2012-13 season, watched his team score 28 points off turnovers and use its size to outscore the Lions, 46-12, in the paint.
“I think the first and most important thing was the fact that we were rebounding the ball in the second half, especially when they outrebounded us by four in the first half,” Preston said. “I think our defensive intensity in the second half picked up, especially between the 16-minute mark and all the way down. I had a goal for them to score 42 and they scored 43.”
Preston was able to get 10 players into the game and nine of them scored, including four of the five newcomers. Junior walk-on
Kris Drees scored six points while freshmen
Nigel Pruitt and
Jordan Montgomery came off the bench to score four and three points, respectively.
Sophomore guard
Delbert Love contributed in all facets of the game for the Owls as he scored eight points, totaled five rebounds, a game-high seven assists and four steals.
“I think for a lot of people who probably have been wondering about this team, I think you got a chance to see a blend of the veterans with the young guys,” Preston said. “Our young guys are going to play and they are going to learn trial by fire.”
Brown was challenged with a starting assignment and made an impression as he went 6-for-11 from the field and accounted for four of Kennesaw State’s five made three-pointers.
“The pace was way different than high school. I came out with a few nerves but when we tipped-offed I was starting to feel comfortable,” Brown said. “I just wanted to contribute in a few different ways, take a few charges, get a couple steals and just try to do the little things to try to give us some energy or give us some extra push.”
Cummings, who enters the season third on Kennesaw State’s all-time career scoring list with 1,603 points, showed his offensive skills as he went 11-for-15 from the field while playing just 27 minutes.
“I think we came out and played well as a team,” Cummings said. “I know a lot of people we were wondering how we would play as a team. I think we did pretty well. We played okay on defense. We didn’t do our best. Everybody who came in just played hard even if they made mistakes. Coach really doesn’t care if we make mistakes. He just wants you to play hard.”
Kennesaw State opens its regular season on Friday, Nov. 9, when it travels to Knoxville, Tenn., to play Tennessee at Thompson-Boling Arena beginning at 7 p.m. The game will be televised live on Fox Sports South.
Kennesaw State University is celebrating 30 years of intercollegiate athletics during the 2012-13 academic year.
