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ATLANTA, Ga. – A strong start followed up by a hard-hitting finish kept the Kennesaw State men's basketball team in the ballgame at Georgia Tech, but the Owls ultimately fell to their cross-town rival, 74-57 on Monday night in McCamish Pavilion.
 
KSU, now 3-8 on the year, held a lead as late as late as 14 minutes into the first half and surged from behind to ease back an 18-point Georgia Tech (8-3) lead just seven points late in the contest before the Yellow Jackets pulled ahead in the first game in over two weeks for Kennesaw State.
 
"For 32 minutes we did a very good job," Kennesaw State head coach Lewis Preston said. "We were aggressive and attacked the basket and put a lot of pressure on them. But you can't leave 15 free throws on the line on the road and expect to win. We had a couple good individual performances, but this is a team game. We have to get back in the gym and recommit and making some shots."
 
After Georgia Tech took the opening tip and put in the first two points, the Owls responded in kind, sinking the jumper on the mid-range shot from junior Nate Rucker, his first field goal as an Owl coming after his first starting nod, tying things up at two.
 
The Yellow Jackets then went up by three before KSU surged back, picking up its first lead of the game after back-to-back jumpers from Orlando Coleman to give the Owls the 10-9 lead seven minutes into the match.
 
The game then saw five lead changes over the next 90-seconds before KSU grabbed its biggest lead of the game at three points with a jumper in the paint from Andrew Osemhen and two free throws from Myles Hamilton with 11 minutes to play in the first.
 
Nigel Pruitt hit on the layup with 6:38 on the clock to maintain the three-point edge for KSU before the Yellow Jackets took the lead for good moments later on an old fashioned three-point play,  setting the score at 26-24 Georgia Tech.
 
Tech ended the half on a 14-2 run, sending the game into the intermission at 38-26 before going up by 18 three minutes into the second, 46-28.
 
But the Owls weren't done, bringing the Yellow Jacket lead down to just seven points with 4:14 to play after going on a 7-1 run that was sparked off by a Yonel Brown jumper followed by a Coleman steal and a dunk.
 
Brown then put in five straight to put the Owls within striking distance down the home stretch, but a three-pointer from Georgia Tech put the game out of reach as the Owls fell, 74-57.
 
Osemhen fell just one point shy of his career-high, putting in a season-best 13 points to lead the Owls on a 5-of-6 night from the field. Coleman was right behind with his 12 points to go with his seven rebounds.
 
On the boards it was Willy Kouassi who was tops with his eight rebounds and three blocks.
 
KSU will be back in action this Wednesday, Dec. 18 when the team heads to Statesboro, Ga. to take on the Eagles of Georgia Southern at 7 p.m. ET before a Dec. 22 contest at Big 10 Conference opponent Indiana.

To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State men's basketball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsMBB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook.
 
Season tickets are currently available for all the home court action for the Owls and can be purchased by following the link here.
   

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