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KENNESAW, Ga. – The Kennesaw State women's basketball team dropped its Atlantic Sun Conference opener to Jacksonville, 74-63, despite a strong second half performance on Thursday night (Jan. 2) at the KSU Convocation Center.
 
The Owls fall to 2-10 on the season and 0-1 in conference action, while JU improves to 4-8 and 1-0 in league play.
 
"I thought we played inconsistent today," said head coach Nitra Perry. "I thought we looked really good at times and then we had times in the first half where we kind of went on a drought. My biggest disappointment was our rebounding effort. If we had limited them to one shot [per possession] in the first half it would have been a totally different ball game. They had 10 offensive boards in the first half to our 10 boards overall in the first half. We dug ourselves a hole so deep we could not get out of it. The second half effort was phenomenal. I was really proud of them for that."
 
Junior guard Kristina Wells posted her sixth double-double of the season with a season-high 17 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Owls, while junior guard Bria Young equaled her season-high with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including two three-pointers.
 
"Our thing the last couple of weeks has been building a foundation," continued Perry. "Last week before our win against Alabama A&M, I brought in a shovel. We signed it and we just committed to digging. I just reminded them of that at halftime. I brought in a brick and just told them it's one thing at a time whether we win or lose." 
 
After trading baskets in the opening minute of the contest, the Dolphins spurred ahead by six with five-straight points for a 9-3 lead. The Owls then went on a mini 6-2 run to even the game at 11-11 at the 15-minute mark.
 
KSU took its first lead of the game on a three-pointer from Young, before JU reclaimed a 15-14 lead. Young again put the Owls on top at 16-15 with a driving layup to the basket, but a 13-0 Dolphin run over the next six minutes halted the KSU momentum.  
 
A second three-pointer by Young ended the KSU drought with just over six minutes left in the half with the Dolphins leading 28-19. JU then ended the period on another 13-4 run for a 41-23 lead heading into the break.  
 
Out of intermission, the Dolphins sprinted out to their biggest lead of the night at 51-25 with just under 16 minutes left in the contest.
 
Despite the deficit the Owls continued to battle, picking up the intensity on both sides of the court as KSU used a 23-6 run over the next eight minutes to cut the JU lead to nine at 57-48. Wells' 10 points highlighted the run, including connecting on six freebies in that span.
 
A trey from freshman guard Deandrea Sawyers just two minutes later moved KSU to within eight at 61-53. It would be as close as the Owls would get as the Dolphins scored the next four points to push their lead to 12 and held off the furious KSU rally for the 74-63 win.  
 
The Owls were outrebounded for only the fifth time all season, 42 to 31, with JU grabbing 16 offensive rebounds, 10 in the first half, and converting them into 14 second chance points.
 
The Dolphins also took advantage of 16 KSU turnovers, translating the giveaways into 16 points.
 
Sawyers added 10 points and three assists for the Owls, while freshman forward Gratia Brooks continued her strong play with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting.  
 
Redshirt-senior forward Lisa Capellan and freshman forward Chloe Branch each contributed seven points in the contest, with Capellan and Branch also grabbing six rebounds and five boards, respectively.
 
Sherranda Reddick led the Dolphins with 18 points, with Briona Brown pouring in 15 points. Jade Cargill added a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds for Jacksonville.
 
Kennesaw State will wrap up its four-game home stand with a 2:30 p.m. ET contest against North Florida on Saturday, Jan. 4 at the KSU Convocation Center. Saturday's game will be the second KSU basketball game of the day, as the men face East Tennessee State at noon for an Owl basketball doubleheader Saturday.
 
To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State women's basketball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsWBB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook.
 
Season and single game 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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