KENNESAW STATE (5-2) VS MURRAY STATE (3-5)
GAME 8 | DECEMBER 6 | 2:30 P.M. ET
KENNESAW, Ga. | KSU CONVOCATION CENTER (4,800)
 
GAME NOTES | LIVE STATS | ESPN3 | PROMOTIONS | TICKETS | TWITTER
 
THE GAME:
After three weeks away from the friendly confines of the KSU Convocation Center, the Kennesaw State women's basketball team returns home to face Ohio Valley Conference member Murray State on Saturday, Dec. 6. Tipoff is slated for 2:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on ESPN3.
 
THE COVERAGE:
LIVE STATS: Statistical updates will be available from KSUOwls.com at the start of Saturday's game.
ESPN3: ESPN3 will have the live broadcast of Saturday's game with Nathan McCreay and Theresa Gernatt on the call.
TWITTER: Follow the Kennesaw State women's basketball team on Twitter @KSUOwlsWBB to receive updates throughout the game.
 
THE PROMOTIONS:
Saturday's game will be a part of a KSU basketball double header, with the KSU men's basketball team playing prior to the women at 12 p.m. Saturday will be Study Break Day with Georgia Lottery giving away $1,000 to two lucky students. Wellpath will also be on site for free massages and the KSU Bookstore will be giving away a semester's worth of books. Finally, four students will win passes and t-shirts for Monday night's Cram Jam event.
 
THE OPPONENT:
Murray State
The Racers enter Saturday's contest on a three-game losing streak after starting off the season with three wins (Alabama A&M, Blackburn and Lipscomb) in its first five games. MSU lost in overtime in its most recent outing as Evansville took a 93-83 win on Wednesday. All three of the Racers' wins have come at home in the CFSB Center, while they are 0-2 on the road this season. The Racers are led by Keiona Kirby and Ke'Shunan James with 17.4 and 16.9 points per game, respectively. On the boards, Netanya Jackson grabs 7.0 rebounds for the Racers, who are averaging eight three-pointers per game. MSU is also averaging 20.5 turnovers per game, but is also forcing 17.9 giveaways from its opponents as well. 
 
THE SERIES:
This will be the second-ever meeting between the Owls and the Racers, with Murray State taking a 72-66 win in the teams' first-ever meeting last season on Nov. 26 in Murray, Ky. Sophomore Deandrea Sawyers continued her strong play with a career-high 24 points, while also registering seven rebounds and two assists on the night. Senior guard Kristina Wells added her third double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 boards, while also posting a pair of steals for KSU.
 
All-Time Record: MSU leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: Murray State won, 60-54, on Dec. 3, 2013 in Kennesaw, Ga.  
 
LAST TIME OUT:
The Kennesaw State women's basketball team overcame a slow start to earn the program's first-ever win over Georgia State, 73-64, on Wednesday night (Dec. 3) at the GSU Sports Arena. Junior Jasmine McAllister paced the Owls with a career-high 26 points on 11-of-16 from the field and eight rebounds, while sophomore Deandrea Sawyers was two points shy of a career-high with 22 points. Senior Kristina Wells added nine points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, while not committing a turnover in the winning effort.
 
NEXT UP:
The Owls will break for finals week, before returning to action on Saturday, Dec. 13 as KSU hosts its second-straight Ohio Valley Conference opponent with Jacksonville State coming into town at 2 p.m. in the KSU Convocation Center.
 
NEWS AND NOTES:
Best Start Since…
With five wins in the first seven games, the Owls are off to their best start since the 2004-05 season when KSU opened its campaign with seven wins in its first nine contests.
 
Free Throws
The Owls lead the Atlantic Sun Conference and ranks 31st nationally with a 75.4 free throw percentage and have converted on 104-of-138 shots from the charity stripe.
 
Owls from the Field
KSU is also shooting it well from the field and have connected on 41.5 percent of its shots, which sits second in the conference.
 
Back-to-Back A-Sun Newcomer of the Week
Junior Jasmine McAllister earned her second-straight A-Sun Conference Newcomer of the Week accolade on Monday after averaging 18.5 points and 12.5 rebounds over the last week, while shooting the rock at a 61.9 percent from the field and a 73.3 clip from the charity stripe.
 
McAllister Leading the Way
McAllister is leading the league in both scoring and rebounding with 17.3 points and 11.3 rebounds per game, with her 11.3 boards per contest also ranking 21st in the nation.
 
Double-Doubles
McAllister has registered four double-doubles on the season, which leads the A-Sun and ranks 11th in the NCAA.
 
Offensive Boards
McAllister is also leading the league and ranks sixth nationally with 5.0 offensive rebounds per game. On the season, the Memphis, Tenn., native has pulled down 35 boards on the offensive side of the court.
 
Owls in A-Sun Scoring
Along with McAllister, the Owls have three players in the top 15 in scoring in the A-Sun. Joining the junior are sophomore Deandrea Sawyers (15.1 ppg, t-fourth) and senior Kristina Wells (11.6 ppg, 15th).
 
Owls in A-Sun Rebounding
The trio, along with redshirt-senior Breonna Mosely, also ranks in the top-20 in the conference in rebounding with McAllister leading the way, followed by Wells (6.7 rpg, seventh), Sawyers (5.1 rpg, 13th) and Mosely (4.9 rpg, 17th). 
 
Field Goal Percentage
McAllister leads the conference and ranks 50th in the nation with a 56.1 field goal percentage, making 46-of-82 field goals, while Mosely is close behind the junior with a 50.0 field goal percentage and ranks in a tie for third in the conference in that category.
 
Dishing the Rock
Junior Karly Frye is averaging 4.4 assists per game, ranking her second in the conference and has dished out 31 helpers on the year.
 
Wells from the Charity Stripe
Wells has led the Owls from the charity stripe and ranks sixth in the conference with an 83.9 percentage from the free throw line, going 26-of-31 through seven games this season. She opened the season with 16-straight free throws, before missing her first attempt at Georgia Southern on Nov. 22.
 
Assist-to-Turnover Ratio
Wells ranks second in the conference with a 2.8 assist-to-turnover ratio and has only committed eight turnovers in 225 minutes this season, while dishing out 22 assists in seven games.
 
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.