Score: Kennesaw State 64, NJIT 48
Records: Kennesaw State (8-13, 3-3), NJIT (3-18, 0-6)
Key Players: Allison Johnson (13 points, 10 rebounds); Aareon Smith (15 points); Kelly Dulkoski (14 points); Jasmine McAllister (11 points)
 
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KENNESAW, Ga.  – The Kennesaw State women's basketball team led wire-to-wire Saturday (Jan. 30) afternoon, taking a 64-48 final over NJIT in the first meeting in programs' history at the KSU Convocation Center in an Atlantic Sun Conference tilt.
 
The Owls were paced by freshman Allison Johnson, who totaled career highs of 13 points and 10 rebounds for her first double-double of her young career. Junior Aareon Smith continued her scoring ways as of late, totaling a game-high 15 points, while Kelly Dulkoski (14 points) and Jasmine McAllister (11 points) also finished in double-figure scoring.
 
The Owls wasted no time on the offensive end, shooting a blistering 85 percent overall from the floor before the first official timeout, jumping out to a 13-4 advantage and never looked back against the Highlanders. For the quarter, KSU shot 8-for-15 from the floor and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, as four players totaled points in the scoring column.
 
Kennesaw State, who entered the game outscoring its opponents by a 179-139 total in the first quarter, finished the quarter holding NJIT to just 25 percent shooting from the floor to take a commanding 23-8 lead into the second frame.
 
Dulkoski's hot shooting in the second guided the Owls to a 17-point lead at the half, as the redshirt sophomore was perfect from the field, shooting 4-for-4 from the field, 3-for-3 from beyond the arc and a perfect 2-for-2 at the free throw line.
 
Kennesaw State outscored NJIT, 14-12, in the second quarter while holding the Highlanders to just 30.8 percent from the floor overall in the first 20 minutes of play. KSU forced 10 turnovers and totaled 12 points off those turnovers to help them take a 37-20 advantage into the second half.
 
Trailing by 17, the Highlanders came out in the third and put together their best quarter of the game, outscoring Kennesaw State 14-11. NJIT shot 60 percent from the field and 66.7 percent from beyond the arc in the quarter.
 
However, after NJIT used a 6-0 run and got within 10 points in the quarter, the Owls got buckets from McAllister and Johnson to push its lead to 48-34 entering the final frame.
 
The two teams went back-and-forth in the final quarter, but in the end the Owls' 22-point edge late in the second quarter proved to be too much for the Highlanders to overcome on Saturday afternoon.
 
For the game, Kennesaw State shot 19-for-48 from the field and 43 percent from beyond the arc. The Owls also made 20-for-26 free throws, good for 77 percent on the game. KSU outscored the Highlanders in three of the four quarters and outscored them, 11-8, on the bench.
 
Next
Kennesaw State will return next week for a pair of Atlantic Sun Conference games, trekking to USC Upstate on Thursday (Feb. 4) at 7 p.m. and then flying up to Newark, New Jersey to take on the Highlanders on Saturday (Feb. 6) at 1 p.m.
 
Coach Perry Quote
"We had the more aggressive mindset from the start and we found a way to score. Allison Johnson was great today. She buys into the energy part of the game and she is our energizer bunny. Allison focuses on the fundamentals and knocked down some free throws today. This NJIT team has been very competitive in the conference and we wanted to come out in the third quarter with some presser. We knew they would fight back and we were ready."
 - Kennesaw State Head Coach Nitra Perry 

Notes
- Saturday's matchup marked the first matchup between NJIT and Kennesaw State in programs' history.
- The Highlanders joined the Atlantic Sun Conference in 2015, the newest member of the eight-team league.
- Allison Johnson totaled a career-best 13 points on the day, shooting 5-of-8 from the field.
- Johnson also recorded her first double-double of the season, finishing with 10 rebounds for the game.
- Four players totaled points in the double-figure scoring column on the day.
- Kelly Dulkoski and Aareon Smith combined to make the Owls' 3-pointers on the day.
 
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.