Friday, November 11
9:30 p.m. ET – Kennesaw State at Iowa (Big Ten Network+)
Links: Live Stats | Video | Game Notes
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EASY BUCKETS
» Kennesaw State basketball enters its 32nd season as a program and its 12th season in NCAA Division I.
» Head coach Al Skinner enters his 24th season as a head coach and second at Kennesaw State. Coach Skinner currently is four wins away from career win 400 as he is sitting on 396 coming into the season.
» This year the team has eight returning plays with six freshmen expected to make a difference when they step on the court.
» Kendrick Ray enters his senior season after being named ASUN Newcomer of the Year a season ago after averaging 18.7 points per game. He set a Kennesaw State single-season record with 579 points.
» This is the first meeting between Kennesaw State and Iowa.
 
A WIN AGAINST IOWA WOULD

• Give the Owls their second victory in program history over a school from one of the five major conferences. The first came when KSU beat Georgia Tech in 2010.
• Be the first victory in the opening game for the Owls since the 2010-11 season when the team started 2-0 beating Georgia Southwestern and Georgia Tech.
• Make history as a win in the first road game of the season since the Owls joined Division I.

 
THE ALL-TIME SERIES VERSUS IOWA
This will be the first meeting between Kennesaw State and the Iowa Hawkeyes.
 
SCOUTING IOWA

• Fran McCaffery enters his sixth season with Iowa.
• A season ago, the Hawkeyes finished the season 22-11, making it to the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament before falling to eventual National Champion Villanova.
• Iowa returns seven letterwinners, including second leading scorer Peter Jok (16.1 ppg) from a year ago.
• The Hawkeyes have won at least 20 games in four straight seasons and been in post-season play the last five years.
• Iowa ranked 19th in national attendance for the 2015-16 season.

 
RAY LANDS ON PRESEASON ALL-ASUN TEAM
Kendrick Ray was selected to the ASUN Preseason All-Conference team after leading the conference in scoring during conference play a season ago and being named Newcomer of the Year. Despite finishing fifth last season, the Owls were chosen to finish in seventh in the ASUN race in the coaches and media poll.
 
FINISHING FIRST YEAR STRONG
In Coach Skinner's first season, the team was ready to play when it mattered most to close out the regular season and entering the ASUN Tournament. In February, the Owls were 5-2 including knocking off the top two teams in the conference at home in the KSU Convocation Center to clinch the five seed in the ASUN Tournament.
 
SENIOR CAPTAINS
Kendrick Ray and Aubrey Williams were both named captains for this season. Last season, Ray led the team averaging 18.7 points per game and set a new school record with 579 points on the season.
 
Also a newcomer last season, Williams was a spark off the bench averaging 8.3 points per game and leading the team in rebounding with 6.3 per game.
 
2016-17 Team
Fortunately for Coach Skinner, he has eight returning players from a season ago that learned his system last year to help bridge the learning curve that the six freshmen are facing right now.
 
2016-17 Schedule
The team will kick off its season at Iowa on Friday, November 11. In the beginning of the season, the Owls will be on the road quite a bit playing nine of their first 12 games on the road.
 
In total, KSU will have 13 home games in the KSU Convocation Center and 17 road games.

All Over the Map

The six new freshmen are coming to Kennesaw State from all over the world as five of them are from different states and one is from Denmark. That fits in with the rest of the roster as only four current players out of 15 are from the state of Georgia.

Exhibition Win
Last Friday night, Kennesaw State hosted Georgia Southwestern at the KSU Convocation Center. Aubrey Williams led the Owls with 12 points and 11 rebounds in a victory over the Canes. Coach Skinner went to his bench early to get the team's six new freshmen live game action.

Closing in on 400
Head Coach Al Skinner is close to a career milestone as he currently sits on win 396 and just four wins away from number 400.

Season tickets are on sale for $99 for the 13 games played in the KSU Convocation Center. For more information on purchasing season or single-game tickets, call the KSU Ticket Office at 470-578-6957 or click HERE to purchase now.

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.

- #GoKSUOwls -

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