USC UPSTATE AT KENNESAW STATE Feb. 4 | 2 P.M. | KSU Convocation Center Watch | Live Stats | KSU Game Notes Twitter: @KSUOwlsWBB

GAMEDAY STORYLINES
• Winners of three straight, Kennesaw State (5-16, 4-3) hosts USC Upstate (8-14, 1-6) Saturday (Feb. 4) at the KSU Convocation Center. Tip-off is 2 p.m. (ET).
• The Owls are coming off a 75-64 win over NJIT Thursday at the KSU Convocation Center.
• A win over USC Upstate will give the Owls their first four-game winning streak since they won a Division I program-record seven straight during the 2014-15 season.
• A victory over the Spartans will also give KSU its first four-game ASUN Conference winning streak since 2011-12 when the Owls won four in a row.
• Kennesaw State is averaging 64.4 points a game, and has three players - Deandrea Sawyers (17.7), Carlotta Gianolla (12.0) and Clara Young (10.0) – scoring in double figures in its last seven games.
• Current ASUN Conference Player of the Week Deandrea Sawyers leads KSU with 11 double-digit scoring games and ranks No. 2 on the program's all-time Division I scoring list with 1,256. She is 109 points shy tying Kristina Wells (1,374) for first place.
• Sawyers has scored 20 or more points in four of her last five games while averaging 21.8 points and shooting 45.6 percent from the field.
• Highly-respected head coach Agnus Berenato is in her first season leading the Owls' program.
• Berenato is in her 30th overall season as a head coach that includes tenures at Rider (1981-85), Georgia Tech (1988-2003), Pitt (2003-13) and Kennesaw State. Heading into Thursday's game, Berenato has posted a 449-429 (.511) record and guided her teams to 11 postseason appearances (5 NCAA, 6 WNIT).
• A win on Saturday will mark the 450th victory of Berenato's coaching career.

SATURDAY'S PROMOTIONS
Saturday marks Youth Day, and free Scrappy plush toys will be distributed, courtesy of the KSU Bookstore. The Zooperstars will perform at halftime. Deandrea Sawyers will be recognized for reaching 1,000 career points prior to the game. An on-court recognition of Cate Zavitz, an 8-year old girl who was drafted by the team through Team IMPACT, will be held postgame.
 
GUEST COACH
Cindy and Kenny Gillam will serve as guest coaches on Saturday. Cindy was a basketball player under head coach Agnus Berenato's sister, Bernadette McGlade, at Georgia Tech, and currently works as an administrative assistant in the Office of the Associate Vice President for Enrollment Services at Kennesaw State. Kenny was a football player for the Yellow Jackets, and is currently vice president at Allied Fences in Atlanta.
 
NJIT RECAP
Senior guard Deandrea Sawyers scored 13 of her game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter, and freshman Carlotta Gianolla recorded a double-double to lead Kennesaw State to a 75-64 victory over visiting NJIT on Thursday (Feb. 2). Gianolla added 12 points and a career-high 14 rebounds, senior Aareon Smith tallied a season-high 17 points, and junior Chloe Branch contributed six points and a career-high nine rebounds to help the Owls to their third straight win. The game had 14 lead changes and was tied nine times.
 
SCOUTING USC UPSTATE
The Spartans enter Saturday's game 8-14 overall and 1-6 in ASUN Conference play following an 84-77 loss at Lipscomb on Thursday. USC Upstate, which has lost five straight, is averaging 62.0 points a game and is led by senior guard Raven Jefferson, who is scoring 14.6 points a contest.
 
SERIES VERSUS USC UPSTATE
The Owls and Spartans will be meeting for the 36th time, and Kennesaw State leads the all-time series, 22-13. The two teams met earlier this season, and KSU recorded a 79-71 overtime victory.
 
UP NEXT
Following Saturday's game, the Owls return to action on Wednesday (Feb. 8) when they visit NJIT in New Jersey. Tip-off is 2 p.m.
 
WINNING FORMULA
In their five wins this season, the Owls are averaging 72.6 points a game, outscoring their opponents by 10.4 points a contest, and shooting 41.1 percent from the field. KSU has also been dominant on the boards, averaging 45.4 rebounds a game, and outrebounding their opponents by 14.8 rebounds a contest. Deandrea Sawyers has the led the way, averaging 18.6 points a contest, while freshman Carlotta Gianolla is averaging a double-double with 15.5 points and 11.5 rebounds a game.
 
SAWYERS EARNS ASUN HONORS
Senior guard Deandrea Sawyers is coming off an outstanding week in which she was named ASUN Conference Player of the Week. The Owls' senior guard averaged 24.5 points and nine rebounds a game, while shooting 46.7 percent (14-for-30) from the field and 90.0 percent (18-for-20) from the foul line. Sawyers reached the 20-point plateau in both games and recorded her first double-double of the season after scoring a career-high 29 points and collecting 12 rebounds during a 79-71 overtime victory at USC Upstate on Saturday (Jan. 28). Sawyers opened the week with 20 points, six rebounds and three assists in a win over North Florida on Monday (Jan. 23).
 
SAWYERS SIZZLING
Senior guard Deandrea Sawyers has made her presence felt in ASUN Conference play as she ranks third in the conference in scoring (17.7) and seventh in rebounding (6.1).
 
BOARD MEETING
Freshman Carlotta Gianolla has been a force on the boards during conference action. She is averaging 8.4 rebounds a game to rank second in the ASUN.
 
CHAMPIONS IN THE CLASSROOM
The Owls excelled in the classroom during the fall semester, posting a program record 3.57 grade-point average. A total of four student-athletes - Chloe Branch, Carlotta Gianolla, Katie Polinsky and Alexandra Landby - recorded perfect 4.0 GPAs.
 
THE GRADUATE
Redshirt junior Chloe Branch participated in commencement exercises on Dec. 13. The Owls' forward earned a bachelor's degree in political science and is pursuing a master's degree in public administration.
 
GIANOLLA ASUN NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
Freshman Carlotta Gianolla was honored earlier this season when she was named ASUN Newcomer of the Week (Dec. 26). The Owls' rookie averaged 12.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and connected on 43.2 percent of her field goal attempts, while averaging 28.3 minutes a contest during the Puerto Rico Classic. She was KSU's leading scorer in two of three games, reached double figures in each contest, and posted her first career double-double.
 
COACHING CONNECTIONS
The 2016-17 schedule features two opponents that are led by former assistants of first-year head coach Agnus Berenato. MaChelle Joseph, who was an assistant under Berenato at Georgia Tech, is now leading the Yellow Jackets' program, while her former assistant at Pitt, Yolett McPhee-McCuin, is now guiding the Jacksonville program.
 
THE COACHING STAFF
Head coach Agnus Berenato has assembled an experienced and well-respected coaching staff. Including Berenato's 29 years as a Division I head coach, the KSU coaching staff has a combined 55 years of experience at the Division I level. The staff is comprised of Khadija Head (8 years), Sherill Baker (4 years) and Lisa Pace (14 years).
 
WELCOME TO THE NEST
Head coach Agnus Berenato announced her first signing class on Thursday as the coaching staff inked four players to National Letters-of-Intent and one individual to a Grant-In-Aid. Brianna Dixon (Duluth, Ga. / Duluth High School), Breanna Hoover (Beaver Falls, Pa. / Blackhawk High School), Lexi Mann (Stone Mountain, Ga. / Greater Atlanta Christian) and Alexis Poole (Ellenwood, Ga. / Stockbridge High School) have signed National Letters-of-Intent and will enroll at Kennesaw State next fall. Caroline Dan (Copenhagen, Denmark / Falkonergaarden Gymnasium) has signed a Grant-In-Aid and will join the program in January.
 
OWLS 6TH IN ASUN COACHES POLL
Kennesaw State, coming off an 11-19 season and fifth-place finish a year ago, was picked sixth in the ASUN Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. Defending tournament champion Jacksonville, was picked first in the poll after receiving 60 points and five first-place votes. Regular-season champion Florida Gulf Coast was voted second, after collecting two first-place votes and 55 points. Kennesaw State garnered 23 points.

To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State women's basketball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook. Follow Coach Berenato on Twitter @KSUCoachB.   
 

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