Wednesday, November 25
4 p.m. ET  – Kennesaw State (0-0, 0-0) vs Carver College (0-1, 0-0)
Links: ESPN+ | Live Stats
Location: Convocation Center | Kennesaw, Ga.
Game Notes: KSU
Tickets | COVID Gameday Procedures

TOP STORYLINES
» The Kennesaw State men's basketball team is back in action to kick off the 2020-21 season Wednesday afternoon hosting NCCAA foe Carver College. The season-opener marks the first athletic event at KSU in 259 days.

» It will be a completely different Owl squad hitting the court this year with 10 newcomers donning the black and gold. Only five Owls return from last season with just one player, Antonio Spencer, seeing action in more than 20 games a year ago.

» After earning his eligibility midway through the season last year, redshirt sophomore Jamie Lewis saw action in all 18 games. He finished the season as the team's leading three-point shooter with a 34.1 shooting percentage from beyond the arc. Lewis logged 11 points, going 3-for-3 from range, in his debut against Wofford. The Atlanta, Ga., native is the only returner to net 150 points or more last season.

» Wednesday's season-opener will mark the return of standout freshmen Terrell Burden and Armani Harris after suffering a pair of season-ending injuries. Despite appearing in just eight games, Harris averaged 7.5 rebounds and 7.1 points per game before being sidelined. He also added 12 assists, six steals and three blocks in that short time. Burden is one of the top returning scorers for KSU despite appearing in only 14 games. He finished the year still ranked second in the team averaging 9.5 points per game and racking up 133 total points over half the season. His 30 assists also ranked third on the team.

» KSU welcomes the top-ranked recruiting class in the ASUN this season, ranking among the top-75 in the country (61st). The Owls added three of the top-25 players out of the state of Georgia in Chris Youngblood (12th), Brandon Stroud (14th) and Kasen Jennings (23rd). Joining the trio are two top-15 prospects out of their home states, Mayson Quartlebaum who was ranked the No. 8 recruit out of Kansas and Cole LaRue who ranked 14th out of Alabama.

» In addition to a loaded freshman class, the Owls added standout transfers Spencer Rodgers, Alex Peterson and Nate Springs. Rodgers led Southwest Mississippi CC with 60 made three-pointers to average 12.8 points per game. Peterson saw action in 62 games across his two seasons at Missouri State West Plains, leading the team with 203 rebounds in 2019-20. Averaging 8.5 minutes in 21 games for Ohio, Nate Springs tallied 16 treys and 28 rebounds last season for the Bobcats. 

NEW YEAR, NEW TEAM
It will be a revamped Owl squad hitting the floor in 2019-20 as KSU returns only five players from last season, with only one seeing action in at least 20 games a year ago. KSU welcomes 10 newcomers to the Nest this year, seven freshmen and three transfers.

Only redshirt junior Antonio Spencer and redshirt sophomore Jamie Lewis appeared in more than 15 games last season. Spencer saw action in 23 games, earning 18 starts. He was one of two Owls to finish the year with over 100 total rebounds (107), averaging 4.7 per game. The Dallas, Texas native led the team and ranked eighth in the ASUN with 19 blocked shots.

Lewis is one of KSU's top returning scorers, averaging 8.3 points per game while leading the team in three-point shooting. After becoming eligible midway through the season, Lewis finished the season shooting 34.1 percent from range.

The Owls are one of 19 teams in the country that will need to replace over 70 percent of its scoring from 2019-20, losing 73.3 percent from last season.

YOUNG AND HUNGRY
This year's freshmen class is one of the most highly touted in recent years, currently ranked 61st in the country according to 247Sports.com. The class includes some of the top recruits out of Georgia, Alabama and Kansas.

Highlighting the freshmen class is the Georgia trio of Chris Youngblood, Brandon Stroud and Kasen Jennings. Three of the top-25 recruits out of the Peach State, Youngblood and Stroud were teammates at East Coweta HS, leading the Indians to a combined 43-14 record over the last two seasons. Youngblood and Stroud were East Coweta's leading scorers in 2019-20, averaging 20.2 and 15.9 points per game, respectively.  

Kasen Jennings helped lead Langston Hughes HS to a 21-9 record in 2019-20, including a Final Four berth in the GHSA 6A State Tournament. Jennings averaged 11.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game this past year.

Joining the trio are Cole LaRue and Mayson Quartlebaum.

The 14th-ranked recruit out of Alabama, LaRue helped McGill-Toolen go 22-9 in 2019-20, 48-15 over the last two years.

Quartlebaum comes to KSU all the way from Lawrence, Kan., playing his prep career at Lawrence HS. The eighth-ranked recruit out of Kansas, he helped the Lions go 38-9 overall over the past two seasons. No stranger to college hoops, Quartlebaum's father has been a coach for over 20 years, joining the Kansas coaching staff in 2013.

Rounding out the 2019-20 freshmen class are walk-ons Kenny Burns and Demetrius Rives.

Burns split his prep career between powerhouse Wheeler HS before playing this past season at The Skills Factory. Rives comes out of Tri-Cities HS, helping to lead the Bulldogs to a 2019 GHSA 6A State Championship and a berth in the 2020 Final Four, earning First Team All-Region honors.  

RETURN OF THE MACKS
Wednesday's season-opener marks the return of breakout players Terrell Burden and Armani Harris after suffering season-ending injuries in 2019-20. Both Burden (14) and Harris (8) appeared in less than 15 games their freshmen seasons, but remained some of the top Owls in multiple categories.

Burden made his debut in KSU's season-opener at Creighton, seeing action in 13 of the next 14 games, including nine starts, before being sidelined against Stetson. The Smyrna, Ga., native was one of the Owl's top scorers, averaging 9.5 points per game while netting double-digits seven times. He was the Owls' leading scorer in five games, including a career-high 21-point performance against Wofford.

Despite playing in half the games, Burden still finished last season ranked third on the team for total assists, dishing out 30 dimes. Burden logged a career-high seven assists against Iona.

Harris saw his freshman season cut short after just eight games, appearing in all eight games to open the 2019-20 slate. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native earned starts in his final three games against Elon, UNCG and FIU before suffering his season-ending injury.

In that short span, Harris was a force in the paint averaging 7.5 rebounds per game. He recorded seven or more boards in five of his eight games, including a season-high 15 against FIU. Harris also averaged 7.1 points per game, hitting double-figures in three games. He recorded his first career double-double in his final appearance against FIU, netting 10 points and 15 rebounds.

Harris also finished the year with 12 assists, six steals and three blocks. 

A TRANSFER OF POWER
The Owls have three incoming transfers this year looking to make an immediate impact in Alex Peterson, Spencer Rodgers and Nate Springs.

Coming from Missouri State University - West Plains, Peterson was one of the Grizzlies top performers this past season. He led the team averaging 6.8 rebounds per game while ranked second in scoring with a 14.3 points per game average. Peterson tallied 30 blocks on the year, adding 34 assists and 21 steals.

Making 62 appearances for MSUWP in his two seasons, Peterson finished his JUCO career with 364 total rebounds, 54 blocks and 683 points. Originally from Tappahannock, Va., he recorded a double-double in his career debut, logging eight total throughout his two seasons.

KSU's tallest transfer, standing at 6-10, Springs joins the Owls after spending his first two seasons at Ohio University. Redshirting during his freshman season, Springs made his debut against Capitol during the 2019-20 season recording seven points and four rebounds in 16 minutes of play.

Appearing in 21 games, Springs averaged 8.5 minutes and three points per game. He pulled down 28 rebounds while shooting 40 percent from three-point range with 16 made treys.

The Owls' final transfer, Rodgers, comes to KSU after stops at Troy his freshman season and Southwest Mississippi CC last season.

Rodgers appeared in 22 games for the Trojans, averaging 3.1 points per game while tallying 11 assists and eight steals. The Lawrenceville, Ga., native broke out last season averaging 12.8 points per game with 46 assists and 38 steals. He led the Bears with 60 made three-pointers, finishing the year shooting 40.2 percent form the floor and 34.7 percent from range. 

40 UNDER 40
Second year Head Coach Amir Abdur-Rahim was one of a select group to be named among ESPN's top 40 Under 40 collegiate basketball coaches this past May.

Abdur-Rahim, who ranked 19th on the list, took over the reins at KSU in April of 2019 for his first season as a head coach following stints as an assistant coach at Murray State, Texas A&M and Georgia. No stranger to championship teams and players, he has been a part of four NCAA tournament teams, including two sweet 16 appearances, while mentoring two eventual NBA draft selections.

Despite finishing his first season with a 1-28 record, Abdur-Rahim has laid the groundwork for a successful future signing Georgia standouts Terrell Burden and Armani Harris within a month of joining KSU.

Abdur-Rahim hit the ground hard this past offseason inking some of Georgia's top high school players to earn KSU's best recruiting class in recent memory.

A leader on and off the court, he was also one of over 40 coaches across the country to join the founding committee for Coaches 4 Change.

C4C is an organization that was founded by college basketball coaches who are dedicated to help their student-athletes, their campus and their communities by providing a platform that engages, educates, empowers and evolves the collegiate student-athlete on issues of social injustices, systemic racism and the power of voting in the endless pursuit of equality.

UP NEXT
KSU continues its season-opening homestand Saturday afternoon, hosting Toccoa Falls at 4 p.m.

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