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KENNESAW, Ga. – In a thrilling inter-state battle that came down to the very last second, Kennesaw State's Spencer Rodgers nearly capped off an outstanding night with a reverse layup to tie the game, but the shot was off the mark and the Owls would come up just short in a 73-71 setback to Mercer on Wednesday night in front of a season-high crowd of 1,518 in the Convocation Center.
In a game that saw several momentum turns, the Owls (3-5) were down to their last chance when the visitors extended their lead to 70-62 with just under two minutes to play. With their backs against the wall, the Owls responded, as Terrell Burden raced down the court for a quick layup, and after KSU's defense forced a badly missed three on the other end, Rodgers drained a three-pointer to make it a one-possession game, 70-67 with 1:01 on the clock.
Another great defensive possession for KSU led to a steal and a layup for Burden for a 70-69 game with 18 seconds to go. That left the Owls forced to foul, and Mercer (4-4) would make two at the other end, which were countered by a Rodgers layup from the left sideline to keep the deficit at one, 72-71 with 12 seconds to play.
Mercer would go 1-of-2 at the line, hitting the second, giving KSU one last chance. Again Rodgers found a path to the basket from the left sideline but his layup would not find iron, and time would run out on the Owls' comeback attempt.
STAT OF THE GAME: Mercer finished the night 8-of-19 from three-point range for 42.1%, and always seemed to come up with a timely trey when KSU threated early to open up the lead or to keep the Owls back in the second half. KSU meanwhile had a below average night from long range, connecting on just 7-of-26 for 26.9%. Another key factor was turnovers, as while both teams finished with 11, the Bears had a 13-6 edge for points off turnovers for the game.
OWL OF THE GAME: Rodgers did all he could on offense, scoring a season-high 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting. He was 2-of-5 from three-point range, and added three assists, a block and a steal.
FIRST HALF: It was KSU with the advantage for the majority of the first half, as the Owls scored the first four points of the game. The lead was still with the home team when a three-pointer from Chris Youngblood started a 7-0 spurt to give KSU its largest lead of the game, 21-11 at the 11:01 mark. Mercer though would rally, using a 16-5 run to grab its first lead of the game at 27-26 with 4:35 on the clock. The lead would switch hands six more times over the rest of the half. In what turned out to be the true turning point of the game, KSU went ahead on a layup with 1:31 to play at 34-33, but the Bears drained a pair of treys just 34 seconds apart to close out with the half with six unanswered for a 39-34 halftime lead.
SECOND HALF: KSU made several runs, closing within three with 17:18 to play on a Rodgers layup, while Mercer several times extended the lead to 10. After going up 64-54 with 5:27 left, Mercer was held to just six points over the next five minutes, allowing the Owls to make its come-back attempt.
QUOTEABLE: "I was really proud of our effort the last five minutes of the game. I was happy how we responded, but we needed to share the ball more at the end of the half and the beginning of the second half, we needed to put together a complete game and play more consistent to come away with the victory." – Head Coach Amir Abdur-Rahim
NOTES
-Joining Rodgers in double-figures was Burden with 13 and Youngblood with 12. Brandon Stroud meanwhile added nine points and a team-high seven rebounds.
-KSU finished 27-of-63 from the field for 42.9%, while the Bears shot 51% (25-of-49).
-Both teams had strong nights at the line, with the Owls making 10-of-13 for 76.9% and Mercer hitting 15-of-19 for 78.9%.
-The Owls held a 35-28 edge on the boards, which led to a 15-6 advantage on second-chance points.
NEXT TIME OUT: The Owls will be on the road for a second straight game against a SoCon opponent, this time at Wofford in Spartanburg, S.C., on Sunday in a 2 pm game.
