KSU at Samford Box Score (PDF)
Follow KSU Men's Basketball on Social - Twitter | Instagram
SAMFORD, Ala. – In a fast paced, high scoring contest, Kennesaw State nearly pulled off an impressive second half rally, but a pair of shots right at the basket in the final seconds were both off the mark, allowing Samford to escape with an 85-84 home victory Saturday night in men's college basketball action from the Pete Hanna Center. The Owls dropped to 4-7 with the loss, while Samford improved to 9-2 overall.
The Bulldogs began second half with a 46-41 advantage, and extended the lead to 10 twice, the second time at 70-60 with 9:43 to play. The Owls had plenty of fight left in them however, and would go on a 20-8 spurt over the next 6:30. Terrell Burden scored nine points during the run, including a three-point shot at the shot clock buzzer. Spencer Rodgers meanwhile grabbed a defensive rebound and took it in for a layup and a 79-78 Owl lead, the first for KSU since it was 23-22.
After Samford went one of two at the free throw line for an 83-82 lead, Demond Robinson was fouled on a defensive rebound and sank two free throws to put KSU up 84-83 with 33 seconds on the clock. The Bulldogs jumped back ahead thanks to Ques Glover's mid-range jumper with 11 seconds to go to make it 85-84. KSU would call a timeout, and set up a play for Burden to drive to the basket for a game-winning shot. Burden drove to the right side of the paint and attempted a contested layup-up that was too strong off the rim. Robinson's putback attempt was off the rim as well right before the final horn sounded.
OWL OF THE GAME: Burden scored a season-high 25 points, just two off his career-high, thanks to 7-of-12 shooting from the floor and 10-of-11 at the free throw line. He also added seven assists and two steals for the night.
STAT OF THE GAME: Samford shot 61% from three-point range, making 11-of-18 from behind the arc, while the 11 made attempts were a season-high by a KSU opponent.
FIRST HALF: KSU was on first to start the game, making five of its first six shots to open a 12-4 lead. The Owls still led 19-12 off a Rodgers trey, when Samford hit back-to-back three-pointers for an 8-0 run and a one-point lead. The lead switched hands on the next four possessions, until another Samford three-pointer game the home team the lead for good for the rest of the half.
QUOTEABLE: "Really proud of our guys tonight, we came in and we fought against a really good Samford team on their home court. I told the guys that we can't let this loss define us, in the past we've had close losses put us in a hole. We're focused on getting better every game. We got better tonight, though obviously some things we have to clean up but I'm unbelievably proud of them, they played with the toughness and grit you need to win on the road. Defensively in the final 10 minutes we did a better job, we told them we needed to get stops, and we found a way to get back into the game. We had a great effort and there's nothing to hang our heads about tonight. I thought Terrell did a great job, he not only played up to his potential, I was very impressed with his leadership on the court." – Head Coach Amir Abdur-Rahim
NOTES
-KSU finished the night shooting 30-of-53 for 56.6%, which ranks as the 10th-best single game performance in team history. The Owls were 9-of-21 from three-point range (42.9%) and made 15-of-22 at the free throw line (68.2%)
-Chris Youngblood and Rodgers joined Burrell in double-figure scoring with 14 each. Youngblood also added a team-high seven rebounds.
NEXT TIME OUT: The Owls play their final game before the Christmas break on Wednesday, Dec. 22, with a 7:30 pm (ET) contest at Nebraska, in a game that will be televised on ESPNU.
