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Score: No. 8 Kennesaw State 59, No. 1 Liberty 69
Records: Kennesaw State (5-19, 2-13), Liberty (21-5, 11-2)
Key Players: Terrell Burden (27 pts, 7 rebs, 4 assts), Alex Peterson (11 pts, 12 rebs, 5 stls) and Chris Youngblood (15 pts, 2 rebs, 1 stl).
 
THE STORYLINE 
Led by Terrell Burden's career-high 27 points and a double-double from Alex Peterson, the Kennesaw State men's basketball team battled top-seeded Liberty in the opening round of the ASUN Conference Tournament tied 23-23 at halftime. The Flames eventually got hot, shooting 62.5 percent in the second half to down KSU 69-59 Thursday afternoon at UNF Arena and end the Owls' 2020-21 season.

ABDUR-RAHIM QUOTES
On tonight's game…
"Hats off to Liberty, Coach McKay, his staff and that program. It's a reason why they're good, they have a great leader at the helm in Coach McKay and his guys they take on his personality, they take on his toughness and his demeanor. Our third time playing them this year, each first half has been the same and the second half has kind of been the same in their response so hats off to them, they do a great job. But also, really proud of my guys and how they fought and battled all year."
 
On Spencer Rodgers…
"If you would've told me we'd be tied at the half and he would be 0-for-6, I would've been like 'I'll take it all day.' If you would've told me we'd be within 10 and he'd be 1-for-13, I would've taken it all day. Even more so than Spencer not being his usual self, I thought our turnovers both halves really hurt us. Liberty is a good team defensively, but they are not necessarily up there trying to pressure you and take you out of what you're doing. We were just too anxious at times, not playing to what we work on, not playing to what we do, and anytime you have 15 turnovers against a really good team like Liberty it's going to be hard to beat them. I really believe had Spencer even played the way that he plays, but we had six turnovers instead of 15 turnovers, I think we would've been in a better place to be honest. Spencer Rodgers, in my opinion, I think he's the best guard in our league and I'm biased somewhat, but I think based on his performance this year, night in, night out, it's hard to find a guard that can play at all three levels like he does and play the amount of minutes he does."
 
On Terrell Burden…
"This year has been really awkward for him, he got hurt the second game of conference last season so he didn't get a spring or summer of development. None of the guys got a summer of development, but Terrell he didn't really have a chance to work on his game or improve because he was rehabbing from a knee injury. I really thought that it took him until probably the middle of conference to really get his legs back under him and start to play to the level that he is capable of playing. It means a ton when he can score like that because it gives us a third scorer between him, Spencer Rodgers and Chris Youngblood. And obviously Spencer had a tough day, but I love him for continuing to battle. Anytime Terrell can give us that third scoring option like he has over the last month, we'll be in a good place."  

HOW IT HAPPENED
After the Owls took a 3-0 lead to open the game, Liberty responded with a 6-0 run before back-to-back buckets from Alex Peterson and a triple from Chris Youngblood capped off a 7-0 swing to give KSU a 10-6 lead at the 13:33 mark. The Owls kept pressing as Terrell Burden drove for two straight layups to spark a quick 6-0 run to make it 16-10 with 6:46 to play in the first period.
 
The Flames ended KSU's run with a three-pointer, eventually tying the game at 18-18 after another triple at the 4:50 mark. Youngblood answered with his second three-pointer of the game to put KSU on top, but a quick jumper and a three-pointer off a turnover put Liberty in front 23-21 with just over a minute to go. Burden put the teams back on level terms at the half with a layup in the final seconds to knot the game at 23-23.
 
Burden, along with Youngblood, led all scorers with eight points in the half while logging four rebounds, two assists and a block in the period. KSU's defense shut down Liberty in the first half, holding the Flames to 28.6 percent from the floor and outscoring Liberty 14-4 in the paint.
 
After a back-and-forth start to the second half, Liberty pulled in front with back-to-back layups to lead 31-27. The Flames extended their lead as LU's Kyle Rode netted two straight three-pointers to make it 37-27. Youngblood finally snapped the drought, bringing Liberty's 12-0 run to an end with a pair of jumpers to cut it to 42-31 with just under 11 minutes still to play.
 
An 8-0 run extended the Liberty's lead to its highest of the game, 52-33, before Burden ended KSU's five-minute cold streak with back-to-back jumpers. Burden chipped away at the deficit in the final minutes with a 6-0 run of his own to make it 60-49 at the 1:23 mark. Spencer Rodgers got the Owls back within single-digits, 63-55, with a three-pointer at the 34-second mark, his lone bucket of the day. The two squads traded points in the final seconds with Burden recording two straight jumpers to give him 19 points in the second half.
 
NOTES
- Terrell Burden recorded a career-high 27 points and seven rebounds. It was his second straight game with 20+ points and third of his career
- Alex Peterson recorded double-digit rebounds for the second time this season, finishing with a career-high five steals.
- Chris Youngblood went 3-for-4 from three-point range, his 11th game this year with three or more treys.