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KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State began the night listening to "Fireman" in their opening hype video, and then proceeded to light the nets on fire from three-point range, knocking down 15 from behind the arc (11 in the first half), which combined with a school-record setting defensive performance led to a 95-36 dominating victory over Brewton-Parker on Monday night in men's college basketball action from the Convocation Center. KSU's 59-point win margin is the second-largest in school history, and the largest as a Division I program. The Owls improved to 2-1 on the season with the victory in what will be their last home game until Dec. 17.
STAT OF THE GAME #1: The Owls used a suffocating defensive effort to completely shut down the Barons, holding BPC to just 36 total points and 21.7% shooting (13-of-60) for the game. The 36 points set a new school record for fewest points allowed by the Owls in a game, breaking the previous record of 39 scored by Clayton State in a 43-39 Owl victory on March 6, 2004.
STAT OF THE GAME #2: KSU would outscore the visitors by 36 points from three-point land, highlighted by its 11-of-22 performance in the first half. The Owls tacked on another four in the second stanza to finish with 15 for the game, which ties for the third most in a game in KSU history.
OWLS OF THE GAME: While a number of players stood out, junior
Brandon Stroud turned in an outstanding all-around game in his 18 minutes of action. He finished 5-of-6 from the floor for 12 points, was 2-of-3 from three-point range, and shined on the defensive end as well, grabbing a game-high nine rebounds to just miss the double-double while also collecting a steal and a block.
THE FIRST HALF: KSU jumped out to a 6-0 lead 50 seconds in thanks to back-to-back treys from
Spencer Rodgers and
Chris Youngblood, and the Owls never looked back. The hosts would score 14 of the first 16 points, and did not allow BPC to reach double-digits until there were under 10 minutes left in the half. By that point KSU had opened up a 27-8 advantage. The lead was still at 19 points, 32-13, when KSU completely blew the game open with a half-ending 22-6 spurt for a 54-19 halftime lead.
THE SECOND HALF: The Owls took advantage of the large margin to get the entire roster into the game in the second half, and several bench players made big contributions in that second stanza, most notably Simeon Cottle and Quincy Ademokoya. KSU did not let up on defense despite the big lead, holding the Barons to just 19.4% shooting for the half.
QUOTEABLE: "Was very pleased with our overall effort as a team. We talked a lot about being a mature team, and I felt we played like how a mature team does, there was not really any area where we had any drop off tonight. With our upcoming schedule, three games in three days in the Appalachian State tournament, I was very pleased we were able to play a lot of our non-starters and they could get significant minutes playing together, especially Simeon, Quincy and Kasen (Jennings)."-
Head Coach Amir Abdur-Rahim
NOTES
- The Owls' 50 rebounds on the night is the fifth-most ever in KSU history.
- KSU dominated the paint with a 42-14 advantage, and held a 35-7 advantage on points off turnovers, thanks to forcing 26 by BPC. Leading to that advantage was a school-record 17 steals by KSU. The Owls also outscored the visitors in bench points 60-14.
- Four players finished in double-figures, led by Youngblood, Cottle and Ademokoya, all with 15 each. For Cottle it was a new career-high, while Ademokoya tied his previous career-high first set while at Temple.
NEXT TIME OUT: The Owls will now play their next seven games away from their home court, starting with this weekend's Appalachian State MTE. KSU will face Southeast Louisiana, alma mater of KSU head coach Abdur-Rahim, on Friday at 4 p.m., followed by a Saturday, 7 p.m. contest against the host ASU Mountaineers. The three-day event will conclude for KSU on Sunday against Campbell at 12 p.m.
