By: Zac Pike
Kennesaw State (7-8), (3-1)
at Austin Peay (8-6), (3-1)
Location: Clarksville, Tenn. | Winfield Dunn Center
Date: Jan. 14
Time: 4:00 p.m. EST
Live Stats |
Video
KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State women's basketball wraps up its three-game road swing at Austin Peay Saturday afternoon at the Winfield Dunn Center. Both teams enter the matchup tied for second place with a 3-1 mark in ASUN Conference play.
KSU enters the contest winning six of its past eight games and tries to start 4-1 for the first time since joining the ASUN in 2005-06.
Kennesaw State and the Governors met just over a week ago, with the Owls getting the 66-57 win. The Owls outlasted the Governors in a game that featured 12 lead changes and six ties. KSU outscored the visitors 41-31 in the second half to earn the nine-point victory. Four Owls scored at least 11 points. Lyndsey Whilby finished with a game-high 17, Jah'Che Whitfield added 11, while Amani Johnson and Keyarah Berry both chipped in 11 on the night. KSU leads the all-time series 3-2.
Whitfield anchors the KSU offense, averaging 13.7 points per game and has scored in double-figures in eight of the last nine games. Whilby is second on the squad, averaging 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and leads the Owls with 27 three-pointers on the season. Johnson is third in scoring, averaging 9.6 points and a team-best 5.2 assists, good for second in the ASUN Conference.
KSU Starts Conference Play 3-1 for First Time Since 2008-09
After a grueling non-conference slate that featured three games against Power-5 opponents, KSU has won six of its past eight games and Thursday's 71-53 win at Lipscomb put the Owls at 3-1 through four games in ASUN play for the first time in 15 years.
Owls Flying High
Kennesaw State is currently on a three-game winning streak, the first three-game streak since Feb. 5th through Feb. 12th last year when the Owls earned wins at Bellarmine, Central Arkansas and North Florida.
Defense is Key
The KSU defense drives the success of the team this season and the Owls are 7-2 when holding their opponent below 40 percent shooting from the field. Over the last three games, KSU has held each opponent below 60 points.
Hooks Posts Career-High 21 Points at Lipscomb
Carly Hooks stuffed the stat sheet in Thursday's win at Lipscomb. The ETSU transfer finished with a career-best 21 points, four rebounds, three steals, two blocks and two assists on the night.
Whitfield Leading Owls in Multiple Categories
Jah'Che Whitfield finished with a career-high 23 points and 10 rebounds at EKU in the ASUN Conference opener, posting her first double-double of the season and the ninth of her career. The Sumter, S.C. native has scored at least 14 points in eight of the last nine games and leads the Owls in scoring (13.7), rebounding (5.4), defensive rebounds (62), made field goals (76), field goals attempted (165), made free throws (40), free throws attempted (65), steals (22) and three-point percentage (.448).
KSU and Amani Johnson Break Records in Rout Over Coastal Georgia
Kennesaw State scored a program-record 109 points and
Amani Johnson added another record to an already illustrious career as the graduate senior scored 15 points to break the KSU Division I career scoring record as the Owls raced past Coastal Georgia 109-53. Johnson finished with her first double-double of the season, scoring 15 and dishing out a career-high 13 assists. Johnson surpassed
Alexis Poole on the all-time scoring list, who set the record last season for KSU. The Owls set season highs in points (109), field goals made (38), field goal attempts (81), free throws made (25), assists (23), steals (15) and blocked shots (6) in a dominant performance against the Mariners. Six Owls scored in double-figures in the 56-point win over the Mariners.
Scoring Weapons Return to Kennesaw State
The Owls return 73.8% of their scoring from a year ago. Graduate guards
Amani Johnson and
Jah'Che Whitfield combined for 602 total points in KSU's offense last season, with Johnson scoring over 300 points and Whitfield chipping in 235.
Power Five Influx
Kennesaw State made some new additions to the team this offseason, signing two guards and two forwards who transferred from Power 5 schools. Former Purdue guard and Georgia native
Lyndsey Whilby returns home to play her graduate season at Kennesaw State.
Keyarah Berry, a sophomore guard from Indiana, looks to spark the KSU offense to new heights as she scored 3,340 points in her high school basketball career, which ranks second all-time in the state of Georgia. Junior forward
Kyndall Golden previously played nine games at Vanderbilt, averaging 15.7 minutes per game in her sophomore season. Sophomore forward
Taylor Cullinan also returns to her native Georgia after playing six games at Alabama and an impressive career at North Paulding High School.
Owls Welcome New Assistant Coaches
The Owls added two new assistant coaches this past offseason. Malikah Willis joins the Owls with over 20 years of coaching experience from 10 different colleges, including West Virginia and Georgia Tech. Composed as a high-profile recruiter and veteran coach, Willis helped assemble seven top-25 recruiting classes and coached 16 student-athletes to all-conference honors, including five future WNBA draft picks. Drew Landers brings seven years of Division I coaching experience to KSU as a former assistant coach at USC Upstate for the previous two seasons. Landers improved the Spartans' win total by 14 games, finishing with a record of 22-8, as well as helping player recruitment and development on a national level.
Scouting Austin Peay
The Govs' have been led by their defense which ranks top 40 in both scoring and three-point defense. Austin Peay, who has won 23-straight games when holding opponents to under 50 points, did so twice in the opening week of ASUN Conference action. The Govs also have help opponents to under 22 percent from deep five times this season and garner a 4-1 record in such games, with the only loss coming to nationally ranked Duke. APSU's defense has allowed a program record 56.7 points per game and 26.4 three-point percentage, 3.5 points and 2.7 percent lower than the current programs record. The Govs earned their first ASUN Conference home win after earning a 50-46 win against the Hatters who were held to just 30 percent from the field and 13 percent from three-point range. Austin Peay knocked off Jacksonville State 47-43 to improve to 3-1 in conference action. APSU is the only team in the ASUN with multiple wins against a team in the top 100 of the NET rankings, with those wins coming against No. 97 Fairleigh Dickinson and No. 88 Murray State. The Govs currently sit at 164 in the rankings.
To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State women's basketball news, follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsWBB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook
