Follow KSU Men's Basketball - Twitter | Instagram
FORT MEYERS, Fla. – On a record-setting night for the Owls, the heroics were provided for the second-straight game by senior guard Terrell Burden as his free throws with 31 seconds left broke a tie-game to give Kennesaw State its school-record (Division I era) 15th win of the season, 65-63 at FGCU in ASUN men's basketball action on Saturday night at Alico Arena.
KSU moved to 15-6 with the victory and stayed in a tie for first-place in the ASUN (7-1) with its fifth-straight victory, the longest streak for the Owls since a six-game win streak in the 2009-10 season. The Owls also snapped FGCU's (14-7, 4-4 ASUN) school-record 13-game home win streak, which had been tied for the eighth-longest active streak coming into the contest.
STAT OF THE GAME: The Owls held a huge advantage in the paint, outscoring FGCU 34-18 for the night. That helped KSU overcome an uncharacteristically poor night from three-point range, where the Owls hit just 4-of-16 (25%). FGCU meanwhile used the three-ball to climb back into the game after trailing by 11, and the Eagles would finish 10-of-30 from behind the arc.
OWL OF THE GAME: While Burden provided the winning points, junior Brandon Stroud paced the Owls in scoring for the second straight game, and he finished 7-of-10 from the floor while adding four rebounds.
THE FIRST HALF: For the second-straight game the Owls started out on fire, jumping out to a 9-2 edge thanks to a Stroud dunk just over four minutes into the game. Three consecutive treys from the Eagles put the home team up by two at 13-11, and the game was tied at 18-18 on another three-ball from FGCU. The Owls then took over defensively, holding the Eagles scoreless for the next seven minutes. KSU reeled off 11 straight during that stretch, going up 29-18 on another Stroud dunk. A three-point play from Quincy Ademokoya would give KSU a 10-point halftime edge at 36-26.
THE SECOND HALF: An 11-2 run to start the half by the Eagles, which included three baskets from three-point land, cut the Owl lead to just one with under 16 minutes to play (38-37). The game was tight the rest of the way with seven lead changes and a pair of ties. FGCU took its largest lead of the game at 60-57 with 3:05 to play. Burden led the Owl rally as he drew fouls on back-to-back possessions on drives to the basket. He sank both free throws on the first, and then made the first of two to tie the game at 60-60 with 1:51 to play. He missed the second, but Stroud came up with a huge offensive rebound to not only possession but would then drain his only three-point attempt of the night for a 63-60 KSU lead. FGCU hit a free throw at the other end, and after a KSU turnover, draw another foul and sank two more free throws to again tie the game at 63-60 with 59 seconds left. The Owls would run a play for Burden again to the basket, and he was knocked down to the ground on his layup attempt. Burden drained both free throws for a 65-63 lead. FGCU then missed a shot on the other end but got one more chance after KSU missed the front end of a one-and-one with 10 seconds left but again the Owls forced a missed shot to come away with the road victory.
QUOTEABLE: "We've been talking to our guys since late November about character through prosperity. Our character has been built from adversity the past few years, but to have character through prosperity is a totally different thing. To play the game we did the other night at Stetson and get that win, and then to come out tonight and gut out a win against a good FGCU team on their home court, tells me that our character is intact through prosperity. And on Brandon Stroud's game tonight, when he focuses on both ends of the court, we are really good. The best thing about him is he understands his responsibility to the team and he brings it every night and really played great today." - Head Coach Amir Abdur-Rahim
NOTES
-KSU's 15th win of the season tops the 2016-17 squad for most wins in the Owls' Division I history. That team finished the year at 14-18.
-The Owls have tied the Division I era school record for most road wins in a year, standing at 6-5 after the win over FGCU. The 2016-17 team was 6-13 mark in road games.
-KSU just tied last year's conference victory mark less than halfway through the league slate. KSU finished at 7-9 in ASUN play in 2021-22.
-The Owls' three-game road win streak is tied for the longest in school history (DI era), tying the three-game streak from the 2009-10 season.
-For the night, the Owls shot 49.1% (26-of-53) from the floor and made 9-of-11 at the free throw line (81.8%).
-KSU held a 35-29 edge on the boards, and a 15-11 advantage on second-chance points.
-Three Owls finished in double-figures, as joining Stroud was Burden with 12 points and Chris Youngblood with 11.
NEXT TIME OUT: The Owls are back in Kennesaw for a two-game homestand, starting with a big home doubleheader on Thursday, Jan. 26 with the KSU women's squad. It's a White Out for both games on Thursday, and all Owl fans are encouraged to wear white to the game. The first 1,000 fans to the men's game, tipping off at 7:30 p.m. against Austin Peay, will receive a free KSU white T-shirt as well.
