MACON, Ga. - A second-consecutive double-double from
Prencis Harden was not enough to lift Kennesaw State (4-9) over Mercer (6-10), 70-54, to close the regular season non-conference schedule Tuesday inside Hawkins Arena.
Senior
Carly Hooks led the scoring charge with 22 points, her third game this season with 20 points or more and fifth as an Owl. She finished two shy of her Kennesaw State single-game career high.
Harden followed the Atlanta native with 12 points of her own against the Bears and 12 rebounds.
Tuesday concluded Kennesaw State's 13-game non-conference schedule that included wins over Florida Atlantic and Providence.
"We definitely challenged ourselves with a tough non conference schedule," head coach
Octavia Blue said. "We played some really good teams with winning traditions. We didn't shy away from that. Throughout all the ups and downs, we have learned a great deal about ourselves. We understand where our gaps are as a program and I believe we have prepared ourselves to compete at a higher level as we begin conference play."
Following where she left off in 2023,
Morgan Dillard scored the first points in the game on a quick layup.
Harden surpassed 150 points on the season with under seven remaining in the opening frame while
Kyndall Golden collected her conference-leading 24th blocked shot of the season. She had two total blocks Tuesday night.
Five of Harden's 12 rebounds came in the first quarter. She has posted eight-straight games with five-or-more boards.
The Bears led 19-10 after one.
After trailing 30-11 in the second, the Owls went on a 9-2 run, shutting out the Mercer offense from field goals for four minutes to cut into the deficit. 32-20. KSU trailed 42-24 at halftime.
Captains Hooks and Harden led the Owls with nine first-half points.
Hooks immediately acquired a double-digit-scoring game in the second half, scoring the first points for either side.
Freshman
Sophia Rueppell's first shot of the evening was good from beyond the arc, her team-leading 11th made three of the season.
KSU made four-consecutive field goals and did not allow a Mercer field goal for over three minutes to cut the score to 52-39 with 2:37 left.
A Harden free throw with 1:14 left in the third period gave the junior her sixth-straight double-digit-scoring game and eighth in the last nine games.
Mercer led 55-41 heading in to the fourth where Hooks entered with a team-high 18 points scored.
Hooks drained two free throws with under nine left in regulation to break 20 points on the evening.
Harden earned a double-double with her 10th rebound at the 4:32 mark.
The Bears kept pace with the Kennesaw State offense for the remainder of the fourth quarter to get the win, 70-54.
The Owls begin their final 16-game Atlantic Sun Conference slate on Saturday, Jan. 6 at 2:00 p.m. against Queens inside the KSU Convocation Center. Fans can purchase tickets for Throwback/90's Day vs. the Royals
here. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
"We are excited to open conference play back home in the Convo," Blue added. "We had an exciting crowd out last week at our game vs Georgetown, looking forward to seeing them back."
Kennesaw State joins Conference USA and NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision on July 1.
