By: Mark Wasik
Monday, March 4
Atlantic Sun Championships First Round
7 p.m. – #9 seed Kennesaw State (15-15) vs #10 seed Jacksonville (14-16)
Location: Richmond, Ky. | Baptist Health Arena (6,500)
TV: ESPN+ (Greg Stotelmyer, Doug Sallee)
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KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State opens this year's 2024 Atlantic Sun Men's Basketball Championships as the ninth seed and will face 10th-seed Jacksonville in the first round at 7 p.m.on Monday night. The game will be played on the campus of Eastern Kentucky, this year's top-seed, as the winner between KSU and JU will then face the Colonels on Tuesday in the quarterfinal round. Monday's game will be live streamed on ESPN+.
A FEW NOTES
♦ The Owls will be looking for their first-ever 3-0 sweep of a team during the season (Division I era), as KSU claimed an 83-79 road win at Jacksonville and a 66-61 home win. KSU has won three straight in the all-time series against the Dolphins, and four of the last five.
♦ Monday's game will be the Owls' first game on a neutral court in the ASUN tournament since a 69-59 loss to top-seed Liberty in the 2021 tournament that was held in the UNF Arena in Jacksonville, Fla., while this will also be the Owls' first-ever post-season game in the state of Kentucky.
♦ KSU is 13-1 when holding teams under 80 points, and 2-14 when allowing their opponent to score 80 or more.
♦ Under first-year head coach
Antoine Pettway, the Owls are playing at the fourth-fastest pace in the nation (according to KenPom). In addition, KSU also ranks eighth in the NCAA in fastbreak points (15.6 ppg), 12th in three-point field goal attempts per game (28.8) and 15th in scoring per game (82.7 ppg). Senior guard
Terrell Burden meanwhile is 15th in the nation in assists per game (6.2).
