Postgame Press Conference – Antoine Pettway
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KENNESAW, Ga. – Kennesaw State nearly rallied all the way back from a 15-point halftime deficit, but the Owls' last second shot was off the mark, and Middle Tennessee escaped with a 76-75 victory on Saturday night from the Convocation Center. The loss offset another outstanding performance from Owl freshman Adrian Wooley, who finished with a game-high 29 points along with seven assists and four rebounds. KSU dropped the 14-10 overall, 6-5 in league play. MTSU meanwhile improved to 16-8, 7-4 in CUSA.
STAT OF THE GAME: The Blue Raiders shot 53.3% (16-of-30) from the floor in the first half, including 6-of-15 (40%) from three-point range. That gave the visitors a 49-34 lead at the break which was just enough to take the one-point victory.
THE FIRST HALF: KSU fell behind 12-4 just over three minutes into the game, and were down 17-8 with 14:19 on the clock. An 8-0 run, which featured six straight points from Simeon Cottle, brought the Owls within 17-16, but the Blue Raiders used separate runs of 5-0, 9-0 and 7-0 to take their largest lead of the game, 45-29 with 2:17 left in the half. It was a 46-34 advantage when MTSU drained a three at the halftime buzzer for a 15-point lead.
THE SECOND HALF: The Owls came out more composed both on offense and defense in the second half, and scored 11 of the first 15 points to close within 52-45 on a Wooley layup with 14:33 to play. MTSU answered with a 7-0 run, but a Wooley layup ignited a 14-4 run over a five-minute span. The Owls cut the edge down to three four more times, including with 1:03 to play to make it a 74-71 game. KSU then forced a miss on the other end, but Cottle's three-point shot was off the mark. The Owls still had a chance, as following two MTSU free throws, Wooley was fouled on a layup attempt and make two at the line to make the score 76-73. MTSU then missed the front end of a one-and-one, and Wooley was fouled with just five seconds on the clock. He made both, and KSU was forced to foul, with Cottle picking up his fifth foul with 4.6 seconds left. Jestin Porter would miss the front end of a one-and-one, but the Blue Raiders managed to slow the Owls enough to force an off-balance shot at the buzzer that fell short.
NOTES
- Cottle finished with 16 points, while Gordon picked up his first double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
- KSU finished the game shooting 44% (27-of-62), and just 5-of-18 from three-point range (27.8%). The Owls were 80% (16-of-20) at the line, including 10-of-11 in the second half (90.9%).
- The Owls narrowly won the rebounding battle 34-31, which led to an 11-2 edge on second chance points.
NEXT TIME OUT: The Owls go on the road for a two-game swing, starting with a Thursday night, 7:30 p.m. (ET) contest at Louisiana Tech in Ruston. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
