By: Joseph Hovey
Kennesaw State (2-0) at FAU (0-1)
Boca Raton, FL | Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena | Saturday, Nov. 7 | 2 p.m. EST | ESPN+
KENNESAW, Ga. — Kennesaw State women's basketball takes its show on the road for the first time this season as it faces Florida Atlantic on Nov. 7 at 2 p.m. EST in Boca Raton, Florida.
The Owls (2-0) opened the season with a pair of 30-plus-point wins over Shorter and Clayton State on Nov. 2 and 4, allowing fans to get a glimpse of first-year head coach
Tianni Kelly, her new-look team and coaching staff.
KSU COACHING HISTORY
A win on Saturday would make Kelly the first non-interim head coach in the Owls' Division I era (2005-present) to start 3-0 in her inaugural campaign leading the program. The last head coach with such a start was Ron Walker in 1986-87. With a win over FAU, Kelly would join Walker as just the second ever KSU head coach to win their first road game.
ELLIOTT EMERGES
The opening act of
Madyson Elliott's season features two games in which she's combined for 19 points and 18 rebounds, recording career highs in both categories as she scored 15 versus Clayton State and collected 12 boards against Shorter.
"Mady was huge on all fronts," Kelly said of Elliott's performance versus the Lakers. "She came off the bench and provided a spark for us when we needed it. She was aware at all times, defensively, and made big plays when the clock was running out. She did a phenomenal job."
CONTROL THE PAINT
Through two games, KSU has outrebounded opponents 93-59 at 46.5 boards per game. With a 29-9 advantage on the offensive glass, the Black and Gold are +17 in second-chance scoring (21-4) and +48 (86-38) in paint production. Against Shorter, six different KSU players recorded five or more rebounds.
Shania Nichols collected a career-high eight rebounds versus Clayton State.
Junior forward
Emaya Lewis's play versus Clayton State indicated her improved ability to make an impact in the interior for KSU. Lewis scored a career-high nine points and four rebounds versus the Lakers, with three of her boards coming on the offensive end.
"Emaya is growing quite a bit, especially in the confidence area," Kelly said postgame. "I can think of three offensive rebounds in key moments where she went and got it, and that's something we've been asking her to do more of. The more she continues to buy in, the better she's going to be."
TEAM BASKETBALL
KSU has recorded 41 combined assists in its two outings, including 21 on 29 made field goals against the Lakers. Junior guard
Riley Talbert leads the Black and Gold in assists, averaging 4.5 per game, after posting a career-high six against Clayton State.
Tracey Bershers' scoring efficiency keeps the assists flowing for KSU. Two games into her sixth season, the forward is shooting 12-of-15 from the field and averaging 13 points to co-lead KSU.
Junior guard
Kaelyn Flowers' 13 points per game is accompanied by an average of 4.5 rebounds and four assists.
SIT DOWN AND GUARD
Flowers has also registered four steals in each game, fueling the KSU defense's combined 25 steals, 51 forced turnovers and 36 ensuing points. In Wednesday's matchup with Clayton State, KSU held its foe to just four made field goals on 14 attempts.
FORGED IN FLORIDA
The weekend road trip is a Sunshine State homecoming for Owl guards
Arissa Jenkins (Haines City) and
Riley Talbert (Amelia Island), as well as for the former FAU Owl Lewis.
Jenkins scored over 500 points on her way to conference player of the year honors at Haines City High School. Talbert attended Jacksonville's Bishop Kenny High School, where she shot 48.2% for her career and averaged double figures as a junior and senior.
Lewis, a Loganville, Georgia, native, began her collegiate career at FAU in 2024-25, where she played in 22 games, averaging 2.1 points and 2.6 rebounds before transferring to KSU as a sophomore. Lewis was a teammate of current FAU players Erin Rodgers and Zahira Arizmendi.
Flowers also opened her collegiate career in Florida. The Murfreesboro, Tennessee, native played in 28 games and made one start on Florida Gulf Coast's 30-win, Atlantic Sun Conference Championship Team in 2024-25.
Kelly worked as an assistant coach at Florida Southern during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons. With Kelly on staff, the Mocs made two NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, including a Sweet Sixteen run in 2019, and won back-to-back Sunshine State Conference regular-season and tournament championships.
KSU assistant coach and director of player development
Brooklyn Pannell began her coaching career at Palm Beach Atlantic (2024-26) where she coached two players to All-Sunshine State postseason honors.
OWLS ON OWLS
KSU and FAU meet for the ninth time on Saturday. KSU trails 2-6 in the series after coming up just short in Kennesaw on Nov. 8, 2025.
Trailing 60-52 at the start of the fourth quarter, KSU used a 16-8 run to take a 66-64 lead on a go-ahead driving lay-in by Nichols with 2:08 to play. KSU clung to a 68-66 lead over the final 1:15 when FAU's Destyne Jackson hit a game-winning 3-pointer for the visiting Owls with six seconds remaining.
Keyarah Berry led KSU with 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting.
KSU returners Elliott, Nichols, Flowers and Lewis are not the only players in the black and gold with experience facing FAU.
Talbert and Bershers faced FAU a combined six times while playing at UAB. Bershers is 4-0 versus FAU, averaging 8.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in those meetings. In her last trip to Boca Raton, a 73-61 Blazer win over FAU, Bershers recorded a career-high six assists to go along with 12 points and five rebounds.
KNOW THE FOE
FAU enters its second year under LeAnn Freeland in 2026-27. A season ago, FAU went 14-18 (7-11) and finished ninth in the American Athletic Conference. FAU was picked to finish eighth in October's American preseason coaches poll.
The season began for FAU on Nov. 2 with a 75-48 defeat to Miami. Guards Erin Rodgers and Jaelynn Housey led FAU in scoring in the loss with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
The Champions Fund
The Champions Fund is a newly created, 100% tax-deductible, philanthropic opportunity to contribute strategic revenue to Kennesaw State Athletics, with the goal of strengthening our ability to recruit and retain top-tier talent in this new era of collegiate athletics. Contributions to the Champions Fund will help aid in funding student-athlete recruitment and retention, as well as helping the Owls provide competitive excellence through investments in coaching, travel and facilities. The fund will also give an elevated student-athlete experience, including enhanced academic, nutrition, wellness and leadership programs. Donate to the Champions Fund here and help us support our Kennesaw State Owls.
