A week ago we said the Austin Peay game would be the first one to tell us something real about the Kennesaw State men. It told us plenty, and so did Tuesday night. Two games in a row, the Owls fell behind by double digits. Two games in a row, they won. Meanwhile, the women are coming off their first loss and get the biggest test of their young season tonight in Athens.
Men: 3-0, and nobody's panicking down 11 anymore
Friday: 71-69 over Austin Peay. KSU trailed 21-3 in the first half and didn't lead until Avery Thomas II hit a three with 34 seconds left. Kris Parker won it at the line with 0.8 seconds to go. It was the program's biggest comeback since 2016, and we covered every swing in our Austin Peay recap.
Tuesday: 88-79 over Winthrop. This time the hole was 11, at 23-12 midway through the first half. The Owls cut it to 33-32 by the break, then poured in 56 second-half points. Here's what stood out.
1. Levi Ball is more than a freshman spark. Ball came off the bench for a career-high 19 points with three threes and a game-high three steals. He hit the three that tied it 35-35 to open the second half and another one that put KSU up 46-42. In his debut against Midway he scored 11. Three games in, he looks like a guy who'll be on the floor in close games all season.
2. The Owls closed like a veteran team. After Winthrop cut it to 61-60 with 8:24 left, KSU made its final eight field-goal attempts. Kyler Theophile started that run with a three and capped it with another one for a 75-67 lead. Amir Taylor matched Ball's 19, a season high, and finished one rebound shy of a double-double. Kaden Rickard tied his career high with 14 points and added a season-high five assists. Five Owls scored in double figures, with Jacoby Hill and Thomas at 11 each.
3. Second chances keep saving them. KSU won the second-chance battle 21-2 against Winthrop, after a 17-6 edge against Austin Peay. When the shots aren't falling early, the offensive glass keeps this team close until they do.
The notes back it up. It's the first time in the program's Division I era that KSU has started 3-0 in back-to-back seasons, the Owls have won six straight at VyStar Arena, and it's the first time they've won consecutive games after trailing by double digits since late in the 2024-25 regular season. The slow starts are worth watching, but the response is the story.
Women: a bounce-back shot at Georgia tonight
Saturday at Florida Atlantic was rough: a 68-28 loss, with KSU shooting 19 percent and losing the boards 53-31. Our FAU recap has the details. The good news is that those numbers look nothing like the first two games, when the Owls were a combined +34 on the glass and +20 in turnover margin against Shorter and Clayton State.
Tonight: Women at Georgia, 6:30 p.m. ET, Stegeman Coliseum (ESPN+ / SEC Network+). Georgia is 3-0 under first-year coach Ayla Guzzardo after wins over West Georgia, Winthrop and Nicholls, and the Lady Bulldogs made the NCAA Tournament last season. Georgia leads the series 6-0. Our Georgia preview has the full scouting report, so here's the short version of what we're watching:
- Shania Nichols on the glass. She leads CUSA with 23 total rebounds and is coming off her first career double-double (10 and 10).
- Taking care of the ball. Riley Talbert leads the league and ranks third nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (nine assists, one turnover). Against an SEC team, empty possessions add up fast.
- The scoring trio. Kaelyn Flowers (11.7 points per game), Nichols (10.3) and Tracey Bershers (10.3, shooting 53.8 percent) all average double figures.
KSU has two wins in 55 tries against high-major opponents, so an upset would be a big deal. A competitive game with better rebounding would still be real progress after Boca Raton.
The week ahead
- Thursday: Men vs. LaGrange, 7 p.m. ET, VyStar Arena (ESPN+). The last game of the season-opening homestand, and a chance to go 4-0.
- Sunday: Women vs. South Alabama, 2 p.m. ET, VyStar Arena. The Jaguars are 1-2 and, fun twist, play at FAU today before coming to Kennesaw.
- Next Tuesday: Men at Alabama, 7:30 p.m. ET, Tuscaloosa (ESPN+). The men's first true road game, and their first high-major test.
The bottom line
The men have shown they can take a punch, but a 21-3 or 23-12 hole is a lot harder to climb out of at Alabama. LaGrange is a good night to start fast. The women need to prove FAU was a one-off, and tonight's rebounding numbers will tell us a lot.
Our picks this week: men over LaGrange and women over South Alabama at home. Georgia is the tough one, and we'll take the Owls to keep it closer than the 2022 meeting. OwlUp.
Bookmark the full Kennesaw State schedule for every tip, and grab some black-and-gold Owls gear before Sunday's home game.
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