The Owls are now standing 4-9 after taking a loss to the Bears.
The Kennesaw State Owls fell short by just 16 points after playing against the Mercer University Bears with a concluding score of 70-54 on Jan. 2, 2024.
The Owls shot 40% from the field, scored 20% of three-pointers, had 21 turnovers and 32 rebounds.
Senior Guard Carly Hooks led the team by scoring another impressive high of 22 points alongside junior Forward Prencis Harden‘s impressive performance of scoring 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Owls.
KSU was behind by nine points in the first period which closed with a score of 10-19.
After the first two scoring plays, the Bears quickly responded with three back-to-back plays with two jumpers, one of which was scored by senior Forward Stacie Jones. Jones used to play for the Owls and transferred to Mercer for the 2023-24 season.
Harden responded with a good jumper, however, it couldn’t subdue the Bears’ momentum as it carried Mercer throughout the quarter.
With just four minutes left of the quarter, two scoring plays from the Owls weren’t enough to hold back the Bears, concluding the period at 19-10.
The Bears’ consistency from the first quarter carried them into the next one after scoring 23 more points than the Owls; however, there were fewer scoring streaks from the Bears due to more responses from the Owls as they went up 14 points.
The Bears opened up the second quarter, with two consecutive shots from Mackenzie Johnsen, who contributed towards leading the team with an impressive 16 points throughout the game.
Following the Bears impressive play, Hooks responded with a free throw, but the Bears returned with a scoring streak of seven points. This brought them up 30-11.
With just three minutes left on the clock, the quarter ended with both teams scoring four times back and forth.
The Bears scored 10 more points to close the quarter with two three-pointers and two shots in the paint from Johnsen; The Owls were only able to score four more points closing the quarter at 42-24.
While both teams were brawling back and forth, the Owls started to fight back harder in the third quarter as they maintained the momentum gained from the second quarter and scored 17-13.
Hooks opened up the third quarter with two back-to-back jumpers. The Bears responded with five points leaving the score at 47-28.
The Owls fought back and managed to score 11 points within two minutes. Closing the third quarter with free throws from Harden and Hooks left the Owls down 55-41.
The final period was a continuation of both teams challenging one another while alternating scoring.
The Bears put up an impressive accumulation of two good shots in the paint and two three-pointers preventing the Owls from being able to snap back fast enough for a final comeback. Johnsen concluded the final play with a jumper, securing a win for the Bears 70-54.
To see who the Owls play next, view their schedule on the KSU Athletics website.
