By Mason Wittner, Staff Writer
Kristina Wells’ double-double was not enough to lift Kennesaw State to an upset as they fell to No. 22 Florida Gulf Coast, 71-60, Saturday.
Wells lead all scorers with 19 points, 15 of which came in the second half, while grabbing 12 boards. Jasmine McAllister and Deandrea Sawyers were in the double-figures as well, scoring 12 points and 11 points, respectively.
“I thought she was great,” KSU head coach Nitra Perry said of Wells. “In the first half, we missed her. I told them at the end of the game that if we had Kristina the first half, [McAllister] the second half, then you get different result or a closer game.”
The Owls (16-10, 5-6) trailed 61-47 with 6:53 remaining in the second half. A 9-3 run displayed a glimmer of hope as they managed to cut their deficit 64-56 with 1:37 left to play.
FGCU (24-2, 11-0) settled in for the final 90 seconds, however, as their lead never fell behind eight in the second half.
Physicality was a key factor for both squads as they accounted for 51 total fouls, FGCU with 26 and KSU with 25. McAllister, Sawyers, and Aaeron Smith each fouled out in the second half.
“It was physical and I told my team this is the toughest team in the conference as far as being gritty,” Perry said. “I thought with the fouls, a lot of those plays were 50/50 plays. It was a physical game, but you want your kids to play physical. At this team of the year, if you’re trying to get to the championship game of A-Sun, and then go further into the NCAA tournament, this is what it looks like.”
KSU was forced into a battle from the opening tip as the Eagles went up 7-1 with 17:37 to go in the opening half. The Owls pulled within two as they trailed 11-9 with 14:16 left, but a pair of free throws and a three put the Eagles up 16-9 at the 12:28 mark.
The Owls remained in the game for much of the first half, trailing 24-20 with 6:40 left to play. FGCU extended their lead as they sparked a 19-4 run and held a 43-24 advantage with 2:03 to go in the first half.
The Owls trailed 43-29 going in to the locker room.
FGCU began the second half in the same fashion they ended the first – with a run. The Eagles outscored KSU 13-4 in the first seven minutes, leading 56-33 with 12:58 left to play.
The Owls scored nine straight points, six coming from Wells, to pull within 56-42 at the 10:27 mark.
The Eagles kept KSU in check, not allowing their lead to fall below double-figures until inside the final two minutes.
Kennesaw State will look to pick up their 17th win of the season, which would be the most since joining Division I as they host Stetson Saturday.
