Three wins for Kennesaw State in the Atlantic Sun men’s basketball tournament would be transformative.
Winning the tournament, which would require three wins, is what they want.
Neither coach Al Skinner nor second-leading scorer Yonel Brown shied away from bringing up the goal.
But first they are focusing on Florida Gulf Coast, the Owls’ first opponent in the tournament. The teams will tip off at 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday in Fort Myers, Fla.
“Obviously we are taking it one at a time, but three is the number that you are looking at,” Skinner said.
The Owls (11-19, 7-7) are hot, having won four of five, to take the fifth seed.
The only loss came to Florida Gulf Coast (17-13, 8-6), the second time the Owls were beaten by the Eagles this season. Both were five-point losses with one consistency: giving up points in the paint. Florida Gulf Coast got 48 points and were helped by 13 offensive rebounds in the first game and 32 points in the paint in the second, though the Owls reduced the offensive rebounds to two. Skinner said rebounding is what can hold his team back from advancing. The Owls had a minus-3.8 margin in the season.
“We will continue to look to improve our play,” Skinner said. “It clearly has improved as indicated by our record at the end of the year.”
Though it’s a one-and-done scenario, Skinner said he won’t approach the game differently because change can be disruptive.
Instead, the Owls will continue doing what they are doing well: sharing the ball and playing within Skinner’s offensive and defensive systems.
Brown said when they didn’t do either at the beginning of the season they didn’t win. Their defensive stats haven’t changed much throughout the season: they allowed an average of 77.7 points in non-conference play compared to 77.3 in the conference. It’s on offense where the Owls improved most, going from 67 points in non-conference play to 78.6 points in conference play.
That growth, fueled by leading scorer Kendrick Ray, coupled with a favorable bracket is why Brown thinks the Owls have a chance to win three games in the tournament. If Kennesaw State defeats Florida Gulf Coast, it will face either top seed North Florida or eighth seed South Carolina-Upstate on Thursday. It split with North Florida and swept South Carolina-Upstate.
The championship game will be at 7 p.m. Sunday.
Brown and Skinner hope to win it.
“That would mean everything,” Brown said. “It will be bring a lot of excitement to the school, get us the recognition that we’ve been working for.
“It would just be the start of what is to come for Kennesaw State in the next 3-4 years.”
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