Defense is key as Kennesaw State beats Stetson

Kennesaw State sophomore guard Simeon Cottle’s steal and layup near the end of the first half against Stetson produced a new level of volume in the KSU Convocation Center Wednesday. The crowd erupted as the Owls secured their first double-digit lead of the game on the way to an 88-70 victory, their 10th straight at home.

Cottle fed off the energy, stopping at halfcourt to do the seat-belt celebration — an emote often done after playing strong defense in football.

Closing out the half with a 44-35 lead, KSU’s intense effort on defense continued to overwhelm the Hatters’ offense all night.

“We scored 88 points tonight, but the story of the game is our defense,” Owls coach Antoine Pettway said. “We did a great job on the backboard that allowed us to get out in transition and play our style of play.”

Early on, the contest foreshadowed a similar finish as the two teams’ last battle — an 82-81 overtime win for the Owls. The two teams traded baskets Wednesday, knocking down four 3-pointers.

From there, though, KSU (11-5) kicked it up a notch. Following a Hatters turnover, senior guard Quincy Ademokoya glided inside for a layup to up the Owls’ lead to three. A minute later, Ademokoya made use of a fast-break opportunity, finishing a double-clutch layup at the rim through contact, pushing the lead to six.

Kennesaw State’s defense subdued Stetson’s offense in the final eight minutes of the half, allowing just nine points.

“Our separation occurred when we were able to string together stops,” Pettway said. “For an offensively-talented team like Stetson ... we were playing the right way ... and that’s our mentality, it has to be an extreme fight every time somebody comes in the Convocation Center.”

Facing Stetson’s three-headed monster in guards Alec Oglesby, Stephan Swenson and Jalen Blackmon, Pettway knew how crisp the Owls’ defense needed to be. Although Blackmon scored a game-high 27, Oglesby and Swenson shot just 6-for-28 from the field.

Kennesaw State’s Terrell Burden and Cottle combined for 48 points last Saturday but they had just 24 Wednesday. However, with 27 bench points and five players in double figures, the two didn’t need to take over the game.

“What we always tell each other during the media timeout, or during the game or during warmups, don’t ever let there be a dropoff coming off the bench,” Demond Robinson said. “This game you could tell our guys were really there, really locked in to each other.”

The Owls continued to pour it on after intermission, holding a 22-point lead with nearly two minutes left in the game. Stetson, the conference’s best 3-point shooting team, made just one three in the second half.