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FORT MYERS, Fla. – Kennesaw State’s Ramone Seals and Simeon Cottle each scored 25 points to rally KSU from an 11-point second-half deficit to a thrilling 89-84 victory over Rice on Monday afternoon on the first day of play in the GEICO Coconut Hoops event from Alico Arena. This was the Owls’ first-ever win over a team from the American Conference, and this also marked the fourth straight season KSU has started the year with a 4-1 mark.
STAT OF THE GAME: KSU came into the game with the second-ranked field goal defense in the nation, but allowed Rice to shoot 46% in regulation. It was a different story in the second half, as KSU did not allow a point until a single free throw with 59 seconds left, while forcing Rice into six missed shots and a pair of turnovers.
OWL OF THE GAME: Seals made plays all game long, though he made his biggest impact on offense in the opening half, scoring 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting. He then made some of the biggest impact plays in the extra period, with a fast break dunk giving KSU a five-point edge with under two minutes left, while he also recorded a pair of blocks in the final 20 seconds. His 25 points was a new career-high.
THE FIRST HALF: It was a tight battle in the first half with seven ties and seven lead changes, while neither team led by more than seven points when KSU was up 28-21 with nine minutes on the clock. Back-to-back threes brought Rice back into the contest though, and it was a one possession contest the rest of the way. Rice would go into halftime leading 41-40 after sinking a mid-range jumper with 16 seconds left. Rice was 5-of-11 from threes in the opening 20 minutes, while KSU sank just five of 16 from downtown.
THE SECOND HALF: KSU struggled to score at the start of the second, and gave up a 15-5 run out of the halftime break to fall behind 56-45 with 14:30 to play. An 8-1 KSU run over the next three minutes closed the deficit to just four, and KSU then took the lead off a Kaden Rickard layup with 6:30 to play, 68-67. Rice quickly responded with seven unanswered points for a 74-68 lead with 4:13 on the clock. It was still a six-point lead when the KSU freshman stepped up, as Darius Washington III, Amir Taylor and Trey Simpson scored seven of the next eight points of the game to tie the score at 79-79 at 1:12. Rice stole an inbounds pass with under 18 seconds left, drew a foul and sank two for two-point lead, but Cottle would respond on the other end with a driving bank shot to knot the game at 83-83, sending it into overtime.
OVERTIME: Cottle drained a trey from the top of the key on the second possession of overtime for an 86-83 lead, while he came up with a steal at the two-minute mark and soared a pass down the court to a streaking Seals, who dunked it for a five-point lead at 1:52. That was all KSU Owls needed to clinch the comeback victory.
NOTES
-KSU is now 4-1 in overtime games under Coach Pettway over the past three years.
-Cottle scored 25 points for the second consecutive game.
-KSU shot 40% (28-70) for the game, was 10-of-29 from three-point range for 34.5%, and finished above their season average at the free throw line, connecting on 23-of-30 for 76.7%.
NEXT TIME OUT: The Owls continue play in the GEICO Coconut Hoops on Tuesday as they face Oral Roberts at 4:30 p.m. in a game streamed live on FloSports.
The Owls Fund
The Owls Fund is the primary fundraising arm of Kennesaw State Athletics with the goal of supporting our student-athletes, coaches and each of our 18 NCAA Division I programs. Through initiatives such as Legacy Lockers, the Dot Martin Scholarship Golf Classic, sport-specific giving opportunities, general donations and season tickets, The Owls Fund connects fans with KSU’s programs and student-athletes. Members receive exclusive benefits such as hospitality seating areas and events at Kennesaw State home games, and more. Join The Owls Fund here and discover more opportunities on how you can support Kennesaw State Athletics.
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