Video HighlightsKENNESAW, GA—Kennesaw State's Aareon Smith scored a game-high 15 points, leading four double-figure scorers in the Owls' 64-48 victory over visiting NJIT in Atlantic Sun Conference women's basketball at the KSU Convocation Center.
The Owls (8-13 overall, 3-3 in A-Sun) snapped a three-game skid with the victory and got 14 points from redshirt sophomore Kelly Dulkowski to back up Smith's 15 points on 5-for-10 shooting..
Kennesaw State freshman forward Allison Johnson combined for her first career double-double – 13 points and 10 rebounds, finishing 5-for-8 from the field and 3 of 5 from the free throw line.
Senior forward Jasmine McAllister, who entered the contest averaging a double-double (10.3 ppg; 10 rpg), contributed 11 points, five assists and four rebounds for the winners.
NJIT (3-18, 0-6 in A-Sun) got 11 points from junior guard
Olivia Dudley and classmate
Leah Horton chipped in 10 points and grabbed six rebounds.
Senior guard
Ronni Grandison added eight points and redshirt freshman
Tatianna Torres matched her career-high with seven points (7 points against previous A-Sun opponent Jacksonville).
Kennesaw State jumped out of the gates early with a 13-4 advantage with 6:21 remaining in the first quarter resulting in an NJIT timeout. NJIT's Horton converted a lay-up out of the timeout, but the Owls scored the next five points for an 18-6 lead with less than four to play in the opening quarter.
Highlander
Alana Dudley sank a pair of free throws, cutting the deficit to 18-8 with 2:42 on the clock, but the Owls scored the final five points of the quarter for a 23-8 lead.
NJIT's Grandison scored the first bucket of the second quarter on a jumper. However, the home team scored the next five for an 18-point lead at the 7:32 mark. Neither team scored over the next 4:30 until NJIT's
Olivia Dudley sank her first points of the game from behind the arc with four minutes left to play.
The Owls went on a 9-2 spurt, pushing its lead to 37-15 with 1:44 left to play in the second quarter before NJIT's Torres scored the final five points heading into halftime.
Trailing 37-20 at the half, the Highlanders opened the third period on a 12-5 run and cut the Owl lead to 42-32 behind six points from redshirt freshman
Kelly Guarino. The home team finished the final 2:45 on a 6-2 spurt closing out the third quarter with a 48-34 advantage.
NJIT fought back in the final quarter, slimming the deficit to 10, 54-44, on an old-fashioned three-point play by
Alana Dudley with 3:09 left in the game.
Kennesaw State, which shot 20-for-26 from the foul line Saturday afternoon, scored its final eight points on free throws to close out the 64-48 victory.
The Highlanders will return to Newark for their next two games, first hosting Lipscomb on Thursday, February 4 at 7pm in the Fleisher Athletic Center.
