by Wayne23 » Sat Apr 10, 2021 3:26 pm
1/25: 79-69 at VMI. Down 6 at the half. We played like we wanted it in the 2nd; really aggressive, going after every RB, every loose ball. Shooting was the big difference, we shot 51.9%, they shot 38.2%.
Our big guy was Gary Owen, who had his best game of the season, 30 and 6 with only 2 fouls. Sage didn't score much but he got the job done on D, holding his man to 4, and he had 8 RBs. Excellent bench play, 25, 10, 4. +11 RBs.
We hold a 2 game lead in the Southern Conf.
Joe Gunn, Atlanta Star: Kennesaw State U.'s, yes I'll say it, phenomenal coach, Dunphy Nomakowski has brought his team to new heights. Last night they beat the
#2 team in the Southern Conference, VMI, by 10, with their best player seeing only very limited action. They now lead the conference by 2 games.
You may remember that at the Coach's request A. D. Tank Perkins moved the team from the Atlantic Sun to the more competitive Southern Conf. Well, Coach Phee's kids are dominating the conference so far.
Much of the credit goes to their terrific inside game, with freshman Rah Celk and junior Gary Owen leading the way, supported by senior Ren Mert and super sub junior Rick Sage. They are a FORCE inside. Want proof? #3 in the country in PPG, most of which comes from inside, and #4 in rebounding. Their 5th in NET offense and #7 in overall NET rating. Their overall D isn't quite as good but at #41 it isn't bad. When you consider that their Team Prestige is only 14, this is pretty unbelievable. They're sitting pretty at 16-2, 7-0 in conf., and appear to be headed for their 2nd straight appearance in the Big Dance.
Oh, Coach Phee. He is a joy to watch. He's a dynamo on the sidelines, never stopping moving, never stopping talking. Unlike so many coaches who do little more than scream, he shouts words of encouragement, and it is clear by his body language during time outs that he instructs rather than pointing fingers or hurling insults. His players are clearly attentive to what he is saying and if the results tell us anything they tell us that the kids are working hard to put Coach's teachings into practice. He talks about his twin mantras of working hard all the time and believing that the individual and the team can do great things, and at least over the course of last season and this season this is nothing but the truth.
There are much higher ranked teams in the state of Georgia but nobody in the state is more exciting to watch than the KSU Owls.