ACU men’s basketball: Wildcats drop back-and-forth battle at Kennesaw State

The Abilene Christian Wildcats found themselves locked in a back-and-forth battle on Wednesday night during their first road game of the season.

The Wildcats started off hot during the first half, but couldn’t hold on down the stretch against Kennesaw State.

Abilene Christian couldn’t fend off the Owls’ shooters, which sparked a late-second-half rally that led Kennesaw State to an 84-78 comeback win at the KSU Convocation Center in Kennesaw, Georgia.

Despite a back-and-forth first half, the Wildcats carried a 42-40 advantage into halftime thanks largely to their aggressive defense, transition offense and high first-half shooting clip.

Abilene Christian generated 13 steals defensively, which helped ACU build big advantages in points off turnovers (21-5) and fastbreak points (15-7). The Wildcats also shot 51.7% from the floor and 57.1% on 3-pointers during the first half.

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Kennesaw State, however, clawed its way back into the game by dominating the interior and battling back at the free-throw line.

The Owls crashed the boards hard to out-rebound ACU 35-22, giving themselves plenty of second-chance opportunities offensively.

KSU also attacked the rim down the stretch offensively, leading to a 61.1% team shooting percentage from the floor during the second half and putting the Wildcats in foul trouble.

The Owls sank 33 of 41 free throws (80.5%), which ultimately gave Kennesaw State a 14-point advantage from the free-throw line to cement their comeback victory.

Abilene Christian (3-2) will look to bounce back in a pair of back-to-back games at the Basketball Travelers Invitational next week in Bozeman, Montana.

ACU will take on the Southern Miss Golden Eagles (2-2) at 8 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 25, at Worthington Arena, and then the Wildcats will…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/acu-men-basketball-wildcats-drop-151723296.html

Author : The Abilene Reporter-News

Publish date : 2024-11-22 15:17:00

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