No. 1 Seed Kennesaw State Tops No. 2 Seed Liberty 67-66 in ASUN Title Game

The top-seeded Kennesaw State Owls edged the No. 2 seed Liberty Flames 67-66 in the title game of the ASUN Men’s Basketball Championship, Sunday afternoon at the KSU Convocation Center.

Meanwhile, Liberty falls to 26-8 on the year. The Flames will await their postseason fate next Sunday. Liberty’s Darius McGhee and Colin Porter were named to the ASUN All-Tournament Team for their efforts.

Kennesaw State bolsters its record to 26-8 on the year and punches its ticket to the 2023 Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. The Owls will find out where they will be heading in the NCAA Tournament a week from today on Selection Sunday. The NCAA Selection Show will be carried live a week from today at 6 p.m. Eastern on CBS.

The Flames fall to 3-1 in ASUN title games. Liberty is 6-4 all-time in conference tournament title games. This is the first time the Flames have lost in a league title game since the 2018 Big South Championship.

Kyle Rode scored a season-high 23 points and became the 31st 1,000-point scorer in program history. The senior knocked down 9-of-14 shots from the field, hit 4-of-7 three-pointers, grabbed four rebounds and had two steals. Rode’s previous season high was 22 points at Bellarmine, Dec. 29, and he entered the game with 999 career points.

Thoughts From Head Coach Ritchie McKay

“Congratulations to Kennesaw. They were a tough out today and had a great crowd. I’m disappointed that we didn’t advance to the NCAA Tournament. It’s something our program has had the blessing of participating in. It’s a lifelong memory when you make it there. Kennesaw deserved it. I’m really proud of our group, though. This is as resilient of a team as we’ve had, and I think there might be some more basketball left for us.”

Box Score Highlights

Liberty Individuals: Kyle Rode 23 points, 9-14 FG, 4-7 3FG, 4 rebounds, 2 steals; Darius McGhee 14 points, 3 rebounds; Colin Porter 8 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists; Shiloh Robinson 7 points, 3-3 FT; Zach Cleveland 7 points, 3-6 FG, 7 rebounds

Kennesaw State Individuals: Terrell Burden 19 points, 7-10 FG, 3 assists; Chris Youngblood 16 points, 5 rebounds; Brandon Stroud 12 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals; Demond Robinson 10 points, 11 rebounds

Key Team Stats: Liberty finished the afternoon connecting on 40.6 percent (26-of-64) of its shots from the field. Meanwhile, Kennesaw State was 23-of-49 (46.9 percent), including 6-of-15 (40 percent) from long distance. The Flames forced 15 Owls turnovers, converting them into 21 points. Meanwhile, Liberty committed nine turnovers, leading to 11 KSU points. The Flames held edges in assists (11-9), points in the paint (38-30), second chance points (12-8) fast break points (8-5) and bench points (14-4).

Turning Point

Liberty took a 53-51 lead at the 7:35 mark following a Kyle Rode three-pointer. KSU responded with an 11-1 run over the next 4:32 to take a seven-point lead, 62-55, with 3:03 to play.

The Flames inched back into the game, eventually getting within three, 66-63, with 56 seconds left following a pair of free throws from Darius McGhee. Following a turnover on the other end from Terrell Burden of the Owls, Liberty freshman Colin Porter tied the game at 66-all with a clutch three-point shot with 23 ticks left on the clock.

Following a Flames timeout, KSU’s Burden drove into the paint and was fouled with 0.7 seconds left. Burden hit the go-ahead free throw with 0.7 seconds left for a 67-66 edge for the hosts. The KSU guard missed the second free throw, and the rest of the time came off the clock to preserve the hosts’ first-ever ASUN title.

Key Stats & Notes

• Kyle Rode scored a season-high 23 points. The senior knocked down 9-of-14 shots from the field, hit 4-of-7 three-pointers, grabbed four rebounds and had two steals. Rode’s previous season high was 22 points at Bellarmine, Dec. 29.

• McGhee, who was named to the ASUN All-Tournament team, averaged 24.0 points per game and made 14 three-pointers over the course of the three games.

• Porter is the first Flames freshman to be tabbed to the ASUN All-Tournament team. The Ashland, Ky. native averaged 14.7 points per game on 48.6 percent shooting (17-of-36) from the field and grabbed 4.3 rebounds per contest in the championship. Porter committed only one turnover in 81:20 of action.

• Porter finished with eight points and matched a season high with six rebounds while leading the team with four assists. Fellow freshman Zach Cleveland totaled seven points and a team-best seven boards and was a +11 in 13:38 of action. 

• Liberty trailed 15-7 in the early going but fought back to take a two-point lead, 29-27, at the break. The Flames fall to 22-4 in games this season in which they held a lead at halftime.

• The Flames drop to 12-2 all-time in ASUN Tournament play.

• Sunday’s game featured 10 ties and nine lead changes. Neither team led by more than eight points. KSU’s biggest lead was eight, 15-7, while the Flames’ biggest lead was 4-0 in the opening two minutes.

Up Next

The Flames will await their postseason fate next Sunday to see which postseason tournament they will be invited to.

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