Liberty (20-10, 11-4) vs. Kennesaw State (12-16, 7-8)
Lynchburg, Virginia – Liberty Arena (Capacity: 4,000)
Saturday, Feb. 26, 1:00 p.m.
ESPN+
Last Meeting: Liberty won, 65-50, on Jan. 31, 2022 at KSU Convocation Center
Series History: Liberty leads 9-0
Projected LU Starters:
2 Darius McGhee (Sr., 5-9, 150) – 23.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.0 apg
23 Joseph Venzant (Fr., 6-3, 170) – 4.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 0.6 apg
20 Keegan McDowell (R-Sr., 6-6, 180) – 10.6 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 0.9 apg
22 Kyle Rode (Jr., 6-7, 220) – 6.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 4.1 apg
33 Shiloh Robinson (R-Jr., 6-7, 200) – 10.0 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.0 apg
Projected Kennesaw State Starters:
1 Terrell Burden (Jr., 5-10, 170) – 11.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 4.7 apg
22 Spencer Rodgers (Sr., 6-4, 188) – 10.1 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 2.4 apg
3 Chris Youngblood (So., 6-4, 218) – 13.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 1.1 apg
5 Brandon Stroud (So., 6-6, 200) – 6.1 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 1.3 apg
0 Demond Robinson (Jr., 6-8, 260) – 9.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 0.6 apg
PREVIEW
For senior day, Liberty will look to close out the regular season in style as the Flames welcome Kennesaw State to Liberty Arena. The tremendous college careers of seniors Darius McGhee and Keegan McDowell will be recognized prior to the game before they take the court at Liberty Arena for the final time during the regular season.
Liberty and Kennesaw State were originally scheduled to meet in Lynchburg in early January before COVID protocols pushed that game back, and when the ASUN rescheduled the game, they switched the first meeting to be in Georgia where the Flames defeated the Owls 65-50. Darius McGhee was one of four Flames to reach double figures, as he finished with 16 points. Shiloh Robinson added 14 points, while Kyle Rode finished with 13, and Blake Preston had 10.
After starting conference play 3-0 and 4-1 and looking as if they would content at the top of the ASUN’s East Division, the Owls have struggled as the calendar turned towards February. Kennesaw State has lost 7 out of their last 10 games, including individual losing streaks of four and three games.
They just stopped a three-game skid on Wednesday night with a home win over Stetson, 75-71. Chris Youngblood had 19 points and seven rebounds in the win.
KENPOM PREDICTION
Liberty 76, Kennesaw State 66
