The North Florida Ospreys (18-8) will travel to KSU Convocation Center to challenge the Kennesaw State Owls (7-18) in their home finale. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Thursday, Feb. 11 and can be seen on ES3.
The Owls are hoping to rebound after their 78-59 loss to NJIT in their last matchup. Yonel Brown was the team’s leading scorer with 19 points. The Ospreys, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their 81-65 loss against FGCU in their last game. Beau Beech had a game-high 20 points.
The Owls may have trouble getting to the line in this one. They’re 269th in the nation in FTA rate (33.2), while North Florida is among the nation’s least foul-prone squads (yielding a FTA rate of just 26.1, 13th in the country). Moreover, the sixth-ranked offense of the Ospreys (offensive efficiency of 119.0) will try to exploit the 336th-ranked defense of the Owls (defensive efficiency of 112.6).
This is the second game of the season between these two teams, with the Ospreys winning the first matchup 93-78. Beech had a stellar game with 33 points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals, and seven three-pointers.
Notes
Kennesaw State lost its last game by a 19-point margin. In games decided by a margin of 18 points or more, North Florida is 6-2. Kennesaw State is 2-7 in blowouts this season.
North Florida beats Kennesaw State in both possessions per game and points per possession. The Ospreys average 71.1 possessions and 1.190 points per possession, while the Owls average 70.5 possessions with .996 points per possession.
Ranked fourth in the nation, North Florida has an average effective field goal percentage of 58.4%. Kennesaw State has not won a game this season when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage (0-6).
On average, Kennesaw State attempts 16.0 three pointers and North Florida attempts 29.0. In games where they have 20 or more three point attempts, the Kennesaw State Owls have a 1-4 record while the North Florida Ospreys have a solid 18-7 record.
The North Florida Ospreys rank 13th with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.54, while the Kennesaw State Owls rank outside the top 100 at 283rd with an A/TO of .89.
The Kennesaw State Owls make an average of 7.0 steals per game. When the North Florida Ospreys allow 6 or more steals, they are a winning 7-4.
