Men's Basketball February 14, 2020 Athletic Communications

Hatters Host Kennesaw State on Saturday

Stetson men's basketball continues its march toward the postseason on Saturday when the Hatters host ASUN Conference foe Kennesaw State at 4 p.m.

The Hatters (14-12 overall, 8-3 ASUN) have won three straight games and seven of their last eight following Thursday's 75-64 victory against North Alabama. Joel Kabimba led the way with 16 points and 8 rebounds, while Christiaan Jones scored 18 and Rob Perry added 20 on a 12 of 13 effort from the free throw line as the Hatters swept the season series from the Lions.

Stetson clinched an ASUN post-season berth last weekend, and the third-place Hatters are, at the very least, playing for seeding with five games left in the regular season. Stetson has a two-and-a-half game lead on fourth place Lipscomb, and the Hatters trail second place Liberty by one game. League-leading North Florida holds a one-and-a-half game lead on the Hatters.

Kennesaw State (1-23, 0-11) has lost 15 straight games following Thursday's 70-58 home loss to FGCU. Senior guard Tyler Hooker leads the Owls in scoring with 13.6 points per game.

What You Need to Know
•Stetson closes out its next-to-last home stand of the season on Saturday when the Hatters host Kennesaw State
•After a 57-54 road win against the Owls in January, Stetson is looking for its first season sweep of Kennesaw State since 2013
•Freshman Rob Perry, who last week at FGCU broke Stetson's single-season freshman record for 3-point field goals in a season, needs 130 points to become Stetson's leader in points by a freshman. He is chasing Derick Newton's record of 553 points, set during the 2015-16 season.
•Fellow freshman Mahamadou Diawara is also climbing the freshman scoring charts, as his 333 points this season ranks eighth.
•Junior guard Kenny Aninye made his 50th career start in Thursday's game against North Alabama

Under the Hat
•Following Thursday's 75-64 win against North Alabama, the Hatters are now 13-3 when holding an opponent under 70 points. Thursday's margin of victory, however, was Stetson's largest in ASUN play this season.
•The 18 points scored by Christiaan Jones on Thursday was his best offensive output since also scoring 18 points at South Carolina back on Dec. 30
•One year after failing to win a single road game, the Hatters are 8-7 away from Edmunds Center, including 7-6 in true road games. It's the most road/neutral site victories for Stetson since the 1994-95 squad also won 8. The Hatters have two road games remaining in the regular season.
•Rob Perry broke the Stetson freshman record for 3-pointers in a season last Thursday at FGCU when he sank his 62nd trey of the year. Perry broke the previous record of 61 set by Derrick DeWitt during the 1999-2000 season. Perry is within sight of the overall season record of 76, set by Luke Doyle in 2016-17.
•Rob Perry (16.3) and Mahamadou Diawara (12.8) continue to be the highest-scoring freshman tandem in the ASUN Conference at a combined 29.1 points per game. Perry is 9th nationally among all freshmen, and his 34 points at Western Illinois on Nov. 9 is the 3rd-best single-game effort by a freshman this season.

About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leaership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com.

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Players Mentioned

#33 Luke Doyle: G; 6' 5"; Senior

#10 Kenny Aninye: G; 6' 1"; Junior

#0 Christiaan Jones: G; 6' 5"; Junior

#15 Mahamadou Diawara: F/C; 6' 10"; Freshman

#35 Joel Kabimba: F; 6' 8"; Freshman

#2 Rob Perry: G; 6' 3"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#33 Luke Doyle
: 6' 5"; Senior
: G

#10 Kenny Aninye
: 6' 1"; Junior
: G

#0 Christiaan Jones
: 6' 5"; Junior
: G

#15 Mahamadou Diawara
: 6' 10"; Freshman
: F/C

#35 Joel Kabimba
: 6' 8"; Freshman
: F

#2 Rob Perry
: 6' 3"; Freshman
: G

Stetson University Athletics

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Hatters Host Kennesaw State on Saturday

Players Mentioned

#33 Luke Doyle

#10 Kenny Aninye

#0 Christiaan Jones

#15 Mahamadou Diawara

#35 Joel Kabimba

#2 Rob Perry

Players Mentioned

#33 Luke Doyle

#10 Kenny Aninye

#0 Christiaan Jones

#15 Mahamadou Diawara

#35 Joel Kabimba

#2 Rob Perry