Kennesaw State beats No. 24 Rutgers 79-77 in program's 1st home game against ranked team

KENNESAW, Ga. (AP) Jamil Miller had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Kennesaw State dominated No. 24 Rutgers on Sunday and held on for a 79-77 win in the first home game against a ranked opponent in the program's history.

Kennesaw State (5-1) was up by as many as 21 points and led for all but about seven minutes at the beginning of the game. Simeon Cottle had 15 points and Ricardo Wright scored 14.

The Scarlet Knights (4-1) fought back in the second half with strong efforts from freshmen Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey, who finished with 21 and 17 points, respectively.

Kennesaw State: The Owls dominated the paint, out rebounding Rutgers 46-27. They won despite losing the turnover margin 22-9.

Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights opened up the second half with a 10-0 run and shot 50% from the field after halftime but could never take the lead, coming as close as two points in the final seconds of the game.

Down 9-8 early in the first half, Kennesaw State took its first lead of the game when Miller hit a 3-pointer at the 13:08 mark to give the Owls an 11-9 lead and incite a raucous home crowd.

Kennesaw State shot an impressive 50% from the field in the first half and finished 46.7% (28-60) overall. The Owls got double-digit point efforts from four separate players.

Rutgers heads to Las Vegas to face Notre Dame in the Players Era Thanksgiving Festival on Tuesday, while Kennesaw State will host UC Irvine on Thursday.

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