Returning All-Conference honoree Denisha Ferguson is just one reason the Lady Owls are expected to contend for the Peach Belt Conference championship this season.

Basketball teams sure to go far during 2002-2003 campaign

by Rick Woodall

To climax his second season as men’s basketball coach Tony Ingle took the Owls to a place they’d never been before – the championship round of the Peach Belt Conference Tournament. Not to be outdone, the veteran coach was at it again as his third year at the helm dawned, taking the Owls all the way to Hawaii for an early-season road trip.

That event, which took place the first week in December, is just one of the highlights for what should be an exciting year in men’s and women’s hoops at Kennesaw State. A host of new faces are attempting to help the Owls build on last season’s 20-10 record, while an experienced women’s team under the direction of Colby Tilley is hoping to live up to its status as the preseason favorite in a PBC field stacked with NCAA-caliber clubs.

The Lady Owls certainly started strong, picking up a pair of wins in the Ron Walker Classic, including a 79-54 thrashing of nationally ranked Glanville State. The men were equally impressive in the early going, extending their home winning streak to 13 with season-opening victories over Reinhardt and Tennessee Temple. A heartbreaking loss to North Florida finally ended that streak Nov. 30, but the Owls came back strong with two straight victories to begin their Hawaii trip.

For the Lady Owls, who were a perfect 4-0 before a loss to Clayton College and State University Dec. 4, expectations are extremely high coming off last season’s 17-10 finish — a good year for most but disappointing by KSU standards. Top returnees include junior Denisha Ferguson, an All-Conference selection in 2002 after averaging 16.1 points and 10.5 rebounds per game — both team highs. KSU also welcomes back junior point guard Lauren Gaines, who is fully recovered from a severe knee injury suffered in January.

"I feel good about this team," said Tilley, who has won more than 75 percent of his games and led the Lady Owls to two Elite Eight appearances since taking the job in 1995. "They work hard; they’re very talented. I have high hopes for them this year as long as we can stay injury-free."

Ferguson, who was the Lady Owls’ second-leading scorer behind sophomore Malgorzata Morka during the season-opening winning streak, shares her coach’s optimism as she begins her second season wearing the gold and black of KSU.

"I know the pressure is on me, and a lot of eyes will be watching, but I’m just going to go out there and play my game each night," she said. "I worked really hard over the summertime to improve my game, and with the type of team we have, we’re going to be all right."

While Tilley sets his sights on the top of the PBC South Division standings, Ingle faces the daunting task of meshing 11 newcomers and three returnees into a cohesive unit while playing a brutal schedule that sends the Owls on the road for 11 of 17 games in December and January, including three in the state of Hawaii.

"We’re just going one step at a time," Ingle said. "It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. We’ve got to mold; we’ve got to grow."

Part of that growth process took place halfway across the Pacific Ocean, where the Owls continued the job Ingle started two years ago when he first began working to put KSU men’s basketball on the map.

"We feel like that Kennesaw State is a budding, or blooming, Div. II men’s basketball program, and we want to make it one of the top programs in the country," Ingle said. "In order for us to do that, we’ve got to create some awareness that can help us in recruiting and in other things."

The trip to Hawaii was one way to accomplish that task. With fundraising help from people such as former Atlanta Braves outfielder Dale Murphy, Ingle and his players were able to collect the money necessary to pay for their journey west, where they played three quality opponents (Chaminade, Hawaii-Pacific and BYU-Hawaii) in a span of only four days.

Once the conference season begins, the road isn’t likely to get any easier for the Owls, who find themselves in the same division with most of their top PBC rivals. Despite the level of competition they’ll face on a nightly basis, senior guard Brandon Moore feels he and his teammates have the ability to make some noise before season’s end.

"It’s different, but it’s good," Moore said of the many new faces surrounding him in the locker room and on the court. "We’re just still trying to get to know each other, get familiar with each other. Everybody’s working hard. It’s going to come along, like coach said. It’s going to take a little bit of time, but we’re getting there."

Terrence Moore, a junior transfer from Southern Union in Alabama, entered his first season at KSU looking forward to the trip to Hawaii, as well as the PBC wars to come. He’s confident that, with the right amount of effort, the Owls can be successful. "You’ve got to work hard," he said. "The only thing keeping us from winning is us."

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