Monmouth Hawks (1-4, 0-0 MAAC) vs. Kennesaw State Owls (0-3, 0-0 ASUN)
Friday, November 22, 2019 - 8:30 p.m. EST
HP Fieldhouse - Orlando, Florida

TV
ESPN3/WatchESPN
Play-by-Play: Drew Fellios
Analyst: J. Webb Horton
Sideline: Chris Williams

RADIO
Shore Sports Network 1160/1310AM
Play-by-Play: Eddy Occhipinti
Analyst: Steve Bazaz

SCOUTING THE OWLS
Through three games, Kennesaw State is led by 12 points per game from Tyler Hooker and 10 more from Bryson Lockley. Antonio Spencer grabs seven rebounds per night to pace the Owls, who score just north of 57 points per game. KSU is coming off a 12-point loss at Mercer, though they did win an exhibition game over Reinhardt in the time between Mercer and Monmouth. 

KENNESAW ST. HEAD COACH AMIR ABDUR-RAHIM
Entering his 1st season with the Owls, Amir  Abdur-Rahim is the seventh coach in Kennesaw State basketball history. He previously served as an assistant at Georgia, Texas A&M, Charleston, Georgia Tech and Murray State.

KSU AT NEUTRAL SITES
Kennesaw State has played just two neutral site contests in the last three years, going 0-2 in a pair of contests at the Paradise Jam in the US Virgin Islands last November. The Owls lost to Missouri and Old 
Dominion in those games.

HAWKS AT NEUTRAL SITES
Monmouth was 3-4 last season at neutral sites, including winning three MAAC Tournament games to advance to the finals. King Rice has posted a 13-12 record in neutral site contests in his time as MU's head coach.

HAWKS AND OWLS CONNECTIONS
-Though they have never met in men's basketball competition, the teams do share a football league in the Big South Conference.
-The teams have combined to win the last three conference championships and FCS playoff berths, with Monmouth taking the 2019 crown for the program's first-ever Big South title.
-MU topped Kennesaw on the gridiron earlier this month, 49-21 en route to the league crown. 

MAAC-ASUN CHALLENGE
This weekend features the first ever MAAC-ASUN Challenge, with the two leagues facing off against each other in a pair of doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday on both the men's and women's sides. Monmouth and Iona are representing the MAAC on the men's side and will oppose Kennesaw State and Stetson, while Marist and Rider are the MAAC reps on the women's side, facing off with North Florida and Lipscomb.

HAWKS INK HOLMSTROM FOR 2020
Monmouth announced the signing of 2020 wing Jack Holmstrom, a left-hander from Rockford, Illinois. He plays his high school ball at Guilford High School. King Rice coaches Holmstrom's father, Ben, at Illinois State from 1996-98. A four-year varsity player for the Vikings, Holmstrom has scored nearly 13 points per game to go with four rebounds and three assists through three seasons. He has posted 12 career games of 20+ points, and netted a career-best 25 points on two occasions as a junior. He is averaging over 2.5 made triples per game scholastically, and is shooting 45% from downtown. He is on track to net 1,000 points at Guilford, and was an All-Conference selection the past two seasons. 

THE BEST OF MEMORIES IN THIS BUILDING
The last (and only) time Monmouth played at HP Fieldhouse, it was one of the most memorable weekends in the history of the program at the 2015 AdvoCare Invitational. MU knocked off #17 Notre Dame 70-68 on Thanksgiving night, the first ever win over a ranked opponent in school history. After a one-possession loss to Dayton in which the Hawks just missed a tying three at the horn, Monmouth knocked off Southern California on Sunday to capture third place in the loaded field en route to knocking off five high-majors in that season. Justin Robinson was named the tournament's MVP and set the events scoring record, netting 77 points in three games to top former NBA lottery pick Michael Beasley's tournament mark. The Monday following the Orlando event, MU garnered five votes in the USA Today Coaches' Poll and one in the AP Top-25, both program firsts. 

MONMOUTH VS. THE ASUN
-The Hawks are 3-3 against current Atlantic Sun membership in Division I competition.
-Monmouth is 1-0 against NJIT, 1-1 against Stetson and 1-2 vs. Jacksonville all time.
-MU has not played a current ASUN team since 2008, a win over NJIT.
-The ASUN is one of 10 league's King Rice has never coached against, having matched up with schools from 22 DI 
conferences.
-Prior to the schools going Division I, Monmouth posted a 15-2 all-time record against the institution of NJIT.

AN OLYMPIAN ON STAFF
According to the NCAA Division I media contacts, Monmouth assistant coach JR Reid is one of three former Olympians coaching on a DI staff. Reid represented the United States at the 1988 games in Seoul. Georgetown Head Coach Patrick Ewing was on the USA squad twice, both in 1984 in Los Angeles and 1992 in Barcelona. Rounding out the list is UT Arlington Player Development Coordinator Derrick Obasohan, who represented Nigeria in the 2012 London Games. 

STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
Monmouth has played the 49th toughest schedule in the nation to this point, with MU opponents posting a record of 17-6 thus far.

SALNAVE LEADING THE WAY
Ray Salnave is the lone Hawk to score in double figures in all five games this season, including his sixth career 20+ point performance at Kansas State. He led the MU stat sheet a season ago and has done so again through five contests.