Quote:Owls open conference play at home tonight vs. Lipscomb

Thursday, December 1, 2005 3:04 AM EST

By David Friedlander
Marietta Daily Journal Sports Writer

KENNESAW - Kennesaw State's men's basketball team has spent the better part of the last month experiencing firsts - its first game as a Division I program, its first regular season game against a ranked Division I team and its first game at its brand new arena.

The Owls will experience another first tonight at 8 p.m. when Lipscomb University comes to the KSU Convocation Center to welcome them into the Atlantic Sun Conference as their first conference opponent.

"I guess it's the most exciting (first) for us," said KSU junior guard Golden Ingle, who leads the Owls (2-3) and is seventh in the conference in scoring with a 17.2-point per game average. "It's what we've been waiting for. All that other stuff was preparation for this."

While Golden Ingle and his teammates are excited about their conference initiation, his father - KSU coach Tony Ingle - brings more trepidation into KSU's opening weekend in the Atlantic Sun.

Tonight's matchup against Lipscomb (1-2), will be followed by a date with the Bisons' crosstown rival from Nashville, Belmont, on Saturday.

"It's too quick for me," Tony Ingle said of the early conference opener. "I hate to seem like the Temple of Doom, but I wish we had until January because we're really still trying to find ourselves."

Ingle has a point about a team that has seen the highs of its first Division I win against Lamar at the Top of the World Classic in Alaska and the lows of a 45-point beating at the hands of nationally-ranked George Washington.

And with a team featuring seven freshmen going up against a much more experienced Lipscomb team picked in the upper half of the Atlantic Sun in the preseason by the conference's coaches and media, Tony Ingle's concerns only grow.

"They're a senior-oriented team, and they've been battle tested," Tony Ingle said of Lipscomb. "This is supposed to be their year to challenge for a conference championship, and their seniors are hungry."

The Bisons do pose a challenge despite their 1-2 record, with both losses coming to Southeastern Conference members Kentucky and Auburn.

Sophomore forward Eddie Ard ranks just behind Golden Ingle in the Atlantic Sun scoring race at 16.3 points per game, while senior guard James Poindexter is the only other Bison in double figures at 11.3 points per game.

But the Owls may have a handful to deal with in 6-foot-8, 250-pound senior post Shaun Durant (8.3 ppg, 11.0 rpg), who is the conference's second-leading rebounder.

And with Lipscomb's reputation for playing tough defense, the onus will be on Golden Ingle, plus other experienced wings Brent Ragsdale (13.8 ppg) and Ronell Wooten (11.2 ppg, 6.4 rpg) to help KSU find ways to score and match the Bisons' defensive intensity.

"We know they're very aggressive and like to play defense," Golden Ingle said. "It's an in-your-face man-to-man style. They do play some zone, but I don't think we'll be seeing it much."

dfriedlander@mdjonline.com

Go Owls!!