Louisiana Tech fell to Kennesaw State 58-55 in a closely contested game at VyStar Arena on Saturday. The Bulldogs, now 15-12 overall and 8-8 in Conference USA play, held Kennesaw State (16-11, 8-8 CUSA) to just 35.1 percent shooting and their lowest home scoring total this season.
Despite controlling the rebounding battle with a 44-32 advantage, Louisiana Tech struggled offensively due to missed opportunities at the rim and committing 18 turnovers. Head coach Talvin Hester commented on the team’s late-game performance: “We should not have put ourselves in that position late because of the turnovers. I thought we guarded great for about 37 minutes, but we broke down on a few occasions, got mentally fatigued. We must be smarter down the stretch. We must hold our defensive focus. And we must take better care of the basketball.”
The Bulldogs led by two points at halftime after Kaden Cooper scored eight straight points, including a dunk and a three-pointer. Early in the second half, LA Tech built its largest lead at 32-26 following free throws from Will Allen and Jaylen Fenner and a deep three from DJ Dudley.
Kennesaw State responded with an eight-point run to retake the lead. The game remained close until the final minutes when Avery Thomas II tied it with a three-pointer before Cooper’s free throw put LA Tech ahead briefly at 51-50 with just over three minutes left.
The Owls answered with consecutive jumpers—two from beyond the arc—and LA Tech was unable to convert on four shot attempts in the last minute, including AJ Bates’ attempt to tie as time expired.
Coach Hester acknowledged Kennesaw State’s physical style: “Kennesaw State is a tough team. They can stop you with their size and physical toughness. I thought we did a great job battling on the boards. But we had 18 turnovers. We cannot give a team that can really score it that many more opportunities.”
He also praised Cooper’s effort: “He was great tonight. I thought all our guys fought. We just must be able to clean up some things and be better down the stretch. If we can keep this kind of fight, I think we have a chance to finish the season strong.”
Cooper finished with his sixth double-double of the season—18 points and 13 rebounds—and has achieved this feat three times in his last five games. AJ Bates contributed 12 points along with five assists and three steals; Dudley added ten points and nine rebounds.
Defensively, Louisiana Tech recorded ten steals—their third time reaching double digits in steals over their last five games—and matched their second-highest block total of the season with eight rejections.
With this result, Louisiana Tech now trails Kennesaw State in their all-time series by one win to three losses.
The Bulldogs will return home for their next game against Missouri State on Thursday, February 26 at 6:30 p.m., which will be broadcast on ESPN+.
