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Thursday, February 26
Kennesaw, Ga.
7:00 PM ET
Liberty University
23-5,15-2CUSA
65
at
74
Kennesaw State
17-11,9-8CUSA
1
2
F
Liberty
29
36
65
Kennesaw St.
32
42
74
Flames Fall on Road to Owls, 74-65 For 2nd Straight Loss
2/26/2026 10:06:00 PM | Men's Basketball
KENNESAW, Ga. – Liberty fell 74-65 on the road to Kennesaw State, Thursday night at VyStar Arena. The setback is the Flames' second straight loss and only second loss in conference play.
The Flames drop to 23-5 on the season and remain atop the CUSA standings at 15-2. Liberty sees a nine-game road winning streak, the second longest in the nation heading into the night, snapped following the defeat. The Flames suffer their first CUSA road loss of the year, dropping to 8-1 away from Lynchburg in league play.
The Owls improve to 17-11 on the season with their third consecutive win and get above .500 (9-8) in league play. Kennesaw State is 12-3 at home and 7-2 in CUSA games played at VyStar Arena.
Kennesaw State received a combined 45 points from RJ Johnson (game-high 25 points) and Frankquon Sherman (18 points, nine rebounds) in the triumph. Brett Decker Jr. led four Liberty players in double figures with 15 points, and JJ Harper added 14.
Liberty (15-2 CUSA) already clinched a share of the CUSA regular season crown a week ago and needs either one more win or a Sam Houston loss to lock the outright regular season title and the No. 1 seed for the 2026 CUSA Men's Basketball Championship. Sam Houston is taking on FIU tonight, and the Flames will be back in action on Saturday evening (6 p.m. Eastern) at Jacksonville State (14-14, 9-8 CUSA).
Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Brett Decker Jr. 15 points, 5-7 3FG; JJ Harper 14 points, 5-7 FG, 4 steals; Colin Porter 11 points, 6-7 FT; Zach Cleveland 10 points, 6-6 FT, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks; Kaden Metheny 6 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals; Josh Smith 6 points, 3-4 FG
Kennesaw State Individuals: RJ Johnson 25 points, 8-13 FG, 5-6 3FG; Frankquon Sherman 18 points, 7-12 FG, 3-3 3FG, 9 rebounds, 2 steals; Jaden Harris 8 points, 3-5 FG, 2 steals; Braedan Lue 7 points, 6 rebounds
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 45.2 percent (19-of-42) from the field and 36.4 percent (8-of-22) from three-point territory. The Flames were productive from the foul line, going 19-of-23 (82.6 percent). The Flames' 19 field goal makes were the second fewest on the season, and their 11 assists were also their second fewest of the year. Kennesaw State finished the night at an impressive 61.1 percent (11-of-18) from three-point land and 50.9 percent (28-of-55) from the field. The Owls connected on only 7-of-12 free throw attempts (58.3 percent). Liberty committed 12 turnovers, its third straight game with 12 or more. The Owls also committed 12 turnovers. KSU held the advantage in rebounding (32-21), assists (14-11), points in the paint (30-22), points off turnovers (15-12), second chance points (9-2), bench points (12-9), fast break points (7-4) and blocks (6-5). Both teams had eight steals. The Owls led for 24:49, and the Flames were ahead for 11:27.
Turning Point
Kennesaw State finished the first half on a 10-2 run over the final 4:18 to seize a 32-29 advantage at the break. The Owls pushed the lead to nine, 48-39, at the 12:31 mark and took their first double-digit lead, 54-43, with 10:50 left following a triple from RJ Johnson.
The Flames inched back in the game and got within five on two occasions (57-52, 7:56 left and 60-55, 6:42 left), but Kennesaw State had an answer. A personal 6-0 run by Johnson, featuring a three-pointer (6:03 mark) and three-point play (4:53 mark), pushed the home lead to 66-55. Liberty got as close as seven, 70-63, with 2:24 to play following a pair of Zach Cleveland free throws, but the KSU defense held the Flames to one field goal make on their final four attempts to seal the win.
Key Stats & Notes
The Flames will play their final regular season road game at CUSA foe Jacksonville State (14-14, 9-8 CUSA), Saturday evening. Tip time between Liberty and Jax State is 6 p.m. Eastern (5 p.m. Central) from Pete Mathews Coliseum in Jacksonville, Ala. The game will air live on national television on ESPNU.
The Flames bested the Gamecocks 78-69 in the first meeting, Jan. 4 in Lynchburg.
CUSA Championship Ticket Information
Ticket packages for the 2026 CUSA Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are now on sale. Both the Flames and Lady Flames will look to defend their conference tournament titles at Propst Arena in Huntsville, Ala., March 10-14.
Fans can purchase an all-session booklet through the Liberty Ticket Office for $175, a savings of $25. This includes tickets to all nine men's games and all nine women's games throughout the tournament. To purchase tickets and find more information, please visit http://www.libertyflames.com/CUSABasketball.
Students will be able to purchase tickets for the tournaments on a session-to-session basis. These may be purchased at Propst Arena with a valid student ID (of a CUSA school) for half the price of the current day's session.
The Flames drop to 23-5 on the season and remain atop the CUSA standings at 15-2. Liberty sees a nine-game road winning streak, the second longest in the nation heading into the night, snapped following the defeat. The Flames suffer their first CUSA road loss of the year, dropping to 8-1 away from Lynchburg in league play.
The Owls improve to 17-11 on the season with their third consecutive win and get above .500 (9-8) in league play. Kennesaw State is 12-3 at home and 7-2 in CUSA games played at VyStar Arena.
Kennesaw State received a combined 45 points from RJ Johnson (game-high 25 points) and Frankquon Sherman (18 points, nine rebounds) in the triumph. Brett Decker Jr. led four Liberty players in double figures with 15 points, and JJ Harper added 14.
Liberty (15-2 CUSA) already clinched a share of the CUSA regular season crown a week ago and needs either one more win or a Sam Houston loss to lock the outright regular season title and the No. 1 seed for the 2026 CUSA Men's Basketball Championship. Sam Houston is taking on FIU tonight, and the Flames will be back in action on Saturday evening (6 p.m. Eastern) at Jacksonville State (14-14, 9-8 CUSA).
Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Brett Decker Jr. 15 points, 5-7 3FG; JJ Harper 14 points, 5-7 FG, 4 steals; Colin Porter 11 points, 6-7 FT; Zach Cleveland 10 points, 6-6 FT, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks; Kaden Metheny 6 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals; Josh Smith 6 points, 3-4 FG
Kennesaw State Individuals: RJ Johnson 25 points, 8-13 FG, 5-6 3FG; Frankquon Sherman 18 points, 7-12 FG, 3-3 3FG, 9 rebounds, 2 steals; Jaden Harris 8 points, 3-5 FG, 2 steals; Braedan Lue 7 points, 6 rebounds
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 45.2 percent (19-of-42) from the field and 36.4 percent (8-of-22) from three-point territory. The Flames were productive from the foul line, going 19-of-23 (82.6 percent). The Flames' 19 field goal makes were the second fewest on the season, and their 11 assists were also their second fewest of the year. Kennesaw State finished the night at an impressive 61.1 percent (11-of-18) from three-point land and 50.9 percent (28-of-55) from the field. The Owls connected on only 7-of-12 free throw attempts (58.3 percent). Liberty committed 12 turnovers, its third straight game with 12 or more. The Owls also committed 12 turnovers. KSU held the advantage in rebounding (32-21), assists (14-11), points in the paint (30-22), points off turnovers (15-12), second chance points (9-2), bench points (12-9), fast break points (7-4) and blocks (6-5). Both teams had eight steals. The Owls led for 24:49, and the Flames were ahead for 11:27.
Turning Point
Kennesaw State finished the first half on a 10-2 run over the final 4:18 to seize a 32-29 advantage at the break. The Owls pushed the lead to nine, 48-39, at the 12:31 mark and took their first double-digit lead, 54-43, with 10:50 left following a triple from RJ Johnson.
The Flames inched back in the game and got within five on two occasions (57-52, 7:56 left and 60-55, 6:42 left), but Kennesaw State had an answer. A personal 6-0 run by Johnson, featuring a three-pointer (6:03 mark) and three-point play (4:53 mark), pushed the home lead to 66-55. Liberty got as close as seven, 70-63, with 2:24 to play following a pair of Zach Cleveland free throws, but the KSU defense held the Flames to one field goal make on their final four attempts to seal the win.
Key Stats & Notes
- Zach Cleveland grabbed three rebounds tonight and became the ninth player in program history to reach the 700-rebound plateau for his career. The senior forward has 702, ninth most in Flames history and only one behind eighth place Caleb Homesley. Cleveland is also No. 5 in school history with 530 career assists and No. 30 in scoring with 1,137 career points.
- Colin Porter (two assists tonight) became the sixth player in program history to dish out 500 career assists. The senior guard added 11 points tonight
- Brett Decker Jr. was 5-of-7 from deep tonight. The sophomore is second in the nation in three-point percentage (48.9) and paces the Flames with 93 long distance makes.
- Liberty has lost back-to-back for the second time this season and only the third time in the last two years. The Flames dropped their final two games to Towson and Bradley at the 2025 ESPN Events Invitational (Nov. 25-26).
- JJ Harper (four steals) and Kaden Metheny (three steals) both matched their season highs in steals. Harper scored 14 points and is averaging 16.6 points per game over his last five.
- Liberty had won back-to-back games against KSU coming in. The Flames fall to 12-4 all-time against the Owls, including a 4-3 mark in Kennesaw.
- The Flames drop to 9-2 on the road after their first road loss since Dec. 10 (NC State).
- Liberty's 65 points are its fewest in a CUSA game this season.
- KSU entered the night sixth in the nation and first in the league in offensive rebounds per game (14.44) but finished under their season average with 10 offensive boards. The Owls collected seven of those 10 offensive rebounds over the final 20 minutes.
- After averaging only 8.5 turnovers over their first 25 games, the Flames have committed 39 in their last three contests (13/game).
The Flames will play their final regular season road game at CUSA foe Jacksonville State (14-14, 9-8 CUSA), Saturday evening. Tip time between Liberty and Jax State is 6 p.m. Eastern (5 p.m. Central) from Pete Mathews Coliseum in Jacksonville, Ala. The game will air live on national television on ESPNU.
The Flames bested the Gamecocks 78-69 in the first meeting, Jan. 4 in Lynchburg.
CUSA Championship Ticket Information
Ticket packages for the 2026 CUSA Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are now on sale. Both the Flames and Lady Flames will look to defend their conference tournament titles at Propst Arena in Huntsville, Ala., March 10-14.
Fans can purchase an all-session booklet through the Liberty Ticket Office for $175, a savings of $25. This includes tickets to all nine men's games and all nine women's games throughout the tournament. To purchase tickets and find more information, please visit http://www.libertyflames.com/CUSABasketball.
Students will be able to purchase tickets for the tournaments on a session-to-session basis. These may be purchased at Propst Arena with a valid student ID (of a CUSA school) for half the price of the current day's session.
Team Stats
Lib
KennSt
FG%
.452
.509
3FG%
.364
.611
FT%
.826
.583
RB
21
32
TO
12
12
STL
8
8
Game Leaders
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
5
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
10
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
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