Flashes Take Down Costa Rican National Team, 69-51
8/13/2017 10:52:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica – The Kent State University men's basketball team picked up another victory in San Jose Sunday, taking down the Costa Rican National Team, 69-51.
Desmond Ridenour led the way for the Flashes, scoring 20 points on 8-for-16 shooting. He attacked the basket consistently, going 6-for-10 inside the arc. Danny Pippen had a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds. He shot 9-for-14 from the floor. Taishaun Johnson filled up the box score with a team-best five assists, seven points six rebounds and three steals.
Ridenour scored a game-high 20 points tonight. Here are his thoughts on the entire trip. pic.twitter.com/oZHf0XUDXl
— KentStMBB (@KentStMBB) August 14, 2017
The defense looked strong at the start for the Flashes, who held the opposition without a field goal for the first four minutes. The physical Costa Rican team made points hard to come by for the Flashes, but the post players eventually made their impact. Danny Pippen and Akiean Frederick scored a majority of Kent State's first-quarter points in the paint, leading to a 14-9 lead at the end of the period.
Kent State fought off a game Costa Rican team in the second quarter and maintained the lead. Costa Rica cut the deficit down to 23-21, but the Flashes ripped off six straight points to keep the home team at bay. However, Costa Rica finished the quarter on a 7-2 run, thanks to a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to end the half. Kent State entered the half ahead, 30-28.
The Flashes created a cushion in the third period and did not let up from there. Kent State took its first double-digit lead midway through the period and kept the Costa Rican team from making a run back into the game. Kent State entered the final period up, 50-37.
Kent State held onto its double digit lead throughout the fourth quarter, and built a 60-45 lead with just under six minutes left. Later in the quarter, Kent State went on a 9-0 run to go up 69-48, highlighted by a Pippen corner 3 ball in transition. Costa Rica broke its cold spell with 1:22 remaining, with the game in Kent State's hands.
Pippen led a strong effort in the post tonight with a double-double. Here's his take on how that unit is developing pic.twitter.com/pQ2JhFViOw
— KentStMBB (@KentStMBB) August 14, 2017
Kent State was sharp on defense, holding the opposing team to 32 percent (18-for-56) shooting from the floor. The Flashes shot 36 percent (26-for-72) from the floor themselves. They dominated the boards, 57-30, by collecting 23 offensive rebounds.
Frederick had a big game on the boards, bringing in 11 rebounds to pair with six points. BJ Duling registered six points and three rebounds, while Adonis De La Rosa tallied five points.
The third and final game of the foreign tour will take place Monday at 2 p.m. local time against McGill University.
