Kent State Looks to Secure a First Round Tournament Bye When Ohio Visits the M.A.C. Center Saturday Night
2/25/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Complete Notes in (.PDF)
The Game
Kent State (19-9; 10-3) looks to secure a first round bye and clinch its 12th 20-win season in the last 13 years when Ohio (15-13; 7-6) pays a visit to the M.A.C. Center Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. The Golden Flashes enter the day with a full game lead over Miami in the Mid-American Conference East Division standings. A win would give Kent State one of the four first round byes in the upcoming MAC Tournament.
Junior guard Carlton Guyton totaled a team high 19 points in a come from behind win over Buffalo on Thursday night, but it was an electrifying dunk by junior guard Michael Porrini that stole the show. Porrini, who also hit the game-winner on Monday night at Western Michigan, caught a skip pass on the left wing, drove the baseline and threw down a tomahawk dunk that brought the crowd to its feet and gave the Golden Flashes a three-point lead with 19 seconds remaining. Guyton, meanwhile continued to shine off the Kent State bench. Behind his 18.0 ppg the Golden Flashes second unit has scored 20+ in four straight games averaging 24.5 ppg, during the stretch.
Ohio enters the game having won five of the last six, including a 70-60 victory over Bowling Green on Wednesday night. Sophomore guard D.J. Cooper heads up the highest scoring team in the MAC with 16.5 ppg. Cooper also ranks third in the country with 7.6 apg.
TV / Radio
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Next Up For Kent State
The Golden Flashes travel to Bowling Green on Tuesday, March 1 for their final regular season road game of the year. The game can be seen live in HD on SportsTime Ohio starting at 7:30 p.m.
Quick Flashes
• Kent State, Kansas and Gonzaga are the only three teams in the country that have won at least 10 league games in each of the past 13 seasons.
• The Golden Flashes have won 13 straight at home and own a 63-6 (.913) home record against league competition since the start of the 2003-04 season.
• Kent State has also won 25 straight home games in the month of February.
• The Golden Flashes are 13-1 this season when scoring 70+ points.
• Justin Greene (38) and Justin Manns (33) are the first set of teammates in school history to each block 30+ shots in the same season.
• Kent State's 110 blocks as a team this season are the second most in school history trailing only the 2007-08 team which had 134 in 35 games.
• Kent State Head Coach Geno Ford was an All-MAC selection and a member of the Bobcats 1994 MAC Championship team under Larry Hunter. He then spent three years on the sideline as an assistant coach at Ohio.
Kent State - Ohio Series Notes
• Kent State won the first meeting this season 69-66 in Athens on Jan. 15 as Carlton Guyton hit a pair of go-ahead free throws with 24 seconds left and Justin Greene led the team with 18 points and eight rebounds.
• Kent State has won 10 of the last 12 regular season meetings, with both Ohio wins coming in Athens. The Bobcats also knocked the Golden Flashes out the MAC Tournament last season with an 81-64 quarterfinal win.
• Ohio still leads the all-time series 87-43 which dates back to the 1930-31 season.
• Kent State has won the last nine home games in the series having last lost in 2001.
• Kent State Head Coach Geno Ford is 4-2 against his former team. Ford's younger brother, Dustin is in his third season on the Bobcat's coaching staff.
Recapping Buffalo (2/24/11)
Kent State 72 - Buffalo 69
Michael Porrini tomahawked a dunk from the left baseline with 19 second left to help seal a 72-69 win over Buffalo.
Kent State used second half runs of 9-0 and 16-3 to erase a10-point halftime deficit and build an eight-point, 66-58 lead with five minutes remaining. Buffalo closed to within one before Porrini's slam.
Kent State Fans Encouraged to Gold Out the M.A.C. Center on March 4 Vs Akron.
Regular Season Finale to be televised on ESPN2
The biggest rivalry in the Mid-American Conference will be brought to the national spotlight once again as ESPN2 has announced it will broadcast the Kent State-Akron regular season finale on Friday, March 4 at 7:00 p.m.
Kent State fans are encouraged to wear gold to the game as the Golden Flashes 'Gold-out' the M.A.C. Center.
