Kent State University
5-5
Xavier
7-2
Xavier Holds Off Kent State 62-55 Despite A Double-Double By Melvin Tabb
12/9/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
CINCINNATI – Melvin Tabb's best game in a Kent State uniform wasn't enough to offset another poor shooting performance by the Golden Flashes' seniors in a 62-55 loss at Xavier on Sunday.
While Tabb connected on 9-of-10 from the field and finished with game highs of 20 points and 14 rebounds, Randal Holt shot just 2-for-17 and Chris Evans made 4-of-18. Evans finished with 10 points while Holt added seven.
"Our main guys are struggling," said Kent State head coach Rob Senderoff. "It's going to be tough to win when Chris and Randal combine to shoot 6-for-35 … Melvin obviously had a great game. If you had told me that he would go for 20 and 14, I would have thought we were going to win the game."
As a team Kent State made just 32-percent of its shots (21-of-65), including an ugly 16-percent from the three-point arc (4-for-24). Holt was 1-for-10 and Evans 2-for-8 from long distance.
The ugly offensive performance nullified what was a first-class defensive effort in the opening 20 minutes. Kent State took an early 9-0 lead and kept the Musketeers from scoring their first point until the game was more than four minutes old. Xavier only managed 18 points on 21-percent shooting (5-for-24) in the first half as the Golden Flashes took a two-point lead into the break.
"We played better defense than we have, and we competed," said Senderoff. "But we have got to get better. A lot of teams are not going to win at Xavier. I'm not going to get two down. We are 5-5 and lost the last three, and that's very disappointing. We took a step forward (defensively). We need to keep getting better."
Xavier had an easier time against Kent State's defense in the second half, shooting 58-percent (14-for-24). A 12-0 run midway through the half turned the game in favor of the Musketeers, who improved to 7-2 with the win.
Despite shooting just 1-for-6 and scoring four points in the opening 20 minutes, Xavier star Semaj Christon finished with a team-high 18 points. Brad Redford hit 4-of-5 from beyond the arc while adding 14 for the Musketeers.
Following 11 days off for final exams, Kent State will return to action Dec. 20 against St. Francis (Pa.) at the M.A.C. Center.
