Kent State University
10-6 (1-1MAC)
Ball State
7-7 (1-1MAC)
Kent State Answers Ball State's Second-Half Run In A 61-47 Road Win
1/12/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Box score (.PDF)
MUNCIE, Ind. – Kent State showed its resilience in a 61-47 road victory over Ball State at Worthen Arena on Saturday.
More than just holding off a Ball State run that cut a big second-half lead from 18 points all the way down to just one, the Golden Flashes recovered from a frustrating league-opening loss to Toledo at home on Wednesday.
"In this league it is tough to get road wins," said Kent State coach Rob Senderoff. "We obviously came off a disappointing home loss earlier this week. But I'm proud of how our guys responded winning on the road against a good team in the league, which isn't easy to do.
"When it got tight, there were a lot of chances for us to not get over the hump and let them back in the game. But our kids hung together and gutted out a win."
Chris Evans (Chesapeake, Va.) drilled a key three and a turnaround jumper in the closing minutes to help the Golden Flashes' hold off the Ball State comeback. Fellow senior Randal Holt (Cleveland, Ohio) added some late free throws and mid-range baskets on his way to a team-high 16 points.
"I wasn't nervous," said Evans, who finished with 14 points. "I don't ever get nervous. I know what our team is capable of doing. In the clutch, we've provben we can come out and get wins. We turned our defense up in the clutch and got the win."
Kent State held Ball State to just 27.9-percent shooting for the game (17-for-61). The defense was at its best late in the first half when a closing 17-0 run allowed the Golden Flashes to take a 35-20 lead into the break.
"In the first half, we sort of got on a little bit of a roll," said Senderoff. "We got stops and got out in transition. In the second half, it was a matter of gutting it out, scrapping to get a couple of loose balls, and Chris Evans and Randal Holt hitting some big shots … That's the difference in the game."
In a rare non-starting assignment for both players, Evans and Holt helped Kent State outscore Ball State 45-9 off the bench.
Bryson Pope (Jenks, Okla.) scored just three points on an 0-for-5 shooting night, but his hustle was a big factor in the Kent State win. He led the team with 10 rebounds while adding a steal and a blocked shot in 23 minutes. Mark Henniger (Massillon, Ohio) added five points and eight rebounds off the bench.
Devareaux Manley (Oakland, Calif.) played a role in Kent State's early run with eight points all in the first half.
Ball State was led by Majok Majok, who finished with a double-double on 13 points and 12 rebounds. He struggled from the foul line, however, converting just 7-of-17 free throws. Ball State as a team shot just 33.3-percent from the line (8-for-24).
Chris Bond added 10 points and nine rebounds for the Cardinals, who fell to 7-7 overall and 1-1 in league play.
Kent State (10-6, 1-1) travels to Buffalo on Wednesday before returning home to host arch-rival Akron at 3 p.m. on Jan. 19.
