Kent State University
9-5, 0-1MAC
Ohio University
11-3, 1-0MAC
Flashes' offense struggles in 59-53 loss to Ohio
1/8/2014 9:34:00 PM | Men's Basketball
KENT, Ohio – Hard work on defense wasn't enough to keep Kent State from falling 59-53 to Ohio University in Wednesday night's Mid-American Conference opener at the M.A.C. Center.
"It was a hard fought game, but I'm obviously disappointed with the outcome," head coach Rob Senderoff said. " I thought our guys did an excellent job of competing and defending tonight. We just didn't shoot the ball very well."
While the Golden Flashes held the Bobcats under 60 points and below 40-percent shooting, their own struggles on offense proved too much to overcome. Their 53 points marked the low output of the 2013-14 season, and the starting backcourt of Kris Brewer, Devareaux Manley and Derek Jackson combined to make just five of their 32 attempts from the floor.
Kent State shot just 26.7 percent (8-for-30) as a team in the first half while falling behind 26-19. Despite battling back to take a three-point lead in the second half and keeping the game close into the final minute, the Flashes only managed to improve to 30 percent shooting (9-for-30) after halftime. For the game, Kent State converted just 28.3-percent of its shots (17-for-60).
"We missed some 'bunnies,' but when they hold you to 28-percent, you can't take the blame completely," said Senderoff. "You have to give them some credit. Their posts are big and athletic. I thought Jon Smith had an excellent night and protected the rim well along with Maurice Ndour and T.J. Hall."
Mark Henniger scored 12 points and grabbed seven rebounds in just 20 minutes of work due to foul trouble. When the starting senior post was forced to the bench, sophomore Khaliq Spicer was excellent in matching his energy off the bench, throwing down two dunks on his way to six points and two blocked shots. The second of his dunks tied the game at 46-46 with 6:45 remaining, but the Flashes missed their next nine shots as the Bobcats finished on a 13-7 run to close the game.
"We need somebody to step up," Senderoff said. "Kris Brewer did try to drive the ball to the basket and make some plays, he just didn't finish very well tonight. But he was in attack mode."
Manley led Kent State with 13 points, which all came during the final 20 minutes. His three-pointer with 10:43 to play gave the Flashes their largest lead of the night at 42-38. While Brewer struggled to put the ball in the basket, the starting point guard pulled down six rebounds and dished out a season-high seven assists.
Ohio senior guard Nick Kellogg finished with 19 points to lead all scorers, but connected on just 6-of-14 from the field and 1-of-4 from three-point range. Maurice Ndour added nine points and five rebounds for the Bobcats (11-3, 1-0). Those totals were six points and four rebounds below his season averages.
The Golden Flashes (9-5, 0-1) will try to end a three-game home losing streak when they host Ball State at 7 p.m. on Saturday at the M.A.C. Center.
