Kent State University
Bowling Green
Men’s Basketball Hosts Bowling Green Tuesday Evening for Senior Night
2/29/2016 5:43:00 PM | Men's Basketball
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Kent State looks to stay in the Mid-American Conference title chase and get a step closer to clinching a first-round tournament bye when it hosts Bowling Green on Tuesday night at the M.A.C. Center. The 7 p.m. contest will be televised on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel.
The frontcourt of Jimmy Hall (16.4 ppg, 7.7 rpg), Khaliq Spicer (7.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and Chris Ortiz (7.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg) has helped Kent State control play around the basket. The Flashes own a +3.9 rebounding advantage while outscoring opponents 34.6-27.5 in the paint and 12.6-9.3 on second chance opportunities.
The Golden Flashes' backcourt is led by Kellon Thomas, who has played well in his return to the court after being sidelined for all but eight games during the 2014-15 season and is averaging a career-high 12.3 points per game. Deon Edwin (6.2 ppg) and Galal Cancer (5.5 ppg) have stepped up their scoring in recent games in the absence of Xavier Pollard (12.2 ppg) and Jaylin Walker (8.4 ppg).
Quick Flashes
• Six Golden Flashes have scored at least 20 points in a game this season and have had multiple 20-point scorers in four games (at Pitt; vs. Ohio; at Ball State; vs. Akron).
• Kent State made a season-high 13 three-point field goals on February 16 vs. Western Michigan and had its highest shooting percentages from the 3-point arc (13-of-26; .500) and free throw line (18-of-21; .857).
• The Flashes are 11-1 when committing fewer than 11 turnovers.
• Kent State is 17-3 when holding opponents under 48-percent shooting and 1-8 when opponents shoot greater than 48-percent.
• Jaylin Walker posted career-highs with 20 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists vs. #18 SMU (Dec. 22) to become the first Kent State freshman with a 20-point performance since all-time leading scorer Trevor Huffman (21 vs. Miami, 1/20/99)
Series History
•  Kent State owns a 71-84 record all-time vs. Bowling Green.
•  The first meeting between the schools was back on Jan. 23 1917. Fitting for that year, Kent State won the game, 19-17.
•  Since the turn of the century, the Golden Flashes own a 22-10 record in the series.
• Kent State is 42-32 as the home team in the series. The Flashes have won seven of the last nine matchups at the M.A.C. Center.
•  The teams have split the season series each of the past four seasons.
• Head coach Rob Senderoff is 5-4 vs. Bowling Green.
•  Bowling Green holds a 4-1 edge in games that have required an overtime period.   Â
FLASHback to Last Meeting
• Kent State pulled out a dramatic 62-59 victory over Bowling Green afternoon at the Stroh Center on January 23, 2016.
• With 0.9 on the clock, the Falcons inbounded the ball to the corner, but Galal Cancer blanketed BG's Zack Denny and prevented him from getting a final shot attempt off. The play ended a difficult night for Denny, who was held scoreless on 0-for-7 shooting.
• Jimmy Hall's impressive 26-point, 16-rebound performance led the way for the Golden Flashes. Hall had a double-double in the first half (13 points, 10 rebounds) and finished with nine offensive rebounds.
• Tied at 14-14 with 7:18 to go in the opening half, Kent State held BG scoreless for 6:29 during an 11-0 run to create a 25-14 lead. It remained an 11-point advantage at the half, 30-19.
• The Falcons made just two of their first 15 field goal attempts and shot just 6-for-30 (20.0 percent) over the first 20 minutes.
• Bowling Green was quick to respond out of the intermission, going on a 9-0 run to cut the lead to four points.
• At 5:52 the game was knotted up at 51-51, the Flashes went on an 8-1 run for the next 4:55, with six points coming from Hall. The Falcons promptly went on a 6-2 run of their own to make it a 61-58 game.
• Leading by three, Kent State sent Ismail Ali to the line for two shot with 2.3 to go. Ali made the first free throw and intentionally missed the second, which was rebounded by Khaliq Spicer. He made one of two free throws to go back ahead by three and setup Cancer's final defensive stand.
• Kent State finished with a 44-38 edge in the rebounding department, and had 19 offensive boards. The Flashes also led in points in the paint (36-22), points off turnovers (11-8) and second chance points (21-4).
• Xavier Pollard scored 12 points for the Flashes on 4-for-9 shooting.
• The Falcons were led offensively by Spencer Parker and Wes Alcegaire, who each dropped 14 points.Â
TV/Radio
Michael Reghi and Dave Bacon will have the call on TimeWarner Cable SportsChannel, while Ty Linder and David Carducci will bring you the action on the Golden Flashes iHeartRadio channel and 640 WHLO.
Next Up For Kent State
The Golden Flashes conclude the regular season on the road against rival Akron on Friday at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.
