Kent State University
2-0,0-0MAC
Towson
2-1,0-0CAA
| Team | 1 | 2 | OT 1 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kent St. | 35 | 37 | 12 | 84 |
| Towson | 32 | 40 | 8 | 80 |
Roberts Career-High Pushes Flashes Past Tigers in Overtime Win
11/11/2019 10:42:00 PM | Men's Basketball
TOWSON, MD.- Sophomore Anthony Roberts turned in a game-and career-high 21 points as the Kent State University men's basketball team picked up a gritty overtime road win, 84-80 over Towson inside the SECU Center on Monday night.
Roberts finished the night shooting 8-of-18 from the floor, while he grabbed seven rebounds and dished out three assists.
The win made Kent State 11-1 over the last two seasons in games decided by five points or fewer.
KSU was forced to play catch-up throughout the majority of the second half due to foul trouble. Down between one and three points during the final minutes, the Flashes finally drew even on a gutty offensive rebound and put-back by Phil Whittington with 15 seconds left. The Kent State defense got two stops in the final seconds to force overtime tied at 72.
"We had a good game plan going into the game," said head coach Rob Senderoff. "We did a really good job in the first half and in the second half they started hitting threes early. Our kids really battled and competed on the road against a Towson team that is an elite offensive rebounding team."
Kent State out-rebounded the Tigers 38-33 and limited Towson to only 10 offensive boards.
In the extra session, Kent State forced back-to-back turnovers to hold TU scoreless after a minute of play. Buckets by Roberts and Danny Pippen moved Kent State out in front by five, 77-72. KSU continued to play tough perimeter defense, forcing Towson to miss six of its seven field goals in overtime. In fact, the Tigers' only field goal in the extra five minutes came at the buzzer after the issue was no longer in doubt.
Simons paced the Flashes in the first half with 11 points fueled by a trio of threes before departing with cramps in the second half. The departure came just minutes after the first-year Flash wowed the crowd with a massive one-hand poster dunk to bring Kent within one. He was one of four KSU players in double figures. Pippen added 17 with five blocks and Whittington had a dozen with 10 rebounds.
The Golden Flashes continue their brief two-game road swing on Saturday night at the Ervin J. Nutter Center in Fairborn. Kent State and Wright State play the rubber match of a three-game series at 7 ET.
