Kent State University
Central Michigan
Flashes Prepare For Chippewas on Saturday
1/10/2020 1:04:00 PM | Men's Basketball
KENT, Ohio-Â The Kent State men's basketball team will look to remain perfect at home as the Flashes take on Central Michigan on Saturday afternoon at the M.A.C. Center. Tip time is at 3:30 p.m.
THE GAME
Kent State (12-3, 2-0 MAC) vs. Central Michigan (9-6, 2-0 MAC)
Saturday, Jan. 11 | M.A.C. Center  | Kent, Ohio | 3:30 PM
BROADCAST
TV: ESPN3, Ty Linder (pbp) & Tanner Castora (color)
Radio: Dan Griffin (pbp), WHLO 640 AM (flagship), iHeart Radio
CENTRAL MICHIGAN HEAD COACH
Keno Davis
Record at Central Michigan: 130-115 Â (8th season)
KENT STATE HEAD COACH
Record at Kent State: 173-112 (ninth season)
SERIES HISTORY
Kent State leads the all-time series with an 48-33 record.
Kent State is 28-10 when hosting CMU at the M.A.C. Center.
Kent State is 7-5 against the Chippewas under head coach Rob Senderoff.
Last season the two teams met twice with CMU sweeping Kent State. The Chippewas beat the Flashes in Mt. Pleasant during the regular season, 84-74, and dropped them in the MAC Tournament Quarterfinals, 98-91.
LAST TIME OUT
The Kent State men's basketball team improved to 12-3 overall and 2-0 in conference play after an 84-77 win over Toledo at home. All five starters scored in double figures with Phil Whittington leading the way with 16 points, 10 rebounds, his fourth double-double of the season. Danny Pippen (16 pts), Antonio Williams (16 pts), Troy Simons (16 pts), and Anthony Roberts (11pts) rounded out the double-digit scoring. The Flashes took advantage of Toledo's center Luke Knapke's foul troubles and scored repeatedly inside during the second half. Kent State dominated the paint scoring 42 points to the Rocket's 16. The Flashes broke the tight game at the six-minute mark with the use of an 11-0 scoring run that put the Flashes ahead for good. Kent State shot lights out in the second half connecting on 20-of-32 (62.5 percent) from the floor and hitting 5-of-11 (45.5 percent) from 3-point range.
Kent State shot 52.4 percent (33-of-63) from the floor and connected on 9 three pointers (47.4 percent).
On the season, the Flashes are shooting 46.1 percent (440-955) from the floor and 135-388 (34.8 percent) from long range. Williams leads the team with 184 points (14.2 ppg) and Whittington leads the team in rebounds averaging 7.0 boards a game.
FLASH FACTS
- The Flashes have five players averaging in double-figure scoring with Troy Simons (12.7 ppg), Anthony Roberts (12.6 ppg), Antonio Williams (14.2 ppg), Danny Pippen (14.0 ppg), and Phil Whittington (11.3).
- Kent State ranks 22nd in the country and second in the conference in scoring offense (80.4 ppg).
- As a team, Kent State ranks 46th in the country and leads the conference with 4.6 blocked shots per game.
- Danny Pippen leads the team with 31 total blocks, five of which he had against Towson. Kent State ranks 42nd in the nation in total blocked shots (69) and lead the conference. Pippen also ranks 44th in the nation and is second in conference stats averaging 2.07 blocked shots per game.
- Troy Simons ranks 28th in the nation in 3-point FG per game (3.07) and is second in conference stats.
- As a team, Kent State ranks 69th in field goal percentage defense limiting teams to 39.7 percent from the field. Â
-Flashes rank 38th in the country and lead the conference with a +12.5 scoring margin. Kent State ended the non-conference schedule with the highest scoring margin during the non-conference schedule in 20 seasons. (+12.5).
- Defensively, the Flashes have held its opponents to 67.9 points per game on 39.7 percent shooting from the field and 32.3 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
- Kent State has forced 226 turnovers (15.1 tpg) while collecting 114 steals (7.6 stl/g). On the glass, the Flashes have out re-bounded their opponents 563-530Â for a +2.2 margin.
SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN
The Chippewas, stand 9-6 overall and 2-0 in MAC play under 8-year head coach Keno Davis. CMU won a thrilling game over NIU, 68-67. Kevin McKay scored the go-ahead basket with 0.2 seconds to play as Central Michigan came back from a 12-point second-half deficit. DiLeo scored 12 points, while Lane added 11 and led CMU with five assists. CMU has four players averaging in double-figure scoring, McKay (15.4 ppg), DiLeo (13.9 ppg), Dallas Morgan (13.1 ppg), and Rob Montgomery (11.3 ppg).
Central Michigan is the league's top scoring offense, averaging 85.20 points per game.
Defensively, CMU has held its opponents to score 76.3 points per game on 46.1 percent shooting from the field and 37.1 percent shooting from beyond the arc. The Chippewas have 188 turnovers (12.5 tpg) while collecting 149 steals (9.9 stl/g) On the glass, CMU has out-rebounded their opponents 571-543 for a +1.9 margin.
FOLLOW ALONG
Flash fans unable to attend the game can watch the game on ESPN3, listen through iHeart Radio and Tune-In and follow along with live stats via sidearm. All the links are located below.
Watch: http://www.espn.com/watch?id=834f017c-79d0-4ac5-bd81-fe9fdffaa858
Listen: https://www.iheart.com/live/640-whlo-3520/
Live Stats: https://kentstatesports.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary
