Kent State University
14-5,5-2MAC
Miami (OH)
20-0,8-0MAC
Second Half Surge Comes up Short as Golden Flashes Fall to #25 Miami (OH) in Overtime
1/20/2026 11:29:00 PM | Men's Basketball
KENT – Kent State Men's Basketball (14-5, 5-2 MAC) came up short against #25 Miami (OH) on Tuesday night by a final score in overtime of 107-101. The Golden Flashes scored 58 second half points to close the gap built in the first half by the RedHawks. MU ultimately forced overtime outscoring KSU 15-9 to remain undefeated on the season.
Miami (OH) took an early lead outscoring Kent State 11-7 in the opening four minutes. Rob Whaley Jr. threw down a thundering dunk to answer one of Miami's and hit a three to help close the gap. Kent State then put a few stops together to slow the pace of the game holding the RedHawks to 21 points for nearly four minutes. The RedHawks utilized a 12 to four run to push their lead to 14 points. The Golden Flashes continued to hang around closing the gap to nine points and seven points over the back end of the first half. KSU trailed at the half 34 to 48.
Kent State exploded out of a canon in the second half as Whaley Jr., Delrecco Gillespie, and Morgan Safford led a charged 25-11 run to tie the game at 59 as the M.A.C. Center roared to its feet. The Flashes and RedHawks began to trade blows in the high decibels with Kent State taking their first lead of the ballgame on a Rayvon Griffith one-hand slam with 9:09 left to play. Miami was missing key free throws down the stretch as Cian Medley began to heat up. Despite pushing to a five-point lead, the Red Hawks fought back to gaining an opportunity to tie the game with 11 seconds left. Luke Skaljac drove in a layup with six seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game at 92. Kent State was unable to score a game winner on the returning possession sending the game into overtime. Kent State fell behind in the extra frame by as much as six points. Buckets from Safford and Medley were not enough as Miami (OH) pulled away as KSU began to foul. 107-101 was the final.
The Box Score Story
Whaley Jr. tallied his second Kent State career double-double leading the Flashes in scoring for the first time with 27 points while grabbing 14 rebounds. Medley was second on the scoresheet with 23 points, marking just his second game the season dropping over 20 points. For the 12th time he led the Blue and Gold in assists with seven. Safford was third in scoring with 18 points, while Gillespie racked up 17. They grabbed eight boards each.
Up Next
Kent State Men's Basketball continues their conference schedule this weekend at Eastern Michigan University on Saturday Jan. 24. Tip-off between the Golden Flashes and Eagles is scheldued for 3:30 p.m.
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