Kent State University
Louisiana Tech
11/1/2026 1:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
RUSTON, La. - The Kent State University Golden Flashes are set to begin men's basketball varsity season number 111 on the road against the Bulldogs of Louisiana Tech University. Tip-off is schedule for 7:30 p.m. eastern time on Monday, Nov. 2 inside Louisiana Tech's Thomas Assembly Center. Head Coach Rob Senderoff enters his 16th season at the helm and returns seven players from a squad that posted a 24-10 record and reached the first round of the National Invitation Tournament during the 2025-2026 season. The Blue and Gold take on Louisiana Tech as their first of two games in the Mid-American Conference-Sun Belt Conference Challenge.
FAMILIAR FLASHES
A pair of key returners include redshirt senior guard Jamal Sumlin and sophomore guard Quinn Woidke. Cleveland native, Sumlin appeared in 28 games in the 2024-2025 season while missing all the 2025-2026 season due to injury. Additionally; he averaged 5.9 points per game with a total of 166 points while pulling in 95 rebounds. Woidke returns after being named to the MAC All-Freshman Team, appearing in all 34 games in the 2025-2026 season. He scored 307 points averaging 9.0 ppg while shooting 40.4% from three.
A LOOK AT THE NEW FLASHES
Key additions for Kent State include transfers Chansey Willis Jr. (Minnesota), Cameron Williams (Portland), Latif Diouf (Chattanooga) and Godslove Nwabude (Eastern Michigan). Willis Jr. started seven games last year for Minnesota, tallying 44 points, 21 rebounds, 23 assists, and 17 steals before suffering a season ending injury. Chansey is no stranger to the MAC, playing for Western Michigan during the 2024-2025 season, leading the league in scoring (16.8 PPG) and assists (5.8 APG). He was named an All-MAC second team selection and capped off his season with 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists in a 66-73 loss against Kent State in the MAC Championship Quarterfinal. Cameron Williams appeared in 31 games for Portland last season, making 28 starts and averaging 23.9 minutes per game. He scored a total of 330 points, highlighted by him shooting 71-89 from the free throw line. He also totaled 144 rebounds with 30 assists and 13 steals. Redshirt Sophomore forward Latif Diouf played in 5 games for Chattanooga last year before a season ending injury. Prior to that, he had a solid freshman year totaling 97 points shooting 44.4% from the field. Sought after in the portal due to his size and versatility, he looks to regain his freshman form and be a contributor to the Flash family. Forward Godslove Nwabude appeared in 56 total games in his time at Eastern Michigan, starting a total of 31 of those games. While he had a solid freshman season, he broke out in his sophomore year, averaging 5.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, as well as 1.6 blocks per game with ranked second in the MAC. The Golden Flashes also added some firepower in freshman Dhani Miller. Miller was ranked number 60 in the SportsCenter NEXT 100, making him the highest rated recruit by ESPN in Kent State Men's Basketball program history. He averaged 16.5 points per game as a senior for Montverde Academy tallying 495 points on 47 three pointers and 98 three pointers made.
Scouting the Bulldogs
Louisiana Tech enters their first season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference having previously been members of Conference USA. The Bulldogs posted a 20–14 overall record in 2025-2026 earning the fourth seed in the conference tournament with a record of 11-9. LTU bested Middle Tennessee State in the quarterfinals, and Missouri State in the semis before falling to Kennesaw State in the CUSA title game. Head Coach Telvin Hester is entering year five at the helm with an overall record of 77-54 at Louisiana Tech, including three seasons with 20 or more wins. The Bulldogs have made several additions to the roster seeking to make an impact including third-year transfer Deven Bates from Pensacola State College, where he averaged 20.3 PPG, 7.0 RPG and 5.1 APG while earning First Team All-Panhandle Conference honors. Jay Tyler is a third-year transfer who joins Louisiana Tech after two seasons at Jones College. He totaled 724 career points and averaged 5.5 APG while earning First Team All-MACC, First Team All-Region and 23 Tournament MVP honors. LTU also has second-year returner Jaylen Fenner who averaged 5.5 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 1.0 APG and 1.1 SPG.
Broadcast Info
Monday night's game will be broadcast on ESPN+. This season's radio broadcast can be heard on Fox Sports 1350 with Dane Richardson on the call.
Next Up for Kent State
Kent State will hold its home opener on Friday, Nov. 6 inside the M.A.C. Center against Roberts Wesleyan University. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
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