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Owls stay on course as Flashes flicker out
Owls tough test for rested Flashes
Flashes outshoot Penguins for victory
Flashes put Penguins on thin ice
Freakish final play spoils game for Flashes
Flashes strong without Singletary
Flashes hold on to win after second-half surge
Extra work pays off in a hurry for KSU cross country
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Police accuse bank robbery suspect of gobbling up note (with dashcam video)
Man found dead in North Akron home is identified
Dad accused of forcing son into field, killing him
Coventry man killed in crash at I-77 ramp
NFL star Chris Spielman's wife loses cancer battle
College student mistaken for deer, shot to death
Browns' roster nearly devoid of consistent players
Blogs:
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Cat-loving chihuahua suckles seven abandoned kittens
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Akron Zips:
Hitchens leads Zips in second-half comeback
Tribe Matters:
Seven players added to Tribe’s 40-man roster
Cleveland Browns:
Holmgren expresses interest in Browns position
Kent State Sports:
Kent State blown out in second half, loses to Temple 47-13
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Gameblog: Cavs vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Buckeye Blogging:
OSU – Michigan college football rivals meet in Baghdad
Varsity Letters:
Four area football teams play tonight
All Da King's Men:
Headed For Disaster
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Will Health Care Reform Pass?
Akron Law Café:
Health Care Financing Reform: (68) Democrats Secure 60 Votes for Cloture
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Silverdome Potentially SOLD!
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Steely Dan Plays "The Royal Scam" at E.J. Thomas Hall
HRLite House:
Colloquium at University of Akron
Akron Gamer:
Nintendo's Mario endures even as games come and go
Second-half surge is key as KSU hangs on to halt five-game losing streak
By Stephanie Storm
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published on Tuesday, Dec 16, 2008
KENT: Monday night's basketball game at the M.A.C. Center was just what the doctor ordered for Kent State.
The prescription: an 82-74 win over visiting Youngstown State that finally put to rest the Golden Flashes' five-game losing streak.
It wasn't pretty and it took a half for the Flashes to get themselves in sync. And KSU found itself in trouble late in the game after nearly squandering a 21-point lead down the stretch.
But the point is that the Flashes won. And more important, the streak is done.
After a much-needed nine-day respite to work on defense, defense and more defense in practice, KSU (4-5) held on and finished a game with players and coaches smiling for the first time in weeks.
''For the whole week all we did was defense in practice,'' KSU coach Geno Ford said. ''I feared we wouldn't look very good on offense for two reasons. One, anytime you have a long break, you lose your rhythm and timing. Two, we have not shot the ball well.''
The Penguins, who also played for the first time since Dec. 6, fell to 1-7 with the loss, extending their losing streak to five games.
A steal and layup at the first-half buzzer by junior guard Kelvin Bright gave YSU a 31-29 halftime lead.
It was a sluggish first half for the Flashes in which they committed 10 of their 15 turnovers. Half of those early miscues were made by KSU junior guard Chris Singletary,
who had as many turnovers (five) as points in the first half.
''Chris was a little frustrated by some early calls,'' Ford said of Singletary, who finished with 14 points, one of three Flashes scoring in double figures.
Singletary helped the Flashes take control in the second half with a 16-0 run which was part of a 24-2 spurt and included seven consecutive YSU turnovers.
But the Penguins still made it close late in the game thanks to sophomore guard Vance Cooksey, who poured in 12 points in the last 5:26 of the game. Cooksey finished with a game-high 24 points.
''I really felt that after a couple foul shots, after a couple steals, after a couple baskets we were going to get hyped, get above them and get right back into the game,'' Cooksey said.
But Cooksey failed to take advantage of a personal foul and technical foul on KSU's Jordan Mincy with 2:36 to go. He made just one of four free throws to seal YSU's fate.
Senior guard Al Fisher led the Flashes with 20 points and junior forward Anthony Simpson added 11. It wasn't Kent State's greatest offensive showing, but it was an improvement.
''We're going to get everything together soon,'' Simpson said. ''We got places to be and things to do.''
Notebook
Forward Antonio DiMaria has left the team in an effort to transfer to a junior college in Kansas. After redshirting last season, DiMaria, a 6-foot-8, 215-pound freshman from Pittsburgh, still found playing time hard to come by this year with five others competing for time at his position.
• The much-anticipated debut of junior transfer Tyree Evans is expected to come in Kent State's next game Thursday against UNC-Greensboro after grades are posted Wednesday. The much-traveled guard joined the team and began taking classes during the summer, but had to sit out the start of the basketball season in accordance to NCAA transfer rules.
Stephanie Storm can be reached at sstorm@thebeaconjournal.com.
KENT: Monday night's basketball game at the M.A.C. Center was just what the doctor ordered for Kent State.
Get the full article here.
Comments
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Posted 09:45 AM, 12/16/2008
Thank you for the update on Evans. I have not been able to find that anywhere!
