Alan Kornspan
Believeland Media
The Kent State Golden Flashes Men's basketball team was dominant from start to finish on Saturday afternoon as they defeated the Northern Illinois Huskies, 85-47.
Chris Payton Jr. had 9 points and 6 rebounds in the Golden Flashes victory over Northern Illinois
(Alan Kornspan/Believeland Media)
The Golden Flashes scored early and often as they jumped out to a 23-6 lead with 11:49 left in the first half.
After the media timeout, the Flashes continued their hot shooting from the field to take a 44-26 lead into halftime.
For the half, the Flashes were 17-32 (53.1%) from the field and also made 41.2% of their three point attempts.
After halftime, the Golden Flashes kept the pressure on the Huskies and extended their lead to 26 points at 62-36 with 11:29 left in the game.
The Golden Flashes then took their largest lead (39 points) at 81-42 with 4:13 left in the contest.
Kent scored four more points in the final four minutes to make the final score 85-47.
Kent State Head Men's Basketball Coach Rob Senderoff talks to the media at the post-game press conference after the Golden Flashes victory over the Huskies on Saturday afternoon
(Alan Kornspan/Believeland Media)
Kent State Head Men's Basketball Coach Rob Senderoff believed that the Golden Flashes played one of their best games of the year.
“Having time off was probably very helpful for us,” said Senderoff.
Senderoff noted the excellent play of Cli’ron Hornbeak at the start of the game.
Cli'ron Hornbeak had 8 points and 8 rebounds in the Golden Flashes victory over Northern Illinois
(Alan Kornspan/Believeland Media)
In particular, Senderoff explained that the early offensive rebounds and blocked shots on defense by Hornbeak were helpful in propelling the Golden Flashes to a great start.
Jalen Sullinger had 17 points in the Golden Flashes victory over Northern Illinois
(Alan Kornspan/Believeland Media)
Senderoff was also very pleased with the play of point guard Jalen Sullinger and VonCameron Davis as well as the players that came off the bench.
“I think this was Jalen's best overall game of the year in my opinion,” said Senderoff.
“It's also hard to argue with Von, he was 7-7 from the field so his efficiency was as good as you can get.”
“And then we had guys who came off the bench who contributed in a really positive way.”
For the game, the Golden Flashes had three players in double figures and were led by VonCameron Davis and Jalen Sullinger who both had 17 points.
In fact, as Coach Senderoff mentioned, Davis was a perfect 7-7 from the field. In addition, Davis was 1-1 from beyond the arc and 2-3 at the line.
Reggie Bass had 16 points and 5 rebounds in the Golden Flashes victory over Northern Illinois
(Alan Kornspan/Believeland Media)
In addition to Davis and Sullinger who both had 17 points, also contributing to the Golden Flashes offensive point total were Reggie Bass (16 points), Chris Payton Jr. (9), Cli’ron Hornbeak (8), Julius Rollins (7), Donovan Hunter (5), Giovanni Santiago (3), and Mike Bekelja (3).
The Golden Flashes excellent performance on Saturday afternoon was also certainly spurred by their dominance on the glass. In particular, the Flashes outrebounded the Huskies 39-17.
Leading the Golden Flashes on the boards were Hornbeak (8 rebounds), Payton Jr. (6), and Bass (5).
With the victory, the Golden Flashes move to 13-12 on the season and 6-6 in MAC conference play.
The Golden Flashes next travel to Athens, Ohio on Tuesday February 20th to take on the Ohio University Bobcats.
Kent State Cheerleaders celebrate the victory over the Huskies on Saturday afternoon
(Alan Kornspan/Believeland Media)
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