It had been over three months since the Kent State men’s basketball team scored 90 or more points in a game.

It last happened Nov. 8 in a 98-53 victory over Miami-Hamilton. 

The drought was broken, however, Tuesday night in the M.A.C. Center as KSU took on Central Michigan.

Thanks in part to a 54.2% shooting clip from the field and an unconscious 53.3% from 3-point range on 30 attempts, Kent State took its third win in a row from the Chippewas 91-83.

“It was great to come back after the Arkansas State game, play well again at home in a conference game and get ourselves above .500 in league play,” coach Rob Senderoff said. “I am really happy we were able to get this win.”

How it went

Kent State flew out of the gates, taking a 19-4 lead early in the first half.

The 3’s were raining early, as redshirt senior forward VonCameron Davis hit two, and senior guard Jalen Sullinger cashed in on one to give the Flashes their first nine points of the night.

Sullinger hit two more 3’s to put the Flashes in the driver’s seat early, giving the team 22 points before CMU could crack double digits.

By the halfway point of the half, CMU battled back, cutting the lead to just five points, as Central Michigan went on a 12-2 run.

A 9-0 run by the Flashes made the lead more comfortable. Led by senior guard Marquis Barnett’s five points, KSU jumped to a 41-25 lead.

The teams exchanged buckets for the last four minutes of the half. Kent State took a 15-point lead into the break in a 48-33 game.

In the first half, Kent State shot an extremely efficient 55.2% from the field, while CMU was held to just 42.3%.

Kent State went 9-18 from beyond the arc while also outrebounding CMU by five boards. KSU was also getting help from the bench, as the team was outscoring Central Michigan 17-2 in bench points in the first half.

The second half started just as hot as the first one with Davis converting on a 3 ball seven seconds into it.

A 3-pointer from sophomore guard Cian Medley and a layup from Sullinger pushed the Flashes to a 22-point lead a little over a minute into the half. It would be the biggest lead of the game.

After a little back-and-forth between the teams, KSU still maintained a 17-point lead with nearly 13 minutes to go in the game.

Central Michigan turned it up and started going to junior big man Ugnius Jarusevicius down low. CMU cut the lead down to six points.

A 22-11 run was fueled by Jarusevicius’ 14 points in the run.

The Flashes watched their 22-point lead dwindle down to just four points with a little over three minutes left in the game.

With the game at 83-79, Davis and Barnett called their own numbers, combining for seven points in less than two minutes, including a huge corner 3 from Davis with 45 seconds left on the clock.

“I just had a lot of confidence in our team,” Davis said. “I am knowing that we’ll make the right plays down the stretch, and our team is kind of old, so we definitely make the right decisions down the stretch.”

The bucket nudged the lead to nine points, but the game was sealed up after a Barnett steal on the defensive end, which led to a Medley free throw make.

“I am grateful that my teammates have confidence in me to be able to shut big games down,” Barnett said. “I am kind of getting used to it by now, but I am grateful I am in the game because I know I can close the game out.”

The clock ran out and the Flashes held on for an eight point 91-83 victory at home after being outscored by seven points in the second half.

The Chippewas cut it close near the end of the game, but KSU never trailed, leading to a wire-to-wire victory.

KSU kept up the act in the second half, ending the game with 54.2% efficiency for the game. The team improved from its 50% first half figure from 3-point land, finishing with 53.3% from long range in the game.

“We’re playing with more confidence,” Senderoff said. “We’re trying to compete consistently and play for each other. We have a lot of guys that are trying to get better, still.”

Kent State continued to rebound well, as it has done all season, getting a 32-26 advantage on the boards.

One of the biggest differences in the game was the bench. KSU’s bench unit more than doubled CMU’s output. Central Michigan only got 15 points from its bench, while Kent State enjoyed 34 points outside of the starters.

The bench points are thanks, in large part, to Barnett’s outburst.

The guard erupted for 28 points in 21 minutes. The scoring figure shattered his previous season-high, almost doubling it from 15 points against Mercyhurst Dec. 15. He also contributed four rebounds and two steals – including one that sealed the game.

“I work a lot, and the work showed tonight,” Barnett said. “(Senderoff) challenged me to play better at home, so I took it kind of personal today. It just came to me, and I was grateful to make the amount of shots that I did.”

The point total was also Barnett’s career-high. Barnett shot a ridiculous 76.9% from the field on 10-13 shooting while going 6-8 from 3, as well.

Key contributions also came from Davis and Sullinger.

Davis, playing in the forward position, had zero rebounds on the night, but went for 21 points and two assists in 27 minutes. He shot over 50% from the field, 4-5 from 3.

Sullinger was not far behind with 19 points of his own. While also shooting 50% or more from both 3-point range and the field, Sullinger also added one rebound and one assist.

On the other side of the court, Jarusevicius tore up the KSU frontcourt.

Central Michigan looked for him almost exclusively down low in the second half. The center went off for 32 points, 10 rebounds, one block and two steals. He was the game’s leading scorer.

“He was good, and we did not have any answers for him,” Senderoff said. “He drew 10 fouls, and he was good. You have to give him a lot of credit.”

How it will go

Kent State will stay in house later this week, as the team will match up with Ohio University Friday in the M.A.C. Center. Tipoff will be at 7 p.m.

KSU is riding high going into Friday with a three-game win streak in the back pocket. This includes a road win against Eastern Michigan in which the Eagles only put up 49 points for the entire game and a one-point home win against the Sun Belt Conference’s best team in Arkansas State.

The home wins in the middle of the season have not come easy, as Kent State lost the first three Mid-American Conference home matchups. The Flashes have turned it up, however, winning three of the last four games on the home court.

The Ohio Bobcats are coming to Kent as the MAC preseason, regular season and tournament champion favorites.

With a 13-11 overall record and a 7-4 conference record, it is unlikely the team will be the regular season conference champions, but the Bobcats are fourth in the conference.

Kent State holds a 16-8 record overall and a 6-5 conference record, which puts it right behind OU for fifth in the MAC.

OU has had a back-and-forth go at it in the last 10 games with a 5-5 record. In those 10 games, OU has played on the road four times and are 1-3 in those attempts, but the team has scored 80 or more points three times.

Earlier this season, OU defeated Kent State in Athens. Further, OU has taken the last three matchups between the teams.

A Kent State win Friday would give the Flashes their longest winning streak of the season at four games in a row.

“Even with tonight’s win, we have not played as well at home as we have on the road, generally speaking,” Senderoff said. “It would be great for us to have a great crowd on Friday. There is no guarantee by any stretch that we are going to be playing in Cleveland (at the MAC tournament), and we just have to focus on Friday right now.”

John Hilber is sports editor. Contact him at [email protected].