Kent St

Kent State Named Geno Ford Head Coach

Press Release — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 08:54:02 -0700

KENT, Ohio – Kent State Athletic Director Laing Kennedy has announced the hiring of Geno Ford as men’s basketball Head Coach. Ford takes over as the 23rd head coach in the 92-year history of Kent State basketball after four previous years as an assistant coach for the Golden Flashes.

“This was an easy decision for us because we did not have to look very far,” said Kennedy, “Geno is an outstanding coach and I am confident in his abilities to carry on the tradition of the program and the success of our student-athletes.”

Ford brings 10 years of coaching experience, including three as a head coach, to the helm of the Kent State program. As a head coach he compiled a 51-32 (.614) record at Shawnee State University and Muskingum College.

“I am honored to have the opportunity to carry the Kent State tradition forward,” said Ford, “We will continue to emphasize the core values coach Christian instilled in the staff and players.”

No stranger to KSU’s commitment to excellence, he has helped lead the program to a 92-38 (.708) record during his two previous tenures on the coaching staff. Ford rejoined the Golden Flashes in 2007-08 after spending the prior two seasons as the head coach at Muskingum.

Immediately after returning to the KSU family last summer, Ford led the Golden Flashes’ recruiting efforts of 2008 Mid-American Conference Player of the Year, Al Fisher. Led by a team high 13.9 points and 4.0 assists per game from Fisher, Kent State went 28-7 and 13-3 in the MAC winning both the regular season and tournament titles. The Golden Flashes earned a No. 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the highest seed in school history.

In Ford’s first stint on the staff from 2002-05, KSU won over 20 games each season, qualified for three straight National Invitational Tournaments and won a pair of MAC East Division titles.

“Geno has played an integral part in continuing the solid foundation of excellence put in place here at Kent State,” said Kennedy, “His experience allows the program to move forward with a strong recruiting base and a national profile.”

“I am very anxious to get started,” said Ford, “There are several important issues that need immediate attention that we will focus on right away.”
A Cambridge, Ohio native, Ford started his career as a college head coach at Shawnee State University in 2001-02, earning American Mideast Conference Coach of the Year honors in his lone season. He guided the Bears to a school record 22 victories and a 10-game improvement from the previous season.

In just his first season at Muskingum in 2005-06, Ford led the Muskies to their best record (17-9) in 15 years.

Ford began his coaching career at his alma mater, Ohio University, under current Western Carolina Head Coach Larry Hunter. He served as a graduate assistant for one season (1998-99) and was promoted to assistant coach, where he remained for two more seasons. During that time the Bobcats went 57-34, including 35-18 in the MAC.

In all, he has built an impressive coaching resume posting a 200-104 record in his 10 seasons as a head coach and an assistant.

MAC Championship: Kent State Dominates Akron

Joel Welser — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 20:47:01 -0700

Cleveland, OH - It came down to two near-by rivals and a packed Quicken Loans Arena in the Mid-American Conference Championship but in the end the No. I seed pounded the No. 3 seed as Kent State cruised by Akron 74-55.

Kent State (28-6) was the dominant team in the MAC this year and the Golden Flashes dominated Akron by almost every measure.

They out-shot Akron (23-10) from the field 50.9 percent (27-53) to 30.8 percent (18-52) and from the foul line 88.9 percent (16-18) to 54.3 percent (18-33). Both teams shot poorly from 3-point land but the Golden Flashes won that one too 33 percent (4-12) to 27.7 percent (5-22). Kent State also out-rebounded the Zips 36-27.

This year Kent State won the East Division title, they had the player of the year, the coach of the year and the best defensive player, Haminn Quaintance who was chosen tournament MVP. Tonight he scored 16 points, pulled down six rebounds and had a blocked shot.

Cleveland State has an RPI of 21 and most likely would have been in the NCAA Tournament regardless of what happened tonight. This game was probably for seeding purposes and the Golden Flashes made their case in convincing fashion.

As for the Zips for the second straight year they saw their Big Dance dreams shattered as they again lost in the championship game. Last year it was a buzzer-beater by Miami’s Doug Penno that sunk them.

It was a relatively tight game until Akron hit a dry spell toward the end of the first half that allowed Kent State to close out the first half on a 16-1 run that sent the Zips into the locker room at halftime down 13 points at 33-20.

A dry spell is putting it mildly. Akron went the final 7:46 without scoring missing their last nine shots and three free throws to end the half.

Akron coach Keith Dambrot thought that his team’s poor shooting hurt them at the other end of the court. “I think our offensive performance affected our defense. I think we got inside on them better than we ever have . We got it at point-blank range, we just couldn’t make it, which is difficult.”

“We just wanted to put pressure on the ball and give them a hard time getting into their offensive sets. We wanted them to chance what they wanted to do,” explained Kent State player Al Fisher.

In the second half Akron did make a run cutting the Kent State lead to 10 points at 51-41 at the 8:20 mark on a basket by Nate Linhart. Kent State’s Mike Scott responded by making a jump shot. Right after that he was intentionally fouled on a steal play. He sunk both foul shots.

Then Kent State’s Chris Singletary converted a 3-point play, but was knocked down after making the final foul shot by Linhart who backed into him.

Kent State coach Jim Christian had some choice words for Linhart after everyone got untangled.

“Singletary is a key person for us when putting pressure on the ball because he is so strong. That was a key for us to have an option like him to go to,” said Christian.

When the final horn sounded Fisher, the MAC Player of the Year, provided an exclamation point on a good night by doing a back flip in front of the Kent State bench.

Notes:

-LeBron James of the Cavalier and Akron’s most famous native son was in attendance for tonight’s game.

-Tonight’s meeting was the 125 meeting between the two programs. Kent leads the all-time series 65-60. Akron won last year’s three games and Kent won this year’s three games.

-This is the seventh time in the past 11 years tht Kent has played in the MAC Championship game. Kent has won five of those seven games.

The All-Tournament Team

-Joe Reitz, Western Michigan
-Jeremiah Wood, Akron
-Al Fisher, Kent State
-Mike Scott, Kent State
-Haminn Quaintance, Kent State

2008 NCAA Tournament Capsule: Kent State

Joel Welser — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 10:31:38 -0700

ent State Golden Flashes

Mid-American Conference (28-6, 13-3)

Big Wins: 11/24 vs Illinois State (65-59), 12/8 George Mason (73-55), 2/23 at St. Mary’s (65-57)

Bad Losses: 11/10 at Detroit (60-61), 2/2 at Toledo (56-59), 3/1 at Bowling Green (83-89)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2006, First Round loss to Pittsburgh

Coach: Jim Christian (0-1 in 1 NCAA appearance)

Probable Starters:

Al Fisher, Junior, Guard, 14.0 ppg, 4.1 apg, 3.8 rpg

Jordan Mincy, Junior, Guard, 2.2 ppg, 2.5 apg

Chris Singletary, Sophomore, Guard, 10.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg

Mike Scott, Senior, Forward, 13.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg

Haminn Quaintance, Senior, Forward, 10.0 ppg, 7.5 rpg

Key Roleplayers:

Mike McKee, Sophomore, Guard, 5.6 ppg, 1.5 rpg

Rodriquez Sherman, Sophomore, Guard, 5.4 ppg, 1.3 apg

Rashad Woods, Junior, Forward, 5.1 ppg, 1.8 rpg

Julian Sullinger, Junior, Forward, 3.7 ppg, 1.8 rpg

Why They Can Surprise:

Kent State has done so well in the Mid-American Conference because of their dominating post play. At 6-8, Haminn Quaintance might not be the tallest player around, but his ability to use his 220 pound frame to create space for himself in the paint is invaluable. Quaintance has recorded eight double-doubles during the regular season and is a beast on the glass and will put up plenty of points.

Mike Scott compliments Quaintance quite well. The 6-7 Indianapolis, Indiana native will stretch the defense with his outside shooting ability and has enough height to help out in the rebounding department. With Rashad Woods and Julian Sullinger on the bench, the Kent State frontcourt has some quality depth and plenty of weapons.

Why They Can Disappoint:

Despite the talented frontcourt, the Golden Flashes have some problems in the rebounding department. The guards are not the tallest bunch and players like Jordan Mincy and Chris Singletary do not do much rebounding from the wings. Singletary will do plenty of scoring and Mincy is great defender, but rebounding is certainly not their strong point. Turnovers can also be a minor problem for the Flashes. The team commits almost 15 per game and that will not cut it if Kent State wants to beat a bigger, more athletic team.

Who To Watch:

Al Fisher commits four turnovers per contest, but the junior college transfer from Redlands Community College makes up for it in other departments. Fisher is a scorer plain and simple. He leads the team with 14.0 points per game, but even that number is a little misleading. It took some time for Fisher to adjust to life at the division I level and once he did he exploded. Fisher finished the season strong and did not fail to reach 15 points in a game from mid-January to early March. Unfortunately, the turnover numbers have not gotten much better as the season has progressed.

By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 69.7 (155^th in nation, 5^th in conference)

Scoring Defense: 62.3 (40, 2)

Field-Goal Percentage: 47.0 (43, 1)

Field-Goal Defense: 41.2 (53, 2)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.9 (229, 7)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 37.2 (85, 2)

Free-Throw Percentage: 71.0 (108, 5)

Rebound Margin: 1.0 (144, 4)

Assists Per Game: 14.3 (109, 1)

Turnovers Per Game: 14.7 (198, 6)

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MAC Semifinals Review: Akron to Face Kent St

Bill Kintner — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 05:41:10 -0700

CLEVELAND – For second time in two days Akron has exacted some revenge against teams that beat them earlier in the season.

Tonight it was Western Michigan that felt the revenge wrath of the Zips as they fell to Akron 73-62.

In a game where Akron (23-9) consistently led and led by double digits starting at the end of the first half It came down to the Zips’ strong shooting performance.

Akron shot a blazing 58.7 percent (27-46) from the field versus 44.7 percent (21-47) for Western Michigan (20-12).

“I think we were able to shoot the ball well. One of the things coach emphasized was sharing the ball. I feel we didn’t run as many plays as we have because we were able to pass the ball around,” said Akron’s Chris Knight.

Akron coach Keith Dambrot thought his team turned up the intensity to pull out the win.

“We matched their intensity,” Dambrot said with a smile after the game.

Another key for the Zips was containing Western Michigan’s David Kool, who scored 24 points in yesterday’s win against Eastern Michigan. Akron managed to hold him under 50 percent (6-13) for the game, although he still got 17 points.

“We used a variety of people (on Kool), mostly (Nate) Linhart, who is very long. I thought the length bothered him,” explained Dambrot. “He gets a lot of points around the rim and at the line. I think Linhart gave him a little more trouble than he’s used to.”

The game started out with Akron’s Cedrick Middleton hitting a 3-pointer at the 19:37 mark and the Zips never trailed in the game. Akron finally pushed the lead out to double digits at the 6:32 mark when Chris Mc Knight put in a layup to make it 25-15.

By the half Akron pushed their lead to 13 points at 37-24.

In the second half the Broncos didn’t cut Akron’s lead to single digits until the 1:31 mark when Kool hit a 3-pointer to make it 67-59 but the Zips pushed the lead back to 11 by the end of the game, 73-62.

“They shot lights out. It was just too much for us to overcome. Said Western Michigan coach Steve Hawkins. “We showed a lot of fight in the second half, but every time we came back they hit big shots.”

Game Two: Miami vs Kent State

Does history repeat itself? Miami attempted to answer that question in the semifinals against Kent State.

With :02 left Miami inbounded the ball in front of their bench they got the ball to their ace, Tim Politz. He got it in the lane, about five feet from the basket, he twisted shot it and it bounced off the rim, and Kent State won 49-47.

It was just a year ago that Doug Penno hit the game winner against Akron as time expired to punch Miami’s ticket to the NCAA Tournament.

But tonight it was not to be for Miami.

With :34 remaining in the game Miami’s Kenny Hayes put in a layup to tie the game 47-47.

After a Kent State (27-6) timeout they began working the ball around the perimeter and they finally got it to Al Fisher. He drove down the lane spun to his right and shot a floater over the out-stretched hand of Tyler Dierkers to put Kent State up 49-47 and that was stake the landed in Miami’s heart.

Fisher said he just was looking to get any shot when he got the game winner. “We were just looking to get a shot up. It’s easier when your coach and teammates have a lot of trust in you. It takes off a lot of the pressure.”
Miami actually out-shot Kent State 42.2 percent (19-45) to 35.8 percent (19-53) but Kent State coach Jim Christian thought it was experience and maintaining intensity that did the trick.

“We’ve been in many of these situations before. We’ve won many close games,” he said. “There is something to be said of the will to win. You have to be intense the whole time.”

Miami (17-15) scored the first basket a little over two minutes into the game on a layup by Hayes to go up 2-0. Aside from a brief one point lead a little over two minutes later Kent State led the whole first half and went into halftime up 25-23.

The second half was more back and forth with the biggest lead being four by the Golden Flashes at the 4:25 mark on a jumper by Rodriquez Sherman.

This game was tied 12 times and there were nine lead changes.

A tired acting Miami coach Jermaine Henderson thought his team played hard and just came up short.

“I think we played hard and leave it all out there” he said after the game. The right guy got a shot off but it came up a little short.”

Notes:

-I mentioned yesterday that Keith Dambrot is a great coach; he is also entertaining to watch during the game. His favorite position on the sidelines is bent over with his hands on his knees; with his tie hanging down like an outfielder waiting for the pitch to be delivered. Sometimes he runs the length of the bench clapping his hands. Bottom line, if you take a look over at the Akron bench there is a good chance Drambot will entertain you.

-Yesterday I ranked Ohio’s dance team as the best looking team in the MAC. Upon further review I would rank Western Michigan’s as number two and Akron’s as number three. There you have it the MAC Hot Dance Team rankings.

-Former Miami great and current Cleveland Cavalier Wally Szczerbiak was in attendance for the Miami/Kent State game sitting in the front row across from the Miami bench.

-The clock crew has had a tough tournament. They have consistently screwed up starting and stopping the clock at the proper time. I hope this is not the crew that works the clock for the Cavs games.

Live From the MAC Tournament: Quaterfinals

Bill Kintner — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 07:25:16 -0700

CLEVELAND – With four quarterfinals games today I am just going to get the highlights of the games and try to give fans a flavor for what is going.

Game One: WMU vs EMU

Led by David Kool’s 24 points No. 2 seed Western Michigan (20-11) beat No. 7 seed Eastern Michigan (14-17). In a game that Eastern Michigan never led, they did make it interesting when at the 10:34 mark they tied the game at 34-34 when Jarrad Axon made two foul shots, but that was a fleeting moment of joy as the Broncos closed it out to end Eastern Michigan’s season.
Fav quote:

“We weren’t talking well on defense and they are a great shooting team. With this being their first game of the tournament, we knew they were going to be pumped up and ready to go and we did not match their intensity and that hurt us in the long run.”
EMU guard Travis Lewis.

-This is WSM’s first trip to the semifinals since 2005.

-The crowd for this game was rather meager considering that Michigan leads the country in unemployment. With all that free time you would think more of them would be here watching two Michigan teams play.

-WMU leads the all-time series with EMU 49-44.

-Western Michigan plays Akron at 7 p.m. on Friday.

Game Two: Akron vs CMU

Akron the No. 3 seed stayed true to form and whipped up on the No. 6 seed Central Michigan 81-60. This game was close for the first 23 minutes before the Zips opened up a double digit lead at the 16:42 mark. Akron’s Jeremiah Wood led all scorers with 17 points. Akron (22-9) shot 56 percent (28-50) from the field and 58.8 percent (10-17) from beyond the 3-point line. Central Michigan (14-17) shot just 34.5 percent (20-58).

Fav quote:

“Today it was, ‘I just want to play basketball.’ Whatever I could do I wanted to do. We are in the part of the season where every game can be your last and I just wanted to leave everything out there.”

You thought the quote was going to be Akron coach Keith Dambrot and nine times out of 10 it usually is, just not today.

-Akron leads the all-time series with CMU 23-13.

-Akron plays Western Michigan at 7 p.m. on Friday.

Game Three: Kent State vs Toledo

No. 1 seed Kent State pounded No. 8 seed Toledo into submission 77-54. The first half was relatively close with Toledo (11-19) getting their biggest lead at three at 7-4 at the 16:42 mark. At halftime Kent State (26-6) led 39-29. In the second Kent just enlarged their lead as they were led by Mike Scott’s 23 points.

Fav Quote:

“On the court we do not think we should get any fouls. The officials made a few calls we did not necessarily agree with and the calls gave us a disadvantage and took away from us being aggressive.”
Toledo forward Jerrah Young.

-Kent State had a nice crowd at the game and they made a lot of noise.

-Toledo leads the all-time series with Kent 78-41.

-Kent State plays Miami at 9:30 p.m. on Friday night.

Game Four: Miami vs Ohio

A typical Miami/Ohio game that No. 5 seed Miami pulled out over No.4 seed Ohio 74-61. The game was a lot tighter than the score indicates. Miami (17-14) was led by Michael Bramos’ 23 points and after getting pounded on the boards by 19 in their last game, the RedHawks out-rebounded the Bobcats 42-31. With 2:10 left it was still a close game with Miami clinging to a four point lead at 63-59. Ohio would score just one more basketball in the game.

Fav quote:

“I think we won with our guards and we got solid contributions from everybody on the boards. Last night we got out-rebounded by 19 so to come back to night and go plus 11 was a big thing.”
Miami forward Tyler Dierkers

-Ohio leads the all-time series with Miami 93-88.

-Miami plays Kent State Friday at 9:30 p.m.

MAC Notes:

-Miami has a four man broadcast team which is by far the biggest in the MAC. Steve Baker delivers the pbp, Joe Berry adds the color, Tim Bray gives sideline updates and Tommy Leugers engineers the whole mess. Some MAC schools simply have one guy that does all four jobs.

-And yes, Tim Bray actually does something besides carry Steve Baker’s luggage. At 1:30 p.m. today he was in the media room hard at work doing research for tonight’s game Miami/Ohio University game. Tommy Leugers calls him “Tidbit Tim” for all the great research he does that provides his reports. I would put that broadcast team up against any from the BCS programs.

-They are playing the woman’s tourney here at the same time as the regular tourney so it makes for a lot of downtime especially on Friday and Saturday for the fans and writers.

-Akron coach Keith Dambrot is one of the best quotes in college coaching and I like using him when I can. After I finished interviewing him he looked at my rather large stature and told me to come up to Akron to take a look at his program and he would take me to one of the best restaurants ever. That may just cost him a boatload of money someday. He also is not very PC which makes for a better interview.

-Ohio University has the best looking dance in the MAC.

-Miami’s coach Charlie Coles is not with the team. He had a heart procedure performed in a local hospital and there is no word as to when he might return. Assistant coach Jermaine Henderson is coaching the team for the remainder of the season.

Today's Poll: Will the MAC Get Multiple Bids?

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 09:50:25 -0800

Welser Wonders: Big East Bids?

Joel Welser — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 06:55:59 -0800

What I’m really wondering right now is why I tivoed 30 hours of the NFL Combine in high definition. Naturally, I record anything in HD if it is available, but boy was that a mistake. The only thing worse than watching a 350 pound guy running the 40 in 5.82 seconds is watching a 350 pound guy running the 40 in 5.82 seconds in high definition. Don’t worry, everything else has to do with college basketball in this week’s “Welser Wonders…”

…who benefited the most from BracketBusters Saturday?

The answer is an easy one. Kent State went from an outside the bubble team to a Top 25 group that has a legitimate chance at an at-large bid. The Golden Flashes traveled to Moraga, California and knocked off St. Mary’s 66-57.

The rest of Coach Jim Christian’s schedule is pretty difficult with games at Bowling Green and Akron and a senior night hosting Miami (Ohio). Assuming Kent State can win those three, which might be a little too much to assume, the Flashes will head into the conference tournament with a 26-5 record. Those five losses were against Detroit on the opening day of the season, against Xavier, at North Carolina, at Ohio and a heartbreaker at Toledo. That’s not too shabby and certainly deserving to be on the bubble.

…who else was a big winner on BracketBusters Saturday?

They would get an at-large bid either way, but the Drake Bulldogs suddenly became a legitimate Sweet Sixteen contender…or even more [Ed: Note that Drake lost to Missouri State shortly after this article was submitted]. After a home loss to Bradley, the Bulldogs went to Butler and played extremely well, winning the battle of the Bulldogs 71-64.

The issue that remains is how they well they can play against a team with a more traditional big man. Against Butler, it was really a battle on the perimeter. Would Drake’s style of play work as well against a team that was not so much like their own? At the least, I’m one step closer to being sold on Drake as a Sweet Sixteen team than I was last week.

…when the ACC will sort itself out?

After North Carolina and Duke, the Atlantic Coast Conference remains jumbled. Clemson, Maryland, Virginia Tech, Miami and Wake Forest are all at least .500 in conference, but the ACC is not going to get seven teams into the NCAA Tournament. With four games left for most teams, there are plenty of opportunities left for separation to occur, but the way things have been going, it won’t happen. Amazingly, none of those five teams play Duke or North Carolina the rest of the regular season. That leaves a ton of great games against the other teams fighting for an at-large berth.

…whether the Big East could end up as a five bid league?

Georgetown, Louisville, Notre Dame, Connecticut and Marquette are all virtual locks. West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Villanova and Syracuse are pretty much on the bubble.

West Virginia is 8-6 in conference with a 19-8 overall record. Not too shabby, but there is not a big win on the schedule right now besides beating Marquette at home. The Mountaineers travel to Connecticut and host Pittsburgh in March and they need to win at least one of those games to feel good heading into the Big East Tournament.

Pittsburgh is 19-8 overall and 7-7 in conference. What hurts the Panthers the most is their three game losing streak. All those games were against better teams, but they need to turn it around this week when they host Cincinnati and take a trip to Syracuse.

Villanova started out strong, but are just 7-8 in conference. The win over Connecticut on Saturday was big, but beating Louisville on the road on Sunday would be even bigger.

Like Pitt, Syracuse is on a tough losing streak. Somehow they lost to South Florida a few days before beating Georgetown. With Pittsburgh and Marquette coming to town and a trip to Seton Hall remaining on the schedule, it will not be easy for Syracuse to end up with a .500 conference record. Sometimes that would be enough, but the Orange non-conference losses to Ohio State, Massachusetts and Rhode Island do not sound as impressive as they did a month ago.

Player of the Week: Al Fisher

Jeff Borzello — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 22:06:04 -0800

Although there are plenty of critics, Bracket Busters weekend is one of the most exciting three days of college basketball all season if you’re someone that likes mid-major basketball. Bubble teams that are trying to make a move so they can get one of the last spots in the NCAA Tournament attempt to catch the committee’s eyes with a big win, while conference leaders need to grab solid victories to boost their resumes in case they don’t win the conference tournament. Kent State was one of the teams in the latter group – as the leader of the deep MAC, the Golden Flashes were right there for an at-large bid, but needed to pick-up a big win somewhere along the line. On Saturday, they did just that, going to Saint Mary’s and knocking off the Gaels, 65-57, behind a huge game from Al Fisher.

Fisher, a 6-foot-1 junior guard and the team’s leading scorer, has been one of the main catalysts for the Golden Flashes this season and his stellar play in the second half of the year was a major reason for their dominant play in the MAC. This past week, when Kent State needed him the most, he stepped his game up to another level. Fisher had 28 points, four rebounds and two assists, hitting 9-of-17 shots from the field, helping the Flashes beat the host Gaels. He had two key baskets down the stretch, increase KSU’s lead to five with under a minute remaining. Earlier in the week, Fisher finished with 20 points, five rebounds, six assists and three steals in a win at Buffalo. In the last seven games, Fisher is averaging nearly 21 points per game, more than six points higher than his season average.

Although Kent State is not a lock just yet, its win on Saturday night at Saint Mary’s will likely go a long way in determining the Golden Flashes’ Selection Sunday fate should they not win the MAC Tournament in a couple of weeks. However, if Fisher continues to play like this, Kent State won’t even need an at-large bid.

2007-08 Collegehoops.net Players of the Week
February 18th - Chris Douglas-Roberts, Memphis
February 11th - Tyler Hansbrough, UNC
February 4th - Ryan Anderson, California
January 27th - Jerryd Bayless, FR, Arizona
January 20th – Davon Jefferson, FR, USC
January 13th – Michael Beasley, FR, Kansas State
January 6th - Shan Foster, SR, Vanderbilt
December 30th - Brian Butch, SR, Wisconsin
December 23rd - Dwayne Curtis, SR, F, Mississippi
December 16th - Gary Forbes, SR, F, UMASS
December 9th - Joe Alexander, JR, F, West Virginia
December 2nd - Jerryd Bayless, FR, G, Arizona
November 25th - DJ Augustin, SO, G, Texas
November 18th - Jon Brockman, JR, F, Washington
November 11th - Michael Beasley, FR, F, Kansas State

Player of the Week: Al Fisher

Jeff Borzello — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 16:57:17 -0800

Games of the Night: Akron at Kent State

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 07:56:47 -0800

Games of the Night

A companion to our daily Three Stars of the Day, we present the top three Games of the Night.

Akron (14-3) at Kent State (14-4)

7:00 PM

Two of the three best teams in the MAC (w/ Ohio) get together for what is a big night for the High-Major leagues. The Zips haven't lost in league play, but Kent State has had a more impressive overall season with wins over the likes of George Mason, Illinois State, and Cleveland State. Kent State is the safe choice here, at home, and coming off a loss to Ohio.

Prediction: Kent State

San Diego State (14-4) at BYU (13-5)

8:00 PM

Early in the year, BYU was a trendy Top 25 pick.. I guess by virtue of beating Louisville. In the past couple of weeks, their play has slipped with bad losses at Boise State and UNLV (by 29 points). Due to these struggles, their at-large chances have slipped tremendously so they need to pick it up in MWC play. SDSU comes in a perfect 4-0 in league play, and their 14-4 record looks good, but their overall results are anything but awe-inducing. As mediocre as BYU has been of late, I like them to win at home.. leaving the MWC with 4 one-loss teams when the night is over.

Prediction: BYU

Western Kentucky (14-5) at New Orleans (14-5)

8:00 PM

Rounding out a rare night without power conference teams is a quality Sun Belt matchup. WKU is 6-1 in league play, while UNO is 4-3. Along with this conference as whole, both teams are probably underrated nationally. WKU's star is Courtney Lee while UNO features Bo McCalebb, one of the best scorers in the country. Both these teams play with good tempo, and it's disappointing this game isn't even on ESPN Full Court. Vegas favors WKU, but I like the Privateers.

Prediction: New Orleans

Previous Game of the Night (Predictions)

January 21st - Drake at Creighton (1-2)

January 20th - Texas at Oklahoma State (3-0)

January 19th - Marquette at UCONN (2-1)

January 18th - Illinois State at Drake (2-1)

January 17th - Vanderbilt at Tennessee (2-1)

January 14th - Georgetown at Pittsburgh (2-1)

January 12th - Stanford at Oregon (3-0)

January 9th - Rhode Island at Dayton (2-1)

January 8th - Florida at Alabama (2-1)

January 7th - Robert Morris at Boston College (1-2)

January 6th - North Carolina at Clemson (2-1)

January 5th - Western Kentucky at South Alabama (3-0)

January 4th - American at Brown (0-3)

January 3rd - UCLA at Stanford (3-0)

January 2nd - Houston at UMASS (2-1)