Ball State University
7-17, 2-11MAC
Kent State
18-8, 9-4MAC
Defense Improves in Men's Hoops Loss at Kent State
February 18, 2015 | Men's Basketball
KENT, Ohio -- The Ball State men's basketball team regained its defensive form Wednesday night at Kent State but could not get enough shots to fall in a 58-53 loss at the M.A.C. Center.
Bo Calhoun led the Cardinals with a career-high 18 points to go along with eight rebounds. A Calhoun 3-pointer with 52 seconds left cut what was once an 11-point deficit to 53-49, but Kent State was able to seal the game late at the free throw line.
The Golden Flashes (18-8, 9-4 MAC) moved back into a tie for first place in the Mid-American Conference East Division. Despite the loss, Ball State coach James Whitford was pleased with his team's effort and execution, particularly on the defensive end of the floor where the Cardinals (7-17, 2-11 MAC) had struggled of late.
"At the end of the day, they shoot 44 percent from the field, 33 percent from 3, and they turn the ball over 12 times," Whitford said. "That's back to being who we have to be. If we can have those kinds of defensive numbers every night, then every game will be like this; it will go into the final four minutes and be anyone's game."
Both teams played without key post players as Ball State's Matt Kamieniecki missed his fourth straight game with a back injury and Kent State leading scorer Jimmy Hall missed his fifth in a row due to illness.
Despite Hall's absence, Kent State maintained a tremendous size advantage, and they put it to good use in the first half. The Flashes outscored Ball State 16-6 in the paint and outrebounded the Cardinals 18-10 on the way to a 32-25 halftime lead.
Ball State responded with a monster second half on the glass, outrebounding Kent State 22-15 and snagging a remarkable 12 offensive boards after the break. The problem was the Cardinals were only able to turn those dozen second chances into seven points.
"I thought our guys really competed and got after it," Whitford said. "Kent State is huge; their starting small forward is bigger than anyone on our team. They got off to a great start on the glass, but at the end of the day we had 16 offensive rebounds and we hung in there the entire time.
"We had enough shots to win the game. It's not easy to win at Kent. Not only do you have to play well, not only do you have to play hard, but you have to have a few things go your way. We hung in there and I told our guys I was proud of them."
Franko House and Jeremiah Davis scored 10 points for Ball State, while Sean Sellers added nine and Francis Kiapway six. The undermanned Cardinals used only seven players, but every point came from the starting five.
Both teams went long stretches of the second half without field goals, but Ball State found itself trailing 48-38 with 5 minutes to play. The Cardinals rallied to get within four on two occasions but could not get any closer.
Kent State's Devareaux Manley hit several key shots as Ball State tried to make a push. Manley was the game's leading scorer with 19 points, making all five of the Golden Flashes' 3-pointers on the night. Chris Ortiz scored 13 points, while Khaliq Spicer had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Ball State started the game off by hitting its first four shots to grab the early lead but then cooled off. The Cardinals finished the night shooting 34.5 percent from the floor and 30.8 percent from 3-point range.
Ball State returns to action Saturday with another road game. The Cardinals will visit Central Michigan for a 4:30 p.m. tipoff on ESPN3.
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