By: Eddie Kilroy Jr

Since the return of students to the classrooms on January 19th, 2009, the combined record for the men’s and women’s basketball teams is a perfect record of 6-0. Another observation that can be made is that the combined 6 wins are against MAC opponents (3 victories each). What may go unnoticed, however, is that both the Men’s and Women’s basketball teams have respectively moved into 1st and 2nd place in their divisions.The question for debate: Who is on the hotter streak: Men’s or Women’s basketball?

Being a sports reporter for the student media at Kent State allows me to examine each game thoroughly with the least amount of biased that I can possibly give. And although my heart will always go out to the Golden Flashes in hopes for another NCAA run like in 2002, it is difficult for me to truly find any doubt that both teams would not be successful as we approach the MAC tournaments. That’s why I’m leaving the choice up to you bloggers; in hopes you can determine who is more successful.

Of course we do have to breakdown the success of both teams in order to be fair.

First argument: What has the Men’s basketball team done the past 3 games? Aside from being on a 3-game win streak, the Men’s Basketball team seems to have everything clicking on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. The Men’s Golden Flashes offensively average a whopping 81.6 points per game (high of 89), while holding their opponents to an average of 57.6 points per game (low of 49). Also, at least 7 men have scored double digits at least once in the three game stretch. Justin Greene and Tyree Evans have scored double digits in all three games. If that’s not impressive, the Golden Flashes dominated on the boards with a total of 112 rebounds, compared to the opponents 78. One more thing to add, they pummeled, not beat, pummeled their conference rivals Akron by 17 points and are now tied for first place in their division.

Second argument: What has the Women’s team done the past 3 games? Aside from winning their 3 games, the women’s basketball is on the ultimate rebound from a disappointing Christmas break. The offense is slowly but surely proving to be the pacemaker of the team, as they average shooting a team field goal percentage of 46.6%. Meanwhile, the defense of the Lady Flashes is recapturing its “enforcer” identity, holding opponents to shooting 41.9% on the field. While Senior Guard Rachel Bennett is leading the team emotionally on and off the court, Junior Forward Taisja Jones is leading by example averaging 18 points per game. Although they did lose to rival Akron on the road, the Lady Flashes have silently crept their way back into second-place in the MAC-East standings for women’s basketball.

It’s your call now sports fans, who is playing better now that school is back in session?

By Ryan Katz

What happened this evening proved to the sports world that, as a team, it is in your best interest to not look too far ahead. Kent State has been surrounded in recent weeks by local news teams, regional newspapers, and national sports coverage, all surrounding the premier game of the week on Saturday against the Akron Zips.

But just because the hype around campus is so high, Kent State did not overlook their game this evening against Buffalo. In fact, some are now questioning if they have anything left in the tank for Saturday. Final score: Buffalo 54, Kent State 89.

The term “victory” is quite an understatement when trying to describe the performance Kent State brought to the court against their fellow MAC team. The few days leading up to the game, controversy surrounded the MACC center. Geno Ford, the Kent State head coach, said in a statement that he would bench some of his starters due to inconsistency. At the start of the game, three regular starters were not on the court for the first few minutes. Chris Singletary, Tyree Evans, and Rodriguez Sherman were benched in place of three underclassmen.

Something seemed to spark. Chris Singletary led all scorers with 18 points off the bench, followed by Rodriguez Sherman with 13 points. Six players finished in double figures. Buffalo’s leading scorer, Max Boudreau, had 15 points followed by Calvin Betts with 14 points.

The real statistic that pops out is Kent State had a 47.6% shooting percentage behind the arc, while Buffalo’s three point percentage was at a low 18.2%. The energy level in the MACC center was at an all time high, and emotions were spirited. This should leave a huge swing of momentum going into this weekend’s game. Kent improved its record to 11-7 overall and 2-2 in the MAC, while the Akron Zips also prevailed over Miami (OH) by a score of 69-49. They are now 13-5 overall and 3-1 in the MAC. Once again, the stage is set for one of the greatest games of the year.

You can watch the Kent State Golden Flashes face off against the Akron Zips on ESPN U at noon. Tickets are still available online or via box office. The MACC center will play host to the game, with radio coverage presented by 89.7 WKSU.