Live Blog: Kent State men's basketball vs. Youngstown State

SECOND HALF

0:00 ... Kent State dodged several bullets down the stretch to hold off Youngstown State for an 83-79 victory.

Five Flashes finished in double figures led by Derek Jackson's 15 points.

Kris Brewer added 14 and 6 rebounds.

K.K. Simmons came up big off the bench again with 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting and 4-of-4 from 3-opint range. He also dished out a team-high three assists, matching the three recorded by Goodson and Jackson.

Mark Henniger continued his run of fine play with 11 points and seven rebounds, going perfect from the foul line again (5-for-5).

Goodson scored 10 points to go with six rebounds and three assists.

Brewer made two big free throws down the stretch and Derek Jackson split a pair to give KSU its four-point lead late.

KSU had no answer for YSU's Kamren Belin, who scored 32 points, grabbed seven rebounds, blocked two shots and also had three steals. Much of Belin's damage was done from the foul line where he was 14-of-15. He also hit 4-of-10 threes.

The Penguins played much of the second half without starting point guard D.J. Cole, who injured his left ankle and left the game at the end on crutches. That had to have an impact on what YSU wanted to do offensively as he's the guy who pushes it on their fast break into the secondary break.

1:20 ... A 9-point lead cut into again by YSU as Weber hits a three and then a turnover leads into a fast-break dunk by Perry.

Lead now down to 80-76.

3:30 ... A Kris Brewer runner in the lane has extended Kent State's lead to 76-67.

Flashes continuing to attack inside and that's changed the game a bit.

Jackson leads four Flashes in double figures with 14.

8:09 ... Kent State built a 7-point lead by attacking the rim, but now YSU is on a mini run to cut the lead to 65-64.

Flashes have not had an answer for Ryan Weber who has 26 points and is a perfect 11-for-11 from the foul line.

Kent State had fallen in love with long jumpers early in the half, but since they've turned their focus inside the offense has been significantly better.

But every time the Flashes have started to open up their lead, YSU has answered with big shots, including threes by Keene and Weber.

13:18 ... Three straight three pointers by K.K. Simmons have stemmed the tide a bit.

Simmons now has 12 points to lead the Flashes.

Lead is 55-52 for Kent State

15:30 ... A rocky start for Kent State in the second half. Youngstown State has out-worked the Flashes so far. Senderoff is not happy about it and has already used a timeout after a 6-0 start right out of the gate for the Penguins.

The run is now 11-2.

FIRST HALF

0:00 ... A little flurry at the end of the first half has Kent State ahead 42-30 at the break.

Manley beat the YSU 2-3 zone with a three from the right wing, then the Flashes forced a turnover that led to a Goodson bust out at the buzzer.

The Flashes have come back to make 9 of their last 18 after an ugly 4-for-14 start from the field.

Jackson leads Kent State with nine points. Manley and Brewer both have eight points.

Goodson has recovered from his rocky start. Since checking in with about five minutes to play in the half, he has three steals and two assists.

2:05 ... Back-to-back threes by Kris Brewer and Dev Manley have KSU with its biggest lead at 33-25.

Perry just picked up his second foul and is likely on the bench for the rest of the half.

3:14 ... A Derrick Jackson three from the left corner has put Kent State ahead 27-24 heading into the timeout. Jackson has nine points.

Darren Goodson set up the three with an inside-out pass. Goodson has struggled a bit so far however. Three turnovers and 0-for-2 from the field. This is a game where he will be key against YSU's 2-3 zone.



7:54 ... Flashes trail 19-18 in large part because of YSU's work in the paint. The Penguins are outscoring KSU 12-6 inside.

Chris Ortiz has been very active, however, since checking in.

Remember, Ortiz was starting to play extremely well last year before breaking his ankle at Youngstown State. He was tentative when he came back and started a bit slowly this year, but he has been much more aggressive in the last week. He has a steal, an offensive rebound and a put-back so far.

11:56 ... Still tied here at the M.A.C. Center, now at 12-12.

K.K. Simmons has provided another spark off of the bench, hitting an NBA three from the top of the key.

Flashes shooting just 3-for-12. Youngstown State is 5-for-13.

15:52 ... First timeout and Kent State and Youngstown State are tied at 5-5.

So far, the Flashes have done a nice job of slowing the Youngstown State break and the secondary break while forcing the Penguins to run their offense.

First basket of the game was a spectacular tip-dunk by Derrick Jackson 2 1/2 minutes in.

PREGAME

5:40 ... Ty Linder and I will be on the air with the pre game show on WHLO 640 AM and on the internet on iHeartRadio's Golden Flashes station.

We are continuing to try to make the game experience more interactive for our fans who listen in on the radio or online and/or follow along with this blog and Twitter.

Any time anyone has a question or a comment during this or any other game, please feel free to post here (below) or to tweet at me at @CarducciKSU.

Ty and I will do our best to address the question or comment live on the air during the broadcast of the game.


5 p.m. ... It is about two hours before tipoff here at the M.A.C. Center and players are leaking onto the floor to get up a few shots.

Tonight should be an interesting game. Youngstown State has always given Kent State fits, even in years when the Penguins were down and the Golden Flashes were soaring. I'll still never forget the loss in the 2001-02 season.

This year's Youngstown State team looks like a good one. Despite very few quality wins in their 6-1 start that includes three victories against non-Division I opponents, the Penguins comes in with a No. 9 RPI according to RealTimeRPI.com. Kent State is No. 69.

Just like we've seen over the last few years under Jerry Slocum, this Penguins love to run. They are looking to push the ball on every possession, and defending the secondary break will be a key for Kent State tonight.

Kendrick Perry is YSU's goto guy. The 6-foot guard is the Horizon League's player of the year. He is an athletic guard with a quick first step and he will look to attack the rim at every opportunity. He can score in a variety of ways, though, including on jumpers from beyond the arc and in the midrange.

As usual, Derek Jackson is expected to get the assignment of guarding Perry.

A scout from the Orlando Magic is here tonight, presumably to scout Perry, by the way.

The Penguins also have some size that could test a Kent State front court that has been playing extremely well of late.

Ryan Weber is a 6-6 forward who is averaging 10.9 per game, and he can shoot it. Finding him in transition and the secondary break will be important. Kameren Belin is a 6-7 forward who is also good in the post and capable of hitting from deep. He is averaging 11 per game. Bobby Hain is 6-10 and a skilled post player who averages 11.6 points and 8.0 rebounds. Keeping him from point-blank shots in the secondary will be important, so Mark Henniger, Melvin Tabb and Khaliq Spicer will need to spring back on defense and keep him out of the paint.

Looking at the season box score for Kent State, you have to love the way the numbers highlight the remarkable depth of this team.

When was the last time the Flashes had four starters averaging in double figures (Brewer at 12.4, Jackson and Manley both at 11.3 and Goodson at 10.1). The other starter is Henniger, and he's at 9.3 points and coming off a week that saw him earn the MAC East's player of the week award.

Off the bench you have Thomas and Simmons at 7.0 and 6.7 per game respectively. Behind them Spicer and Tabb are playing very well and averaging a combined 8.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Devin Carter can also be a valuable reserve, and Chris Ortiz is starting to feel his oats a bit after an injury-plagued season last year and a slow start.

Its hard not to like this team.