In what seemed like the first time all game, Kent State’s Chris Evans got a clean look.
The senior forward’s shadow to that point, Chris Bond, got sucked in to help on a drive and Evans buried a 3-pointer to give the Golden Flashes a nine-point lead with 3:11 remaining in the game.
It was the dagger to end Ball State’s (7-7, 1-1 MAC) comeback attempt after a 24-3 run to end the first half fueled Kent State’s (10-6, 1-1 MAC) 61-47 win on Saturday.
“I didn’t really feel like we ran out of gas, we were still going strong,” coach Billy Taylor said. “We got a little discouraged when we couldn’t make that big shot to continue to give us that momentum. If we can convert some of those shots in the paint, and we make some of our free throws, then we’re in great shape.”
Where it was Bond’s free throws against Eastern Michigan and Majok Majok’s buzzer-beating dunk against Norfolk State, Ball State’s inability to hit free throws on Saturday cost the team another chance at late-game heroics.
The Cardinals went 8-of-24 (33.3 percent) as a team from the foul line, with the majority of those misses off the hand of Majok.
Ball State’s junior forward got dominant post position the majority of the game, but Kent State started hacking him continuously because he couldn’t make free throws. Majok finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds, despite going 7-of-17 from the stripe.
“Since I was struggling at the line, that was their intention—to be as physical as they can down low,” Majok said. “I’ve just got to do a better job next time knocking down my free throws. I’ve got to get back in the gym and get back in rhythm.”
Majok joined the entire team in being out of rhythm in the first half.
After starting the game on a 7-0 run and leading 17-11 with 9:57 remaining, Ball State scored only three points and had nine turnovers before halftime.
“We had some look some post entries that just got away from us—passes that we normally convert,” Taylor said. “Ineffective execution was just the bottom line. I thought our guys just showed better poise in the second half.”
That poise started with the insertion of three subs, freshman Marcus Posley and juniors Tyler Koch and Matt Kamieniecki.
Kamieniecki and Koch provided the hustle plays, while Posley’s pressure on the opposing point guard was the catalyst for the Cardinals comeback in the second half.
“In fifteen minutes, Posley was all over the stat sheet with the good and the bad,” Taylor said. “We just have to try and temper that and get more of the positive out.”
That evaluation summed up Saturday for the entire Ball State roster. The team did enough to cut the lead to 45-44 with 6:55 remaining, but too many mistakes and timely shots from Evans and senior guard Randal Holt kept the Cardinals from getting any closer.
Kent State coach Rob Senderoff said his team will only go as far as Holt and Evans take them, and it was enough to win on Saturday.
Holt finished with a game-high 16 points and four assists, while Evans added 14 points and four rebounds.
Ball State hung in contention over the final six-plus minutes until Evans 3-pointer effectively sealed the game.
“I was just trying to give him a hard time, you know,” Bond said. “He’s a good player, so I just tried to make him feel uncomfortable. I did that for the most part of the game, he just hit some big shots.”
While Evans’ big shot stopped Ball State’s two-game winning streak, Bond remained upbeat after the game and said his team isn’t too worried about one loss in conference play.
“We’ve got a lot of games left to prove ourselves and show what we can do,” Bond said. “I think if we get back in the gym, fix the areas we made [mistakes in], we’ll be good.”
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