CLEVELAND — The Kent State men’s basketball team will open the Mid-American Conference Tournament with a quarterfinal game against Western Michigan tonight at Rocket Arena. Tip-off will be around 7:20.
Kent State (21-10) is the No. 3 seed in the tournament. Western Michigan (12-19) is seeded sixth.
The Flashes made it to last year’s championship game as the No. 8 seed before losing to Akron.
Click below throughout the game for live updates and analysis.
Kent State men’s basketball survives, advances to MAC Tournament semifinal
Kent State beats Western Michigan 73-66. The Flashes will face Miami in Friday’s second semifinal.
Kent State-Western Michigan MAC Tournament quarterfinal still up for grabs
A Chansey Willis layup gets Western Michigan to within 69-66 with 54.8 seconds left. Kent State ball coming out of this timeout.
Western Michigan men’s basketball making one final push
The Flashes built their lead up to 14, but the Broncos have responded with seven straight points to get within 69-62 with 3:28 left. They just won’t go away.
Kent State men’s basketball answers Western Michigan run
Western Michigan cut Kent State’s lead to 55-53 on Owen Lobsinger’s fourth 3 of the night.
The Flashes responded with a Cli’ron Hornbeak dunk and a Jamal Sumlin 3. It’s 60-53 with 8:18 left.
Western Michigan men’s basketball gets as close as six
Western Michigan is on a 16-8 run in the second half and trails Kent State 51-43 with 11:54 remaining. The Broncos have been as close as six.
The Flashes are shooting just 25% (3 of 12) in the second half.
Western Michigan men’s basketball starts to make things interesting
The Broncos looked like they were in a heap of trouble late in the first half when they were down by 19.
Western Michigan has cut Kent State’s lead to 47-47 with 14:50 remaining. The Broncos are 5 of 8 from the field in the second half.
Marquis Barnett powers Kent State men’s basketball to halftime lead
It was all Kent State over the final half of the first half. Marquis Barnett is a big reason why that’s the case.
Barnett scored 18 points in the first half to give the Flashes a 43-25 lead over Western Michigan. He hit 4 of 5 3-pointers and was 7 of 8 from the field overall.
Barnett scored 28 points in a win over Central Michigan to match a career high.
Kent State men’s basketball uses 13-0 run to take big lead
A 13-0 run over a five-minute stretch has helped stretch Kent State’s lead out to 34-21.
Marquis Barnett has hit 3 of 4 3s and 5 of 6 field goals off the bench. He leads the Flashes with 13 points.
Kent State men’s basketball increases lead after Western Michigan ties game
Kent State is back on top 26-19 thanks to a 7-0 run in the last 1:27.
Marquis Barnett has come off the bench and hit all three of his 3-pointers. He leads the Flashes with nine points.
Markhi Strickland punctuates Western Michigan possession with massive dunk
Kent State built an eight-point lead early in the game. Western Michigan kept it close and closed to within 16-12 on a huge dunk from Markhi Strickland.
Kent State men’s basketball grabs early lead over Western Michigan
Kent State spotted Western Michigan a quick 4-0 lead. Then Mike Bekelja and Cian Medley hit 3s to put the Flashes up. They lead 9-4 at the first media timeout.
Who won the Kent State-Western Michigan men’s basketball regular-season series?
Kent State and Western Michigan split the two games during the regular season.
The Broncos beat the Flashes 77-76 at the MAC Center on Jan. 14. Western Michigan won despite a Kent State career-high 32 points from Jalen Sullinger. He hit eight 3-pointers.
Kent State won at Western Michigan 77-76 on March 4. Cian Medley hit two free throws with four seconds left to give the Flashes the win. Sullinger finished with 31 points.
What to know about MAC tournament: Mid-American Conference tournament bracket: Full TV schedule, scores for 2025 championship
Who will the Kent State-Western Michigan men’s basketball winner play?
The Kent State-Western Michigan winner will face Miami in the semifinals Friday. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
How to watch the Kent State-Western Michigan men’s basketball game
Tonight’s game can be streamed on ESPN+ with a subscription.
Kent State’s Jalen Sullinger on tear heading into MAC Tournament
Kent State senior guard Jalen Sullinger is entering the MAC Tournament with a lot of momentum.
Sullinger is coming off a week that saw him co-player of the week honors in the conference. He averaged 24.5 points in wins over Western Michigan and Eastern Michigan.
This is Sullinger’s first MAC weekly honor.
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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Kent State men’s basketball vs Western Michigan, MAC Tournament recap
