 KENT STATE 71, ST. MARY'S 70 “This is probably one of the biggest wins of my career,” Greene, the 2011 Mid-American Conference Player of the Year, said. “To do it on the road, against a team that was in the Top 25 for most of the season, and to do it in the situation we did it? It was just great.”
After Greene’s go-ahead basket, Saint Mary’s (25-9) had one last chance when Mickey McConnell raced up court in the final seconds and missed an unimpeded layup attempt just before the buzzer sounded.
Kent State (24-11) advances to the second round of the NIT for the second consecutive year after overcoming a 12-point second-half deficit. The Golden Flashes will now play at Fairfield which won at Colorado State 62-60 earlier in the evening.
Junior guard Michael Porrini scored a team-high 19 points, while junior guard Carlton Guyton and sophomore Randal Holt each added 13.
The Golden Flashes seemed headed for a double-digit loss against the Gaels until the final minutes of regulation, when a furious rally culminated in a stunning victory that left the Saint Mary’s faithful silenced. Down by six with 2:25 left Greene scored inside followed by a driving lay-up from senior guard Rodriquez Sherman that left Kent State trailing by just two with 1:16 left.
Saint Mary’s then sandwiched two trips to the foul line, which resulted in three free throws, around a pair of lay-ups from Porrini.
Porrini’s second score pulled Kent State to within one (70-69) with 11 seconds left. The Golden Flashes then regained possession to set up Greene’s go ahead score when their full court pressure resulted in a Gaels turnover right in front of the KSU bench.
“That’s how it’s been all year,” Kent State head coach Geno Ford said. “We’re not the best shooting team. We’re not the best rebounding team. We didn’t lead our league in a single category but wins. Our kids just keep grinding.”
Kent State started the game making nine of its first 13 shots from the field, including 4-5 from three and took a seven point (22-15) lead at the 11 minute mark on a three by Holt, who equaled a team high with eight points in the period. One of the top offensive teams in the nation, the Gaels came back with a 17-4 run over the next seven minutes of action. That put them on top 32-26.
Kent State would hang close and closed to within four as a put-back by Manns in the final seconds gave Saint Mary’s a 39-35 lead at the break.
The Golden Flashes, who shot 54 percent (15-28) in the first half, were unable to duplicate their hot start in the second, making only 3-10 shots in the first five minutes. The Gaels were only 5-16 during the same stretch but still managed to extend the lead to 10 (51-41). The lead grew to as many as 12 (57-45) before Holt and Porrini banged back-to-back threes that helped bring Kent State back.
Rob Jones had 21 points and nine rebounds, and Matthew Dellavedova added 16 for Saint Mary’s, which shot just 33.3 percent in the second half after making 57.7 percent in the first.
Courtesy of Kent State Athletics
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