Men’s and Women’s Basketball Teams March on to Cleveland in MAC Tournament

With exciting finishes by both the men’s and women’s basketball teams on March 5, the Kent State University Golden Flashes will march on to Cleveland in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament at Quicken Loans Arena.

For the men’s team, Kent State senior Kevin Zabo went the length of the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center court in six seconds and banked in a buzzer-beating layup to give the Golden Flashes a 61-59 victory over Northern Illinois University in the opening round of the 2018 MAC Men’s Basketball Tournament. With the victory, Kent State (16-16), a No. 5 seed, advances to Thursday’s quarterfinal against No. 4 seed Ball State University.

To repeat as MAC Tournament champions, the Kent State men’s basketball team will need three wins in three days at Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena, beginning Thursday, March 8, at 2:30 p.m. against Ball State.

The women’s basketball team rallied from 17 points down late in the third period to force overtime and leave Savage Arena with an 80-76 victory over host the University of Toledo in the opening round of the 2018 MAC Women’s Basketball Tournament. The win ends a streak of eight consecutive MAC Tournament losses for the Golden Flashes, who beat the Toledo Rockets on their home court for the second time this year and avenged being upset by the Rockets in last season’s tournament quarterfinals.

The Kent State women’s basketball team, a No. 10 seed, will take on the University at Buffalo, a No. 2 seed and MAC East Division champion, in a quarterfinal game on Wednesday, March 7, at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland.

For information about the MAC Tournament, including tickets, pregame reception, broadcast information and student bus trips, visit Kent State’s MAC Tournament Central.

View Kent State's Mac Tournament Central 

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3/7/18 UPDATE: The Kent State women's basketball team was unable to earn its second upset in three days and fell to No. 2 seed Buffalo, 72-50, Wednesday evening in a Mid-American Conference Women's Basketball Tournament quarterfinals contest at Quicken Loans Arena. Read more.

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3/8/18 UPDATE: The Kent State men's basketball team continued to be at its best when it needed it most in a 76-73 victory over Ball State Thursday afternoon at Quicken Loans Arena. The defending champions ran their MAC Tournament winning streak to six games, all of which have been decided by five points or less. Read more.

The Kent State Golden Flashes will take on top-seeded Buffalo on Friday at 6:30 p.m. The Buffalo Bulls defeated Central Michigan on Thursday.

POSTED: Tuesday, March 6, 2018 10:48 AM
Updated: Friday, December 9, 2022 02:11 AM