KENT, OHIO - When a David versus Goliath match up is talked about, it usually pertains to a major upset in which the "David" team pulls off a miraculous victory.
This was not one of those cases.
In front of a wound-up crowd of 4,217 at the M.A.C. Center, the Kent State Golden Flashes (11-4 MAC, 18-5) dazzled, demolished and disposed of the Buffalo Bulls (1-12 MAC, 4-18) by a score of 98-55 on Tuesday night. It was Buffalo's worst loss since a 106-55 defeat at the hands of Bobby Knights' Indiana Hoosiers in 1999 - UB head coach Reggie Witherspoon's second game as at the helm of the Bulls.
"I looked into everybody's eyes," said Kent State head coach Jim Christian. "The guys were ready to compete tonight regardless of time, score or situation."
"Kent State did a great job," said Witherspoon. "They came out with a lot of emotion, our guys didn't. There are going to be times where we don't play well, but we have to play harder."
In the process, the Flashes ended their three-game losing streak and were the engineers behind UB's 14th loss in fifteen games.
"My day got off to a horrible start this morning," said Christian. "I got rear-ended. I thought it was one of our fans, I had to apologize for the three straight losses."
Buffalo opened the game in promising fashion, battling KSU to a 17-17 tie in the early going of the game that featured a back-and-forth pace between the two teams.
It was not to be for the Bulls, however, as the Flashes would go on to close out the half by outscoring UB 32-9 the rest of the way. Kent State separated themselves from Buffalo with an initial 18-1 run during that stretch and never looked back.
The run was keyed by a barrage of Golden Flash 3-pointers. Three of them came courtesy of Terry Haut, who finished the game with 14 points, and another one was swished in from Bryan Bedford, who finished with nine points.
Haut was among five Kent State players to score in double figures.
Adding insult to injury for UB was the fact that KSU did all of this without their top gun, Antonio Gates, who left the game with an injury after playing only six minutes. Gates came into the game averaging 21.4 points, only 9.7 fewer than the entire Turner Battle-less Buffalo starting five.
"The doctor told me he had a deep-thigh bruise," said Christian. "He could have gone back in if he was needed."
Gates' backup, Clif Brown, picked up the slack and went on to score a game-high 19 points on 8-19 shooting. Brown, a highly-touted freshman recruit, is now 22-28 from the floor on the season in his limited action behind Gates.
"I can't say enough good things about Clif," said Christian. "His effort tonight is a testament to what happens when you work hard in practice."
"I've just been being patient, waiting for my time," said Brown.
Anthony Wilkins, 18 points, and John Edwards, 12 points, also contributed mightily to the Golden Flash cause. Edwards stockpiled an amazing six blocks on the night - tying a KSU school record and demoralizing the Buffalo troops who dared to enter his domain.
"I block shots, that's a skill that I have," said Edwards. "I don't work on it in practice. It just comes natural."
While no one truly looked good on the Bulls, Jason Bird scored a team high 14 points. Battle's replacement point guard, Davis Lawrence, was right behind him with 12 points. Lawrence kept UB in the game in the early going with his 3-3 performance from behind the arc in the first half.
"Lawrence is the one guy who probably played as hard as anyone on the team," said Witherspoon. "It's a difficult position to be in for us to call on anybody to do Battle's job."
Even the KSU reserves got into the act in the waning stages of the game with Brandon Roach throwing down a crowd-igniting dunk over Mark Bortz for the first points of his career. After the slam, Roach celebrated with his teammates on the bench while play continued in the Kent State end, prompting the Golden Flashes' coaching staff to grab him and shove him back into play.
Buffalo will head home to play against the RedHawks of Miami (Ohio) on Friday, Feb. 22, at noon. The game time was originally scheduled for 7 p.m. but was changed to accommodate television. Viewers in Western New York can watch the game live on the Empire Sports Network.
Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki
