Men’s basketball falls to Buffalo

Final score Buffalo: 79 Kent State: 54 Game highlights Byron Muley of Buffalo lead all players with 27 points Kent State's Randal Holdt scored 10 of the first 12 points in the game for a team-high 16 points total Justin Greene scored 15 points for the Golden Flashes.

Final score Buffalo: 79 Kent State: 54 Game highlights Byron Muley of Buffalo lead all players with 27 points Kent State’s Randal Holdt scored 10 of the first 12 points in the game for a team-high 16 points total Justin Greene scored 15 points for the Golden Flashes.

Rachel Jones
January 20, 2011

The Flashes fell to Buffalo 79-54, bringing them to a 2-2 split in the Mid-American Conference.

Although the teams appeared evenly matched and played two, three-minute periods without either team scoring, Kent State coach Geno Ford said the Flashes went downhill “shortly after the tip.”

Kent State made its mark with 18:55 left in the first half, pulling ahead 3-2.

But Buffalo (10-6, 2-2 MAC) regained the lead 30 seconds later and did not let go.

“It was one of those games where we kept fighting uphill the whole time,” Ford said. “We did not make a single run, and that’s the disappointing thing.”

With the seconds slipping off the clock, junior guard Carlton Guyton sank a 3-point jumper, closing Buffalo’s lead to 43-31 at the half.

Just when it looked like new life hit the Kent State bench, Buffalo stretched the gap with its biggest lead of 27 points with 7:55 left in the game.

“We never put them under any game pressure,” Ford said. “They were scoring on us with a high percentage, and then we couldn’t execute anything.”

Scoring with the highest percentage for Buffalo was Byron Mulkey, who totaled 27 points against the Flashes.

Ford said Mulkey, who sank five 3-pointers in the first half, is Buffalo’s key offensive player.

“Every time he got it, he buried us,” Ford said.

Sophomore guard Randal Holt buried the ball for the Flashes with a team-high 16 points. 10 of those made up the first 12 points of the game.

Junior forward Justin Greene was close behind with 15 points, and junior guard Michael Porrini contributed with nine points, including a 3-pointer with 6:12 left in the game.

Porrini, one of the top MAC players in steals, contributed to the team’s total of 11.

While the steals forced 21 turnovers on the Bulls, Kent State failed to block any Buffalo shots.

Buffalo’s Mitchell Watt led the Bulls with eight blocks, which Ford said rattled the Flashes.

“When you get a couple shots blocked, guys tend to move a little faster,” Ford explained. “(Watt) blocked eight times, but you also have all of those possessions where we could’ve had baskets, but just him being five feet around (the rim) bothered us.”

The lethal combination of Watt and Mulkey led to the most points any team has scored on the Flashes (11-7, 2-2 MAC) this season.

Ford said even with Kent State’s off performance, the Bulls still would have ended the night with a victory.

“That’s the best we’ve had a team play against us all year,” Ford said. “I thought they played at a very high level. We didn’t play well, but they played (so well) that it would have been hard (for us) to have a chance.”

Kent State continues its MAC schedule Sunday at 2 p.m. against Miami at the M.A.C. Center.

Contact Rachel Jones at [email protected].