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The Kent State men’s basketball team proved it was the team to beat in the Mid-American Conference, clinching the regular-season conference title by beating Akron 74-61 tonight at James A. Rhodes Arena.

Senior forward Anthony Simpson paved the way for the Flashes, scoring a career-high 23 points.

The Kent State men’s basketball team proved it was the team to beat in the Mid-American Conference, clinching the regular-season conference title by beating Akron 74-61 tonight at James A. Rhodes Arena.

“To win a conference championship you’ve got to win on the road,” Kent State coach Geno Ford said. “I thought we played really well and they were not great in the first half and that was the difference.”

The victory secures an automatic bid to the National Invitation Tournament and the top seed in the MAC Tournament, which begins this week. The Flashes’ first game will be Thursday.

Kent State (23-8, 13-3 MAC) won its fifth regular-season conference title in team history.

“It shows a lot of character being able to win a championship game on the road in a sold-out arena,” said senior guard Chris Singletary, who only played 15 minutes of the game due to foul trouble. “It just showed the toughness of our team to be able to come and win a MAC championship on the road.”

The Flashes exited halftime with a 31-23 lead, and they continued their dominance by getting on the scoreboard first for a double-digit lead.

Kent State led by double digits for the remainder of the game.

Senior forward Anthony Simpson paved the way for the Flashes, scoring a career-high 23 points while adding nine rebounds.

To start the game Akron jumped out to a quick 7-3 lead. Kent State took its first lead, 13-11, with the help of an 8-0 run.

The Flashes would not surrender the lead for the rest of the game.

With 3:53 remaining in the half, Akron cut Kent State’s lead down to 25-20. But the Zips wouldn’t get any closer.

Kent State’s defense held the Zips to just three points for the rest of the half.

Contact sports reporter Cody Erbacher at [email protected]