The Kent State men’s basketball team defeated Northern Illinois 76-57 in the Mid-American Conference tournament.

Redshirt senior guard Malique Jacobs led all players with 19 points, redshirt senior forward Miryne Thomas recorded 10 points and 14 rebounds – his third double-double and redshirt senior guard Sincere Carry totaled 13 points. Sophomore center Cli’Ron Hornbeak added a career-high 16 points.

The Flashes limited the Huskies to their lowest first-half total as Kent State led 35-18.

After giving up the game’s opening basket to NIU, the Flashes led 92.2% of the game.

As a team, KSU shot 47% from the field and 24% from deep. The Flashes forced 17 turnovers while having 28 points off of turnovers.

Northern Illinois also shot 37% from the field while going 6-of-18 from three.

The Flashes will now play the winner of Buffalo v. Akron in the semifinals.

KSU swept Buffalo this season and split the season series with Akron.

Tipoff is Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

Jacob Shondel is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].