2020–21 Kent State Golden Flashes men's basketball team

2020–21 Kent State Golden Flashes men's basketball
ConferenceMid-American Conference
DivisionEast Division
Record15–8 (12–6 MAC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Matt Sligh (3rd season)
  • Julian Sullinger (3rd season)
  • Aaron Fuss (2nd season)
Home arenaMAC Center
Seasons
2020–21 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Toledo 15 – 4   .789 21 – 9   .700
Buffalo 12 – 5   .706 16 – 9   .640
Akron 12 – 6   .667 15 – 8   .652
Kent State 12 – 6   .667 15 – 8   .652
Ohio † 9 – 5   .643 17 – 8   .680
Bowling Green 10 – 8   .556 14 – 12   .538
Miami (OH) 9 – 8   .529 12 – 11   .522
Ball State 8 – 9   .471 10 – 13   .435
Western Michigan 4 – 12   .250 5 – 16   .238
Eastern Michigan 3 – 11   .214 6 – 12   .333
Central Michigan 3 – 13   .188 7 – 16   .304
Northern Illinois 2 – 12   .143 3 – 16   .158
† 2021 MAC tournament winner

The 2020–21 Kent State Golden Flashes men's basketball team represented Kent State University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Flashes, led by 10th-year head coach Rob Senderoff, played their home games at the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center, also known as the MAC Center, in Kent, Ohio as members of the East Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). It was the program's 105th season of play and 70th as a member of the MAC.

Previous season

The Golden Flashes finished the 2019–20 season 20–12 overall, 9–9 in MAC play, to finish fourth place in the East Division. They defeated Eastern Michigan in the first round of the MAC tournament before the rest of the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Offseason

Departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Jon King 0 G 6'5" 195 Freshman Akron, OH Walk-on; did not return
CJ Williamson 1 G 6'6" 200 Senior Orlando, FL Graduated
Troy Simons 3 G 6'3" 195 Senior Pittsburgh, PA Graduated
Antonio Williams 4 G 6'0" 185 Senior Chicago, IL Graduated
Mitch Peterson 13 G 6'5" 199 Senior Richfield, OH Graduated
Anthony Roberts 15 G 6'4" 190 Sophomore Detroit, MI Transferred to St. Bonaventure
Sentwali Nalls 21 G 6'1" 165 Freshman Chicago, IL Walk-on; did not return
Anyeuri Castillo 22 F 6'7" 195 JR Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Transferred to USC Aiken
Phillip Whittington 25 F 6'8" 227 Senior Los Angeles, CA Graduated

Incoming transfers

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous school
Malique Jacobs 2 G 6'4" 190 Junior Wilmington, NC Transferred from Indian Hills CC. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
Tekorian Smith 4 G 6'4" 185 Junior Memphis, TN Transferred from Polk State College. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
Justyn Hamilton 21 F 6'11" 220 Senior Charlotte, NC Transferred from Temple. Will have one year of remaining eligibility.
Gabe O'Neal 32 F 6'7" 240 Junior Cincinnati, OH Transferred from Mineral Area College. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
James Jordan 55 G 6'5" 180 Junior Detroit, MI Transferred from Roane State CC. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
VonCameron Davis
SG 		Columbus, OH Walnut Ridge 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) N/A Nov 13, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster

2020–21 Kent State Golden Flashes men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 1 Michael Nuga 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS Sr Toronto, ON
G 2 Malique Jacobs 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr Wilmington, NC
F 3 VonCameron Davis 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Columbus, OH
G 4 Tekorian Smith (T) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Memphis, TN
F 5 Danny Pippen 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 232 lb (105 kg) RS Sr Detroit, MI
G 11 Giovanni Santiago 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 155 lb (70 kg) So Bayamón, Puerto Rico
F 14 Tervell Beck 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Sr Cleveland, OH
G 15 Mike Digiulio 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Fr Buffalo, NY
F 21 Justyn Hamilton 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Charlotte, NC
F 23 Evan Bainbridge 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Stow, OH
F 32 Gabe O'Neal 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Jr Cincinnati, OH
G 33 Jeremiah Hernandez 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) RS Fr Chicago, IL
F 40 Jarred Logan 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Elyria, OH
C 50 Kalin Bennett (T) 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 300 lb (136 kg) So Little Rock, AR
G 55 James Jordan 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Detroit, MI
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on
  • (T) Transferred
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: November 23, 2020

Schedule and results

Kent State had to cancel games against Alcorn State, Purdue Fort Wayne, Eastern Michigan and Ohio, due to COVID-19 issues at those respective programs. They also postponed games against Akron, Bowling Green and Ball State.

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 28, 2020*
Canceled 		Alcorn State Canceled due to COVID-19 issues at Alcorn State MAC Center 
Kent, OH
November 30, 2020*
Canceled 		Purdue Fort Wayne Canceled due to COVID-19 issues at Purdue Fort Wayne MAC Center 
Kent, OH
December 2, 2020*
5:00 p.m. 		Point Park W 90–41  1–0
  17 – Nuga   14 – Hamilton   4 – Jacobs  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
December 4, 2020*
6:00 p.m., ACCN 		at No. 15 Virginia L 64–71 OT 1–1
  20 – Nuga   6 – Nuga   3 – Jacobs  John Paul Jones Arena 
Charlottesville, VA
December 8, 2020*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Detroit Mercy W 80–66  2–1
  23 – Pippen   13 – Hamilton   4 – Nuga  Calihan Hall 
Detroit, MI
December 13, 2020*
2:00 p.m. 		Northern Kentucky W 92–73  3–1
  22 – Hamilton   9 – O'Neal   7 – tied  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
MAC regular season
January 1, 2021
7:00 p.m., CBSSN 		at Akron L 62–66  3–2
(0–1) 		 19 – Nuga   9 – Pippen   6 – Santiago  James A. Rhodes Arena 
Akron, OH
January 2, 2021
Canceled 		at Eastern Michigan Canceled due to COVID-19 issues at Eastern Michigan Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
January 5, 2021
2:00 p.m., ESPN3 		Toledo L 82–84  3–3
(0–2) 		 34 – Pippen   16 – Pippen   5 – tied  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
January 9, 2021
4:00 p.m., ESPN3 		Western Michigan W 80–54  4–3
(1–2) 		 26 – Nuga   10 – Hamilton   3 – tied  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
January 12, 2021
4:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Central Michigan W 94–85  5–3
(2–2) 		 28 – Pippen   11 – Pippen   4 – tied  McGuirk Arena 
Mt. Pleasant, MI
January 16, 2021
2:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Ohio W 89–79  6–3
(3–2) 		 22 – Pippen   10 – Nuga   6 – Santiago  Convocation Center 
Athens, OH
January 19, 2021
5:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Buffalo W 84–81  7–3
(4–2) 		 23 – Nuga   7 – tied   6 – Jacobs  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
January 23, 2021
12:00 p.m., ESPN3 		at Toledo L 74–76  7–4
(4–3) 		 19 – Nuga   12 – Pippen   4 – tied  Savage Arena 
Toledo, OH
January 27, 2021
5:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Bowling Green W 96–91  8–4
(5–3) 		 34 – Pippen   10 – Pippen   4 – tied  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
January 30, 2021
4:00 p.m., ESPN3 		Central Michigan W 83–76  9–4
(6–3) 		 26 – Pippen   12 – Hamilton   6 – Santiago  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
February 2, 2021
7:00 p.m., ESPN3 		Miami (OH) W 77–68  10–4
(7–3) 		 30 – Pippen   8 – Jacobs   6 – Jacobs  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
February 5, 2021
7:00 p.m., ESPNU 		Akron L 61–72  10–5
(7–4) 		 17 – Pippen   11 – Pippen   5 – Pippen  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
February 9, 2021
7:00 p.m., CBSSN 		at Bowling Green W 71–67  11–5
(8–4) 		 18 – Beck   11 – Pippen   5 – Jacobs  Stroh Center 
Bowling Green, OH
February 13, 2021
2:00 p.m., ESPN3 		Northern Illinois W 80–58  12–5
(9–4) 		 13 – Jacobs   8 – tied   6 – Santiago  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
February 16, 2021
7:00 p.m., ESPN3 		at Western Michigan W 76–69  13–5
(10–4) 		 22 – Santiago   8 – Beck   2 – Hernandez  University Arena 
Kalamazoo, MI
February 20, 2021
2:00 p.m., ESPN3 		Eastern Michigan W 64–51  14–5
(11–4) 		 25 – Pippen   10 – Pippen   9 – Pippen  MAC Center 
Kent, OH
February 24, 2021
2:00 p.m., ESPN3 		at Ball State L 71–90  14–6
(11–5) 		 23 – Jacobs   7 – Jacobs   3 – tied  Worthen Arena (109)
Muncie, IN
February 27, 2021
4:30 p.m., ESPN3 		at Miami (OH) W 64–51  15–6
(12–5) 		 19 – Beck   12 – Beck   4 – Jacobs  Millett Hall 
Oxford, OH
March 2, 2021
Canceled 		Ohio Canceled due to COVID-19 issues at Ohio MAC Center 
Kent, OH
March 5, 2021
6:00 p.m., ESPNU 		at Buffalo L 67–81  15–7
(12–6) 		 19 – Beck   6 – tied   7 – Santiago  Alumni Arena 
Buffalo, NY
MAC tournament
March 11, 2021
2:05 p.m., ESPN+ 		(4) vs. (5) Ohio
Quarterfinals 		L 63–85  15–8
  16 – tied   6 – Hamilton   5 – Santiago  Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse 
Cleveland, OH
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern.

Source:[1]

References

  1. ^ "2020-21 Kent State Golden Flashes Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved June 14, 2024.