The Kent State men’s basketball team heads to West Virginia to compete in The Greenbrier Tipoff this weekend. They’ll play regional rival and Horizon League member Cleveland State Saturday at 1pm. Sunday, they’ll take on Wright State at noon.
For the Flashes, they come off their most impressive game in the early season, defeating UNC-Wilmington 86-77 on Monday night. The Seahawks were ranked #12 in the CollegeInsider.com poll, won 28 games a year ago, and were picked near the top of the Coastal Athletic Association this season.
Kent State used a renewed focus on the defensive end, competing and making multiple efforts for their best performance of the season, after giving up 103 and 102 points in the first two games.
This helped fuel an offense that made 15 more three point field goals, to make that total 45 in three games. The Flashes are shooting 44% from distance so far.
The Vikings come into this weekend with a 1-2 record, after a narrow loss at Loyola Chicago, a narrow win over D3 Capital, and a blowout loss at Northwestern.
Under the direction of first year Head Coach and former CSU assistant Rob Summers, they look to play fast.
Like many college basketball teams, the roster had to be retooled after previous Head Coach Daniyal Robinson went to North Texas.
Cleveland State poses a tough challenge on the Flashes with the way they set numerous ball screens and crash the offensive glass.
“Our ability to guard ball screens on defense is key,” KSU Head Coach Rob Senderoff texted Friday. “Multiple guys setting and coming ball screens.”
“Taking care of the basketball, crowding the paint and our guard rebounding is going to be important. They send multiple guys to the glass.”
ODDITY IN SCHEDULING:
Senderoff always likes to play multiple games in multiple days to simulate what the MAC Tournament could look like, as most programs do. Against two other mid-majors from a comparable league, players have to recover mentally and physically, consume a new scouting report and perform again, on limited rest.
This year also takes on a different element. Due to a scheduling oddity, Kent State will play Cleveland State twice in a week.
The annual game between these two local schools was set well in advance, Saturday, November 22. It is Kent State’s turn to host.
Due to a high major school backing out, this made the Greenbrier Tipoff a four team event round robin, instead of a tournament. KSU and Cleveland State were kept a little in the dark that they would be in the same pod together. Obviously with CSU and Wright State being in the same league and already playing twice, they weren’t going to play each other.
It’s not unlike playing someone the last day of the regular season, and then turning around and playing them a week later in the MAC Tournament, and Senderoff will use that concept with his team to prepare. A couple years ago Toledo thumped Kent State on the final day of the regular season, and then the Golden Flashes turned around and beat them in a MAC Quarterfinal.
RICO SUAVE:
Kent State senior big man Rico Gillespie has been highly productive so far. His three double doubles are first in the country. He is seventh in the nation in rebounding at 12.7 per game and he has six straight double doubles dating back to last season.
Decision making will be key has he navigates double teams, making plays from the short roll, and knowing when to lead the break and when to give it up to a guard.
PASS THA BALL
Kent State fans hoping to watch this weekend’s games will have to subscribe for a monthly pass on a website called PassThaBallLive.com for $24.99.
Never fear, Dane Richardson has you covered with a 30 minute pre-game show and the live radio call on AM 1350 this weekend. Richardson has taken KSU content, broadcasting and production to a new level this year. I hope you had a chance to see and hear his final call of KSU football’s thrilling Wagon Wheel victory Tuesday night.
NATIONAL SIGNING DAY:
Kent State announced the signings of two guards for their Class of 2026 this week.
Jakhi Calloway is from Bishop Hartley in Columbus, the alma mater of Morgan Safford.
NEO Spotlight calls Calloway the second rated point guard in Ohio. Assistant Jon Fleming called him a “walking paint touch” on Instagram.
“Jakhi Calloway is a true point guard.”, said Senderoff. “He’s a guy that we targeted as a junior. We’ve watched him play all throughout his high school career, and AAU career. He plays for a great coach Andréas James and for a great high school basketball program. He really has the ability to break down the defense, competes defensively and knows how to make other guys better.”
Dhani Miller is a real smooth guard that can really shoot the basketball. From New Jersey, he currently plays for Montverde Academy.
“Dhani Miller, I watched play this summer.”, said Senderoff. “His father works for the Orlando Magic and is somebody I’ve known for 30 years in the profession. When he sent me film, we went and watched him this summer and he immediately became our top priority in the high school class for 2026. He plays at a high-level high school program Montverde. His two coaches there Kevin Boyle and current coach Steve Turner are two of the best developers of high school basketball players in America. Dhani’s versatility, basketball IQ, competitiveness and ability to sore/shoot the ball are really impressive for a kid his age. He has played all his life with great players and understands how to be impactful with those caliber players. Really excited about that addition.”