Recordpub.com - Italian trip proves successful for KSU men's basketball team

By David Carducci

Record-Courier staff writer

Kent State’s men’s basketball team returned from Italy with some encouraging numbers from their four-game trip.

If you add up the production from the center spot, the platoon of senior Brandon Parks and sophomore Justin Greene averaged almost 15 points and 14 rebounds per game. If the Flashes can expect that kind of production from the five spot this season, they can afford to redshirt 6-foot-11 junior-college transfer Justin Manns.

From all reports, Rod Sherman showed dramatic improvement with every game in his first action after missing all of last season to a knee injury. Sherman stuffed the stat sheets, averaging 15.5 points, 5.0 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game. His best number, though, was the 59 percent he shot from the field over four games (23-for-39).

My favorite number from the four games — Tyree Evans played four games and committed just three turnovers.

Evans struggled with turnovers last year during his first season in Kent. I talked with the senior guard briefly on Monday, and he said he put in hours of practice on his ball-handling and at shooting off the dribble this summer, while working out with pros like O.J. Mayo and Dwyane Wade in Chicago.

Evans led KSU in scoring in Italy, averaging 17.3 points per game, while shooting 45 percent from 3-point range (13-for-29) and 49 percent from the field (27-for-55).

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THE COMPETITION IN ITALY — Fans have been wondering if Kent State saw any real competition from the teams it played during its Italian tour.

According to KSU assistant coach Rob Senderoff, the final three professional teams the Flashes played would put up a fight if they were dropped into the Mid-American Conference.

“Those three teams would be good MAC teams,” said Senderoff. “They would finish in the middle of the pack or better. They would be good mid-major teams. The second team we played had a 7-foot-1 center, who is making 150,000 euros per season. And the last team we played had two guys both making over 100,000 euros.”

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HELPING THE FANS — Kent State is doing its best to help its fans find even more affordable ways to get to games during the 2009 season.

“We know these are tough economic times, so we want to make it very affordable for families who want to come out and watch some top-notch college football,” said Pete Mahoney, KSU’s associate athletic director in charge of external affairs.

Beginning with Thursday’s game, families of four can get a package of four tickets, four drinks and one large pizza for $30. Fans can also purchase two tickets for $20.

Kent State is also changing the seating arrangement at Dix Stadium, making it easier for fans to get a good seat at a reasonable price. This season, fans buying general admission tickets can sit anywhere in the stadium except in the chair-back seating at midfield on the stadium’s west end or in the student section. Chair-back seats are $15 each.

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David Carducci can be contacted at dcarducci@recordpub.com