CLEVELAND (AP) - Chris Evans scored six of his 25 points in the final 2 1/2 minutes to help fourth-seeded Kent State hold off eighth-seeded Buffalo 70-68 Thursday night in the third round of the Mid-American Conference tournament.
The Golden Flashes (20-12) took a 62-61 lead on two Darren Goodson free throws with 3:15 to play. Evans added a jumper with 2:20 left for a three-point lead, and then layup and two foul shots down the stretch to maintain the advantage.
Evans added a career-high 15 rebounds for his eighth double-double of the season. Randal Holt chipped in 17 points and Goodson finished with 12.
Tony Watson paced the Bulls (14-20) with 23 points and 11 rebounds while playing all 40 minutes for the sixth straight game. Javon McCrea managed 20 points, breaking Buffalo's single-season record with 593 points.
The Golden Flashes will face top-seeded Akron Friday at 6:30 p.m.
| Scoreboard | |||
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
| Buffalo (14-20) | 32 | 36 | 68 |
| Kent State (20-12) « | 30 | 40 | 70 |
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| Buffalo Bulls | |||||||
| STARTERS | M | FG | FT | TR | A | PF | PTS |
| W. Regan, F | 36 | 4-9 | 4-5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 14 |
| J. McCrea, F | 28 | 7-15 | 6-7 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 20 |
| J. Skeete, G | 40 | 3-8 | 0-0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
| T. Watson II, G | 40 | 8-17 | 3-4 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 23 |
| A. Nuiriankh, G | 28 | 1-6 | 0-0 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 |
| BENCH | M | FG | FT | TR | A | PF | PTS |
| C. Downing | 13 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| R. Thomas-Edwards | 12 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| X. Ford | 3 | 0-1 | 1-2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals | 23-59 | 14-18 | 30 | 13 | 19 | 68 | |
| 39% | 77.8% | ||||||
| Kent State Golden Flashes | |||||||
| STARTERS | M | FG | FT | TR | A | PF | PTS |
| C. Evans, F | 38 | 10-17 | 5-6 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 25 |
| D. Goodson, F | 28 | 4-8 | 3-4 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 12 |
| M. Henniger, F | 19 | 2-3 | 0-2 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| R. Holt, G | 37 | 4-10 | 7-8 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 17 |
| K. Brewer, G | 31 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| BENCH | M | FG | FT | TR | A | PF | PTS |
| B. Pope | 23 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| K. Thomas | 9 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| D. Manley | 8 | 0-1 | 2-2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| M. Tabb | 7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 25-51 | 17-23 | 38 | 7 | 15 | 70 | |
| 49% | 73.9% | ||||||
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