March Madness begins today for the Kent State Tuscarawas men’s basketball team.
No. 4 seed KSU Tuscarawas will begin tournament play in a United States Collegiate Athletic Association National Basketball Championship Division II small college quarterfinal game at 2 p.m. against No. 5 seed Penn State Greater Allegheny in Petersburg, Va.
The Golden Eagles have assured themselves of a third straight tournament appearance.
Kent State Tuscarawas’ solid 88-79 win over Miami Hamilton on March 2 not only assured them of a USCAA National Basketball Championship bid, but it also locked them into the No. 4 seed in the tournament -- their highest seed since joining the USCAA.
The two teams were supposed to have met during the regular season, but the Lions cancelled the game which was never rescheduled.
The Golden Eagles and PSU GA will take to the court at Virginia State University in Petersburg with identical 21-9 records.
Kent State Tuscarawas acquitted themselves very well in a regular season ending victory against a team that had won 10 of its last 11 games while the Golden Eagles also
put the finishing touches on an unbeaten season at home going 13-0.
Kyle Shockley led the Golden Eagles with 28 points and nine assists and brother Kameron added 26 points and hauled down 10 rebounds. Ethan Bower had 12 points and Javier Ward 10 for the winners.
Kameron, a senior forward, was recently selected as a First Team USCAA All-American to become the second Golden Eagles hooper to earn that award. Shockley ranked first in the USCAA with defensive rebounds (224), was third in total rebounds (279), fourth in blocked shots (54), sixth in rebounds per game (10.3), 11 th in steals (65), 12 th in assists (109), 19 th in points per game (18.8), 20 th in field goal percentage (54%) and recorded 16 double-doubles on the season.
He achieved Honorable Mention All-American status in 2023 and was named USCAA D2 National Player of the Week twice (2021 & 2024).
Kyle, a junior, received a Second Team USCAA All-American award to raise the number of Golden Eagles basketball All-American honorees to nine. Kyle earned USCAA D2 National Player of the Week recognition twice in the period of a month this season.
Kyle is the Navy and Gold's leading scorer averaging 20.4 points per game which ranks seventh overall in the USCAA. He has scored 592 points on the year, which is second overall, is fourth in field goals making 211 of 403 attempts, ranks 14 th in assists with 108, 13 th in steals (61) and is in the top 25 in field goal percentage converting on 52.4% of his shot attempts.
A semifinal round game is in the offing for the victor on Tuesday at 2 p.m. and the opponent could very well be No. 1 ranked and top seeded Cincinnati Clermont -- a team the Golden Eagles split with during the regular season.
KSU Tuscarawas also finished with the No. 1 schedule in the power rankings, while UCC ranked No. 2, Hamilton No. 3 and Greater Allegheny No. 4. All four teams are in the same bracket at the championships.
Pay-per-view access will also be available for live game streaming via the
uscaasportsnetwork.com. Single game access is $8.54 per individual game, or an All-Access
pass can be purchased for $40 that will give fans access to all 17 women's tournament games and all 21 men's tournament broadcasts.
Phone: 330-343-8615
Address: 525 West High Avenue, Suite 160, New Philadelphia
Email: cjones1973@roadrunner.com
All Rights Reserved | Big Time Sports Ohio | This site is powered by Bluefoot.