The unofficial online home for fans of the Kent State University Golden Flashes. Part of Collegiate Sports Nation (CSN).

Best MAC team of the modern tourney era (not counting NCAA tourney play) is 2018-19 Buffalo. They went 28-3 in the regular season with 1 win over a NCAA tourney type team (a Syracuse squad that somehow got in with 10 double digit losses and promptly was eliminated). 1 loss to another NCAA tourney team, several good but not great non-conf wins and a 16-2 MAC record with two losses by 6 total points and only a few close conf wins. In other words a pretty dominant team that got a 6 seed as the MAC regular season and tourney champ (probably a 7 or 8 seed if they lost the title game and ended 27-4).

The Flashes have proven they can play with top 4 seed type teams, but also have to keep it going through MAC play with few losses, not easy. Perhaps, the best comparison (dated for some) is the 1997-98 Illinois-Chicago at large team (now UIC) that got in at 22-5 after tying for first in the old MCC w Detroit and Butler. They were one of the more controversial at large pics of the era. Lost close games to Illinois (NCCA team) and Marquette (NIT) and beat MSU (NCAA) and beat Valley champ Illinois St twice. They split conf home and homes with Detroit (at large) and Butler (auto bid)-yes 3 MCC teams danced- and lost their quarterfinal conf tourney game by a point to 8th place wright st. They got a 9 seed in the NCAA tourney with the reasoning that 4 of their 5 losses were close ones on the road to good teams and only had 1 bad loss (at the buzzer). But they had a few strong wins that Kent probably will not have this year unless Toledo, Akron or Ball St have a great conf season but log a loss to KSU.

If the NET can somehow stay under 30, probably means 16-2 or 17-1 with loss(es) to decent MAC teams, then there's a good chance, but even a single loss to a bottom half of the MAC team will probably plummet that ranking. The committee has shown some interest in pairing mid majors and P6 in the first 4 games, stay healthy and win and we'll see.