Blue Ribbon picks Flashes for fourth in MAC; Davis on 1st Team

The Blue-Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook was released recently, and they picked Kent State for fourth place in the Mid-American Conference.  Additionally, senior forward VonCameron Davis was picked as a 1st Team All-Conference selection.

Ohio, Akron and Toledo are picked one through three in the league, as Bowling Green at fifth and Ball State at number six, round out the top half of the league.

Joining Davis on the first team included Ohio’s A.J. Clayton, Ball State’s Payton Sparks, Toledo’s Javan Simmons and Central Michigan’s Anthony Pritchard.

Pritchard was named preseason Player of the Year while Sparks newcomer of the year as he transfers back to Ball State from Indiana, after starting his career with the Cardinals.

Kent State was elected to have the third best backcourt in the league this year.

The Golden Flashes will try to get back to their defensive mindset in 2024-2025, something that at times was lacking last season.

“We wanted to become more physical,” Head Coach Rob Senderoff told Blue Ribbon.  “Our calling card has always been on the defensive end and we just weren't very good defensively this past year.  And we are just trying to get back the edge as a group, collectively, that I was lost in this past year.  Disappointingly lost.”

With a revamped roster with a focus on physicality and versatility, the Golden Flashes look to impose their will on their opponents, be much improved on the defensive end, and return to a physical brand of basketball. 

“We just have much more physicality and versatility and competitiveness (at practice) than we had at this point last year,” Senderoff said.

MID-MAJOR MADNESS PICKS KSU 2ND: The publication Mid-Major Madness selected Kent State to finish second in the Mid-American Conference this year, while tabbing Davis as their preseason MAC Player of the Year.

“Davis has shown continued growth in his time at KSU. He was the key reason they made their Cinderella run to the MAC Finals, with huge games in the quarterfinals and finals. An efficient 13.8 points per game,” the preview said.

Davis, who has spent much of his previous seasons bouncing back between the wing and the post, figures to find himself closer to the basket in 2024-2025. Davis did improve his three-point percentage by several points last season.