MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE Kent State hits skids, falls at home to rival

Kennedy Catholic's John Reimold (Bowling Green) and Danny McElhinny (E. Michigan) contributed.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
KENT -- John Hollingsworth led a 16-0 first-half run with seven points and finished with a game-high 24 as Akron beat Kent State 85-70 Saturday night.
Trailing 22-21, Rob Preston hit a 3-pointer with 7:59 left in the first half to give Akron (13-12 overall, 8-8 Mid-American Conference) the lead for good, 24-22.
Hollingsworth had three layups, a free throw, an assist and a steal during the 16-0 run, which gave the Zips a 37-22 lead with 4:08 left in the half. Akron led 39-29 at halftime.
Kent State (18-8, 11-6 MAC) cut the lead to 43-37 with 16:26 left in the game. Derrick Tarver, who finished with 19 points, responded with back-to-back 3-point shots to put Akron ahead 49-37 with 15:18 left.
Bowling Green 51, Miami 48
BOWLING GREEN -- Kevin Netter scored 14 of his 22 points in the second half as Bowling Green rallied from a four-point first-half deficit to beat Miami of Ohio.
Netter was 6-of-8 from the field and 10-of-14 from the foul line and led the Falcons (11-14, 7-9 Mid-American Conference) with eight rebounds.
John Reimold of Kennedy Catholic had nine points for Bowling Green.
Ohio 70, Marshall 65
ATHENS -- Brandon Hunter scored 20 points and had 16 rebounds and Steve Esterkamp had 19 points as Ohio beat Marshall.
Thomas Stephens sealed the game for the Bobcats (11-14, 7-9 Mid-American Conference) when he made two foul shots with 6.5 seconds left after stealing the ball with Ohio ahead 66-65.
Ronald Blackshear scored 21 points to lead the Thundering Herd (12-13, 8-8).
N. Illinois 85, Toledo 75
DEKALB, Ill. -- Jay Bates scored 18 points and Northern Illinois controlled the inside to beat Toledo for the Huskies' 15th victory.
The Huskies (15-11, 11-5 Mid-American Conference) had a 39-25 rebounding edge behind 11 apiece from Marcus Smallwood and Jamel Staten. Smallwood and P.J. Smith also scored 17 points each for Northern, which shot 59 percent (17-for-29) in the second half to pull away.
Central Michigan 106, Eastern Michigan 89
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. -- Chris Kaman scored 29 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and had six blocks as Central Michigan beat Eastern Michigan.
Mike Manciel added 25 points and four rebounds for the Chippewas (19-6, 12-4 Mid-American), who broke a 45-all halftime tie with a 15-4 run at the beginning of the second half. J.R. Wallace scored 17 and Whitney Robinson had 11.
W. Michigan 86, Ball St. 74
KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- Robby Collum scored 18 points, leading four Western Michigan players in double figures, as the Broncos led from start to finish in a win over Ball State.
Western Michigan (16-9, 8-8) held the Cardinals scoreless for nearly the first five minutes, taking a 7-0 lead on baskets by Collum, Terrance Slater -- who had a season-high 15 points -- and Ben Reed.