Zabo's hot hand in OT lifts Kent State over Ball State 88-80

KENT, Ohio -- Kevin Zabo scored seven of his 21 points in overtime and Danny Pippen finished with a double-double to power Kent State to an 88-80 victory over Ball State on Tuesday night.

Pippen scored 11 with 16 rebounds for the Golden Flashes (10-10, 4-3 Mid-American Conference), who beat the Cardinals for a 15th straight time. Adonis De La Rosa finished with 15 points and eight rebounds, Jaylin Walker scored 17 with seven boards and Jalen Avery and BJ Duling added 10 points each.

Kent State led 38-31 at halftime, but Ball State (12-8, 3-4) grabbed the lead, 42-41, on a Trey Moses free throw with 3:20 gone in the second half. The Golden Flashes trailed 49-45, but Walker nailed 3-pointers to begin and end a 10-0 run and forge a 55-49 lead. From there, Ball State got seven points from Sean Sellers and five from Tayler Persons, including a 3-pointer with 24 seconds left in regulation, to send the game to overtime tied at 71.

Ishmael El-Amin's layup gave the Cardinals a 75-74 lead with 3:18 remaining, but Pippen hit a jumper to ignite a 10-0 run to seal the win for Kent State.

Persons tallied 19 points and seven assists to pace Ball State. Sellers added 15 points and nine rebounds.