Walker, Avery lead Kent State past Akron 78-68

Feb 17, 2018, 09:51 pm

KENT, Ohio -- Jaylin Walker tossed in 27 points, sinking 7 of 12 shots from 3-point range, and Kent State pulled away late to beat Akron 78-68 on Saturday to snap a four-game losing streak.

Jalen Avery added 16 points and reserve BJ Duling scored 13 with four rebounds and a pair of steals for the Golden Flashes (13-14, 7-7 Mid-American Conference).

Akron trailed by a point at halftime but worked its way to a 56-51 lead on a Torrey Patton layup with 6:35 left in the game. Walker and Avery hit 3-pointers and Kevin Zabo added a bucket to push the Golden Flashes ahead 59-58 with four minutes remaining. Avery scored seven of Kent State's next nine points to up the advantage to 67-61. Malcolm Duvivier's 3-point play for the Zips cut the lead in half, but Avery answered with his own 3-point play and the Golden Flashes finished on a 19-10 run to pull out the win.

Duvivier finished with 27 points for the Zips (11-15, 4-10), while Daniel Utomi scored 20.