• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Ohio State, Kent State play for in-season tournament championship

Nov 12, 2006 - 4:42 PM Kent State (2-0) at No. 4 Ohio St (2-0) 8:00 pm EST

COLUMBUS, Ohio (Ticker) - Ohio State's young team is getting a lot of experience with a packed early-season schedule.

The Buckeyes and their vaunted recruiting class will take on Kent State in Sunday's championship game in the SportsTime Ohio Black Coaches Association Classic in Columbus.

Ron Lewis scored 27 points and Buckeyes had another outstanding shooting night in holding off Loyola of Chicago, 87-75, in the tournament's second round - already the second game for the fourth-ranked team in the country.

A 6-4 senior, Lewis hit four 3-pointers and also pulled down 11 rebounds as Ohio State advanced to Sunday's championship game.

With 7-0 freshman center Greg Oden, the jewel of the Buckeyes' recruiting class and the projected No. 1 pick in the 2007 NBA draft, out until January due to right wrist surgery, Lewis will be expected to take up the slack as one of two seniors on the squad.

Ohio State (2-0) cooled off a bit from its 61-percent shooting effort on Friday night, but still connected on 52 percent (29-of-56) from the field in turning back Loyola.

The Golden Flashes are the defending regular season and tournament champions in the Mid-American Conference. They have played well to start the season, including a 81-74 victory over IUPUI on Saturday to advance to meet the Buckeyes in the championship game.

Haminn Quaintance scored 16 points and Kent State shot 21-of-27 from the free throw line to seal Saturday's victory. The Golden Flashes nailed 17 of those shots in the final 11 minutes.

Kent State will look to win its first in-season tournament championship since the 1989-90 Manufacturers Hanover Classic in New Rochelle, New York, that included wins over Wichita State (77-65) and Iona (72-69).