Kent, Ohio – The Oberlin College men's basketball team opened up 2016 at Division I Kent State University, falling 104-58 to the Golden Flashes on Saturday night at the M.A.C. Center.
 
This is the fourth straight season the Yeomen have taken on a Division I opponent, falling 71-53 at Youngstown State last year. The previous two years Oberlin squared off against Ivy League members Yale (2012-13) and Cornell (2013-14).
 
Junior Nathan Cohen led Oberlin with eight first-half points and finished with a game-high 19 on the evening. Four other Yeomen added six points each in the setback.
 
Oberlin held its own through the first 10 minutes of play as a layup by Cohen cut the Kent State lead down to seven, 22-15, but the Golden Flashes would break open the game with a 10-0 run and would ultimately take a 48-23 advantage into the intermission.
 
With the end result never in doubt, the Yeomen continued to play hard, but could not shrink the gap at the game's conclusion.
 
The Golden Flashes used their distinct size advantage to win the rebounding battle 48-23 and out-score the Yeomen 62-16 in the paint.  KSU shot 57.1 percent from the floor, connecting on 40 of 70 attempts. They used their length on the defensive end to hold the Yeomen to a 32.2-percent clip (19-of-59).
 
Jimmy Hall led the Flashes with a 18 points on 9-of-11 shooting, while Deon Edwin was one rebound shy of a double-double with 17 points and nine boards.
 
With the loss Oberlin dropped to 6-5 overall while the Flashes moved to 9-4. The Yeomen, who sit at 2-3 in the North Coast Athletic Conference, have just one non-league game remaining on their schedule.
 
Having not played a home since December 5, the Yeomen will finally return to the Oberlin hardwood to begin a three-game stretch at Philips Gym on Saturday, January 9 against The College of Wooster. Tip-time is set for 3 p.m.