CLEVELAND, OH - Justin Greene's free throw with 1.9 seconds propelled Kent State to a one-point, 73-72 win over the Iona College men's basketball team in the opening contest of the 2010 World Vision Classic at the Wolstein Center on the campus of Cleveland State University. The Gaels (0-1) opened up their 2010-11 campaign and the Tim Cluess era with a heartbreaking defeat.

Iona erased an eight-point second half deficit by turning up its defensive effort. Trailing 46-38 with 14:36 to play, the Gaels chipped away and rallied to tie the score at 50-50 on junior Randy Dezouvre's layup a little over four minutes later. The two teams traded leads over the next several possessions.

The Maroon & Gold gained as much as a six-point lead with 2:52 to play when junior Jermel Jenkins drained an open three-pointer from the wing to give the squad a 70-64 advantage. A three-point play by Kent State guard Rodriguez Sherman was followed by a Carlton Guyton three-pointer on the following possession and the score was knotted at 72-72 with less than a minute to play.

Junior point guard Scott Machado had good penetration into the lane on the Gaels' next possession and dished it off to teammate Alejo Rodriguez. The senior forward's shot attempt was deflected away allowing the Golden Flashes to call timeout to set up a final possession in regulation.

With 1.9 seconds, Greene was fouled by Iona junior Michael Glover  who was called for a block while trying to take a charge. Greene hit the first and intentionally missed the second shot. After a quick time out took a half second left, the miss free throw strategy worked for Kent State as the Gaels had to take the ball out of bounds from a stationary spot rather than being able to run the base line had he made it. Senior Rashon Dwight inbounded the ball to Jenkins and his ensuing shot attempt fell short as the Gaels fell by a single point.

Glover led the five Iona players in double-figures, scoring 16 points in his Maroon & Gold debut. He shot 4-for-8 from the floor and was 8-for-15 from the free-throw line. Jenkins added 13 points all coming in the second half during Iona's run. He shot 5-for-8 from the field with three three-pointers, two assists and two steals. Machado posted 11 points with a team-high eight assists, seven rebounds and three steals. Rodriguez and Dezouvre posted 10 points apiece. Rodriguez matched his career-high with five blocked shots and three steals. Dezouvre added six assists while also making his first appearance in Maroon & Gold.

Iona continues play at the World Vision Classic tomorrow when they take on Cleveland State University at 6:00 pm.