The Kent State men’s basketball team prefaced their season home opener against Mississippi Valley State on Wednesday night in a very unique way.

Kent State Men’s Basketball Team Puts New Spin On National Anthem Statement

Each player went up into the crowd and invited a fan of a different age, gender or race to stand alongside them during the playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The move was meant to display unity, the Golden Flashes stated, in a special twist on the national anthem protests that have been taking place at sports games all across the country. San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick first launched the protest by sitting before a preseason football game to make a statement about nation-wide racial inequality and oppression.

According to KentWired.com, senior Deon Edwin approached Coach Rob Senderoff with the idea.

“It takes courage for our players to make a statement like this, and I believe it is a representation of the unity in our campus community,” Senderoff told the Associated Press. “There’s a lot of people protesting the national anthem, or protesting the election, or religion. You see all of that nationally, and our guys wanted to make a statement. To me, it was a tremendously positive statement. Hopefully everybody can recognize that. I have a lot of African American players on my team, and they have faced discrimination because of the color of their skin.”

Kent State’s powerful gesture seems particularly strong given that it comes merely one week after a highly vitriolic presidential election– which Republican candidate Donald Trump won– that saw divisiveness and racial tensions escalate. It is also meaningful given the number of incidents of police brutality against unarmed people of color that have occurred over the past two years.

According to university spokesman Eugene Canal, the move was also effective because it came as a total yet pleasant surprise to the crowd.

“It went very well. It came off very organic,” he told ESPN’s Jeff Goodman. “All the players went into the stands and picked people from the crowd. Everyone came down on the court and was arm-to-shoulder. Fans seemed to really appreciate it.

“It was cool because I don’t think anyone in the crowd knew what was going on. None of the fans knew about it beforehand.”

Kent State defeated the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils, 93-63. The Kent, Ohio-based Golden Flashes (2-) will next face the South Dakota Coyotes in Florida on Monday.

LAWRENCE, KS – DECEMBER 30: Kelly Oubre Jr. #12 of the Kansas Jayhawks and Devareaux Manley #0 of the Kent State Golden Flashes chase after a loose ball during the game at Allen Fieldhouse on December 30, 2014 in Lawrence, Kansas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Kent State safety Nate Holley has been suspended from the football team effective immediately after being arraigned on a first-degree felony kidnapping charge in Kent, Ohio.

Kent State Suspends Safety Nate Holley Following Kidnapping Charge

Police arrested Holley — a senior from Toledo, Ohio — on Friday, and he was given a court date on Monday, according to The Associated Press.

The charges stem from an incident that occurred last week in Franklin Township, Ohio. Little else is known about the incident, and the female involved has not been identified.

“We are aware of the situation and take this matter very seriously,” Kent State spokesman Eric Mansfield told the AP on Monday via e-mail. “He has been suspended from the team indefinitely.”

Holley leads the Golden Flashes and the nation in solo tackles this season, averaging 8.9 per game, and is second nationally in total tackles, averaging 12.3 per game. The first team All-MAC defender the last two seasons leads the Mid-American Conference in total tackles with 111 after nine games.

Kent State (3-6, 2-3) hosts undefeated Western Michigan (9-0, 5-0) on Tuesday night.

Holley’s twin brother, Nick, took over as Kent State’s starting quarterback earlier this season following injuries to two other QBs.

STATE COLLEGE, PA – SEPTEMBER 3: Trace McSorley #9 of the Penn State Nittany Lions avoids a tackle by Nate Holley #18 of the Kent State Golden Flashes during the second quarter at Beaver Stadium on September 3, 2016 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)

The Ohio Bobcats Men’s Basketball Team played at a much slower pace than usual on Friday night, yet they still managed to secure a 72-61 home victory against the MAC (Mid-American Conference) East-leading Kent State Golden Flashes. The Bobcats lost 89-82 two weeks ago in Kent.

Ohio Bobcats Start off Home Stand With Win Over Kent State

“Kent plays downhill and tries to get the rim quite a bit,” Ohio’s Kenny Kaminski said after Friday night’s win over the Golden Flashes at the Convo. “We packed the paint as much as possible and tried to make them take tough shots at the rim. Personally, I thought we controlled the pace. This wasn’t their pace.”

The game appeared to be the best one of the season for the Bobcats on both ends. Kent was forced to take contested and blocked shots almost everywhere on the court, and they finished shooting 38.6 percent from the field, while Ohio rebounded after missing its first eight shots and finished shooting 42.2 percent from the field.

The star of the game was Ohio junior forward Tony Campbell, who scored a career high 28 points, 23 of which came in the second half. Campbell finished it all off by scoring a three-pointer (swish) with 35 seconds left.

“That’s my shot,” he said after the game while smiling and sporting a pair of bright green sunglasses made from glow sticks. Campbell also proved to be a strong asset on defense.

The game marked Ohio’s first consecutive wins in conference play. Freshmen Gavin Block and Jordy Dartis both returned from injuries, and Bobcats coach Saul Phillips has decided on a strict eight-man rotation after experimenting with several different lineups earlier in the season.

Ohio will next host the Akron Zips on Tuesday. The Zips are tied with Kent 6-2 in the MAC, and two games ahead of Ohio in the MAC East.

Caption: ST. LOUIS, MO – MARCH 23: (L-R) D.J. Cooper #5, Walter Offutt #3 and Nick Kellogg #15 of the Ohio Bobcats react against the North Carolina Tar Heels during the 2012 NCAA Men’s Basketball Midwest Regional Semifinal at Edward Jones Dome on March 23, 2012 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)