In the end, Kent State coach Todd Starkey said after the Flashes’ 81-51 loss to Buffalo Wednesday, the reason was simple:

“Buffalo is just a much better team than we are.”

The Bulls, 24-4 on the season and No. 16 in RPI rankings after Wednesday, pulled away from the Flashes in the third quarter, outscoring them 26-8. Buffalo (15-2 in the MAC) is second in the league by a game to Central Michigan, which beat third-place Ball State 88-80 Wednesday.

Kent State is 10th in the conference at 5-12 and 12-17 overall.

The league’s final regular season games are Saturday (KSU is at Miami). The MAC tournament starts Monday on campus sites. The Flashes will be on the road, probably at Toledo or Western Michigan.

“Our margin for error in a game like this is paper thin,” Starkey said. “They exposed all of our weaknesses” in the third quarter.

“I thought we had the right game plan. We tried to slow it down and reduce the number of possessions, and we had a good first half even though we missed some shots.”

Then came a 26-8 third quarter in favor of Buffalo.

“The most important things that we talked about when we prepared for the game was not turning the ball over and giving them layups,” Starkey said. “We just beat ourselves; it’s been an ongoing theme all year.”

Buffalo had four steals in the third quarter and scored seven points off KSU’s six turnovers. Buffalo just had one turnover in the quarter. The Bulls pushed a 36-28 halftime lead to 18 points within three minutes. KSU never got any closer.

The MAC hasn’t had more than one team in the NCAA Tournament since Toledo and Kent State made it in 1996. Starkey said that should change this season.

“Absolutely,” he said. “Ball State, too (with Buffalo and Central). I don’t think there any team outside the top 10 that would want to face those three teams in the first or second round of the NCAA.”

Buffalo and Central are 24-4, Ball State 23-5. After Wednesday, Buffalo is 16th in the RPI, Central Michigan 23rd and Ball State 36th. RPI rankings are based on a team’s record and strength of schedule. It’s one factor that determines which 32 teams get at-large bids to the NCAA tournament. 64 teams will make the tournament, half of them by winning their conference tournaments. RPI rankings are from WarrenNolan.com. 

Notes

• Jordan Korinek led Kent State with 14 points and seven rebounds. McKenna Stephens had 10 points and four assists. It was the last game at the M.A.C. Center for the two players, who have started 193 games between them in their four years on campus (112 for Korinek, 81 for Stephens). Korinek’s moved into fifth place in Kent scoring history. She has 1,741 points, 13 more than Ann Forbes, who played between 1989 and 1992.
• Kent State outrebounded Buffalo 32-30. In the first game between the teams, the Bulls had 51 rebounds to KSU’s 39 in an 80-42 victory.
• After making 48 percent of its shots in the first half, Kent State was seven of 30 (23 percent) in the second. Buffalo made a season-high 54.4 percent of its shots for the game.
• Buffalo’s Autumn Jones, starting her first game of the season, made three three-point baskets and all four of her shots into the first period as Buffalo took a 21-13 lead. She was one of four UB players in double figures, led by guard Cierra Dillard with 17. None of Buffalo’s starters played in the fourth quarter; none played more than 27 minutes in the game.
• The win set a school record for number of victories in a season for Buffalo.
• Kent State’s Amanda Sape, a 6-3 freshman center, scored her first college point on a foul shot in the last minute. Seconds earlier, freshman Margaux Eibel got her first college basket (she had scored on free throws earlier in the season).
• Sophomore Ali Poole was back in the starting lineup after missing two games with a leg injury. She had three points and two rebounds in 18 minutes.

 

Box score

Other MAC scores

• Miami (11-6, 19-9) 78, Ohio (9-8, 15-13) 56 at Ohio.
• Northern Illinois (7-10, 15-13) 89, Toledo (8-9, 17-12) 79 at Northern.
• Western Michigan (8-9 MAC, 15-14 overall) 74, Eastern Michigan (6-11, 10-18) 66 at Western.
• Bowling Green (3-14, 11-17) 84, Akron (2-15, 8-20) 63 at BG.
• Central Michigan (16-1, 24-4) 88, Ball State (12-5, 23-5) 80 at Central.

MAC standings 

 

 

 

 

Buffalo capitalized on six Kent State turnovers and held the Flashes to three of 17 shooting in the third quarter and won its 10th straight MAC game Wednesday, 81-51.

Kent State kept the game fairly close in the first half against the Bulls, No. 14 of 349 Division I teams in the latest RPI rankings. Buffalo led 36-28 at halftime.

The Bulls added 10 points to that lead in the first three minutes of the second half.

Jordan Korinek led Kent State with 14 points. McKenna Stephens had 10. It was the last game in the M.A.C. Center for the two players, who started throughout their four-year careers.

Four Buffalo starters scored in double figures, even though none played more than 27 minutes and not at all in the fourth quarter.

Buffalo is 15-2 in the MAC and 24-4 on the season. Kent State is 5-12 and 12-17.

Box score

DETAILED STORY WITH QUOTES FROM COACH TODD STARKEY WILL FOLLOW

Senior Day was Saturday, but KSU will play its final home game of the 2017-18 season tonight against Buffalo, leaders of the MAC East and highest ranked of all MAC schools in the latest RPI rankings.

Buffalo is one of three MAC teams with 23-4 records going into the last two regular season games. The Bulls aren’t even in first place overall in the MAC. That record belongs to Central Michigan, which plays the Ball State, the third 23-4 team in the conference, tonight.

There has been a lot of talk online about whether the league will get two bids to the NCAA tournament for the first time in more than 20 years. But it’s hard to figure out how that couldn’t happen. Buffalo is No. 14 (in some rankings, 13th) and is 14-2 in the conference. Central Michigan (15-1 in MAC) is No. 27. Ball State (12-4 in the league) is 36th. Rankings come from WarrenNolan.com, the rating service I most use. There are about four of them.

The MAC ranks seventh of 32 conferences, which I’m pretty sure is highest in school history. In the 30 years I’ve been following KSU women’s basketball, I cannot remember a year when three team had 20 wins, let along 23. (I can’t find a MAC Record Book online, so I can’t give official results.)

Three other teams — Toledo (62nd), Ohio (81st) and Miami (84th) — also are in the top 100 in RPI. That’s got to be the league’s best, too. Last season five teams were in the top 100, including Kent State (99th). Highest ranking team then was Central Michigan at 54th. Toledo, which won the tournament in 2016-17, was 55th.

RPI is based on a team’s record and strength of schedule. 25 percent is based on a school’s record, 25 percent on its opponents’ record, and 50 percent on its opponents’ opponents’ record. Road wins count about double of home wins.

It once counted significantly when the NCAA selection committee decided on the tournament field and seedings. In recent years, it’s seemed to mean less. RPI gives teams more credit for playing good opponents than beating them. No MAC team has beaten a top 25 team from outside the conference. (Both Central and Buffalo have lost within the league). Best win is Toledo’s win over No. 31 Dayton. Central’s best is over No. 109 Iowa State, Buffalo’s over No. 64 Nebraska, Ball State’s over No. 41 Western Kentucky.

Lack of such “quality wins” is the only thing likely to keep Buffalo or Central out of the tournament. It’s hard to see three MAC teams making it.

Kent State’s RPI is 161, higher than we could have imagined two years ago. In coach Danny O’Banion four years and Bob Lindsay’s final season, KSU was below 300.

The Flashes obviously face a very tough task against Buffalo. They lost to the Bulls 80-42 on Feb. 7, their worst lost of the season (13 points more than their loss to No. 15 Stanford).

Buffalo is deep and loaded. Four starters average in double figures. The Bulls are second in the conference in scoring defense, first in field-goal defense, first in three-point defense, first in blocked shots, second in steals, third in rebounding margin and turnovers margin.

Kent State’s best is third in free-throw percentage (first in free-throws made, which isn’t an official stat). The Flashes are fourth in scoring defense but last in scoring offense.

KSU is 10th in the 12 team MAC. There is a distant possibility of moving up to eighth, which would get the Flashes a home game in the first-round of the MAC tournament next week. But they’d have to beat Buffalo for any chance of that happening.

To follow the game

Action starts at 7 p.m. at the M.A.C. Center.

Video is through the ESPN3. (For the second straight weak, the game is not on ESPN3.)

Audio starts at about 1:45 p.m. on Golden Flash iHeart Radio and WHLO.

Live statistics will be available through the Kent State website.

Preview from the Kent State website, including links to statistics, roster, schedule/results, record book and more.

Preview from the Buffalo website, including links. Detailed media game notes.

MAC statistics, including standings.

 

 

 

Kent State seniors (from left) Zenobia Bess, Jordan Korinek, McKenna Stephens and Naddiyah ring the bell for their Senior Day victory over Akron. (David Dermer photo from women’s basketball Twitter feed)

Kent State had dominated the first three quarters against Akron, and in the last 10 minutes, the Flashes:

1. Tried to “gift wrap and give it to them,” in coach Todd Starkey’s words.
2. Made the plays at the end of the game they needed to win.
3. Won their Senior Day game with strong performances from four-year starters.

The end result was a 60-55 victory over the Zips, an end to KSU’s five-game losing streak and revenge for a 76-60 loss to Akron in January.

“It wasn’t like we had an elaborate game plan to take them out of their stuff,” Starkey said. “We just played better and played harder.”

For most of the game, the Flashes looked as if they had learned all the right lessons from the first Akron game, when they were outscored 14-0 on fast-break points and 13-2 off turnovers. At the end of the third quarter, they had outscored Akron 8-7 off turnovers. Fast-break points were insignificant — 3 to 2 Akron.

And the Flashes led 44-33.

But between five minutes and two minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Akron stole the ball five times and with 2:10 to go, the score was 55-53 Kent State.

Then Alexa Golden made three free throws and Jordan Korinek had a block, a key rebound and two foul shots. Akron didn’t get another point until Fredniqua Walker made an deliberately uncontested layup with four seconds to play.

Korinek and fellow forward McKenna Stephens, who have played together for four seasons, both had double-doubles on their Senior Day. Korinek had 16 points and 10 rebounds and Stephens 14 points and 11 rebounds. Between them, they made 12 of 22 shots.

“Any win over Akron is special,” Korinek said. “Getting the win to end the losing streak was really big. And for our last one, it was really important to us, especially beating Akron on our home court.”

Korinek, the second-leading scorer in the MAC, had just four points at halftime. As most opponents do, Akron was crowding her inside and trying to keep her from the ball.

“I asked her at halftime if she’s rather have 30 points or beat Akron on Senior Day,” Starkey said. “She said, ‘Beat Akron.'”

Golden didn’t start for the first time this season but played a key role. She had 14 points, including seven of eight foul shots, five rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal in 26 minutes. That’s on top of her first career double-double at Ohio Wednesday.

She’s done it on very sore legs.

“She’s limping around most of the time,” Starkey said. “We’re holding her from practice. She’s in a boot. She’s got a lot of pain in her legs with shin splints. 

“She doesn’t even flinch. I ask her, ‘You OK?’ She says, ‘Yes, I’m fine.’ She does not want to come out, and we have to protect her from herself sometimes. Her effort is always great.”

Notes

• The win moves Kent State’s record to 5-11 in the MAC and 12-16 overall. But the Flashes remain in 10th place in the MAC, and the math to move up to eighth and the final home seed for the MAC tournament is very difficult. The Flashes are a game behind Eastern Michigan and Northern Illinois, who are tied for eighth. For KSU to get the eighth seed, it would have to win its last two games and NIU lose its last two. (If they tie, NIU gets the higher seed because it beat the Flashes twice.) The Huskies have tough games against Toledo and Western Michigan, but KSU has an ever tougher one Wednesday against 23-4 Buffalo.
• Akron is 2-14 and 8-19 and tied with Bowling Green for last in the conference.
• It was Stephens’ second Senior Day, perhaps a first in school history. She was honored last year before she graduated in May. Over the summer, Stephens decided  to come back for a redshirt season she had earned because she sat out a year after transferring from Michigan State. She’s a graduate student in criminal justice after getting a bachelor’s degree in public health. Is she glad she came back despite a season that hasn’t had nearly as many wins as last year? “Absolutely,” Stephens said. “I would have regretted it for the rest of my life if I hadn’t.”
• Both Korinek and Stephens had scholarship offers from Akron and Kent State. “It’s always nice to beat Akron,” Stephens has said. Her mother played for the Zips in the 1990s.
• Starkey started all four of his seniors. Point guard Naddiyah Cross had three points, three rebounds and four assists. She ranks 10th in career assists in KSU history. It was the first start for Zenobia Bess in her two years at Kent State. (She transferred from Illinois State.)  Bess had four rebounds, two steals and an assist in a career-high 18 minutes. On Wednesday, she had a career-high six points and seven rebounds at Ohio.
• Junior Tyra James got her first start of the season. She had two points, three rebounds, two assists and a block in 21 minutes. On Wednesday, she had a season-high 15 points and a career-high three blocked shots.
• Kent State outrebounded Akron 44-34, the 13th time this season the Flashes have ourebounded their opponents by at least 10. KSU made 33 percent of its shots (20 of 60 but just two of 10 in the fourth quarter). Akron was 20 of 63 for 32 percent. KSU made 15 of 16 free throws, Akron 11 of 15.
• Forward Haliegh Reinoehl led Akron with nine points. Guards Shaunay Edmonds and Destiny Perkins, who combined for 34 points against Kent in the game at Akron, had a total of eight on one of 16 shooting.
• Attendance wasn’t announced but looked to be about 800. That would be the biggest crowd of the season.

Box score

Other MAC scores

• Central Michigan (15-1, 23-4) 78, Western Michigan (7-9, 14-14) 62 at Western.
• Buffalo (14-2, 23-4) 70, Ohio (9-7, 15-12) 53 at Buffalo.
• Ball State (12-4, 23-4) 78, Toledo (8-8, 17-11) 73 at Ball State.
• Miami (10-6, 18-9) 92, Bowling Green (2-14, 10-17) 64 at Miami.
• Northern Illinois (6-10, 14-13) 84, Eastern Michigan (6-10, 10-17) 75 at Eastern.

 

 

McKenna Stephens and Jordan Korinek both had double-doubles to lead Kent State past Akron, 60-55, at the M.A.C. Center Saturday.

The two forwards have played together for four years. Korinek had 16 points and 10 rebounds against Akron; Stephens had 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Korinek is a true senior and the No. 6 scorer in Kent State history. Stephens is a grad student, having gotten her degree in May. She returned because she had a year of eligibility left after transferring from Michigan State. Both players chose Kent State over offers from Akron when they were deciding on colleges.

The Flashes, who lost to Akron 76-60 in January, controlled Saturday’s game through three quarters, then held off an Akron rally that made it a two-point game with a minute to go.

Junior guard Alexa Golden made five of six foul shots in the fourth quarter and had 14 points overall.

The win breaks a five-game losing streak for Kent State, which is 5-11 in the MAC and 11-16 overall. The Flashes remain in 10th in the MAC. Akron is 2-14 and 8-19.

Box score

DETAILED STORY, INCLUDING QUOTES FROM STEPHENS, KORINEK AND COACH TODD STARKEY WILL FOLLOW AFTER THE MEN’S GAME.

On Jan. 27, Akron pretty much ran Kent State off the court in the fourth quarter, outscoring KSU 28-18 on the way to a 76-60 victory.

It may have been the low point of a Kent State season without a lot of high points. At that time, Akron hadn’t won a league game. Kent State went into the game with hopes of climbing back into contention in the MAC.

Since that game, both teams have lost five of six games. The Flashes are pretty much out of contention for even a home game in the first round of the MAC Tournament.

Saturday Kent State (4-11 in the MAC, 11-16 overall) gets a chance to avenge the Akron loss in a 2 p.m. game at the M.A.C. Center. Akron is 2-13 and 8-18.

In the first Akron game, the Zips pushed the ball hard in transition, outscoring KSU 14-0 on fast-break points. They had nine steals and outscored the Flashes 13-2 off turnovers.

Turnovers and fast-break baskets have hurt Kent State throughout the season, though the Flashes actually outscored Ohio off turnovers in their 79-78 loss in Athens Wednesday.\

That game was KSU’s best in a month, and coach Todd Starkey said he expects that kind of play to carry over to the Akron game.

“We’ll be ready,” the coach said in his postgame interview Wednesday. “These girls are going to take the momentum of how hard they fought in this game, and I expect us to play well.”

Jordan Korinek continues to lead the Flashes in scoring at 20.7 points a game (22.3 in MAC games). Both figures are second in the conference by about a point per game to Courtney Woods of Northern Illinois. Korinek is third nationally in made foul shots and seventh in free-throw attempts.

The senior forward scored 26 at Ohio and is up to 1,711 in her career. That’s sixth all time for the Flashes. She’s 17 points behind Ann Forbes for fifth and 88 behind Lindsay Shearer for fourth with at least four games to play. Ahead of Forbes and Shearer are three 2,000-point scorers in Amy Sherry, Tracey Lynn and Bonnie Beachy.

Akron is led guards sophomore Shaunay Edmonds, who averages 11.5 points a game, and freshman Destiny Perkins, who averages 8.0. Perkins had her best collegiate game against Kent State in January, scoring 19 points with four assists and two steals. Forward Haliegh Reinoehl leads the Zips in rebound at 8.8 rebounds per game (fourth in the MAC) and averages 7.5 points.

The game is Senior Day for the Flashes. Korinek, McKenna Stephens, Naddiyah Cross and Zenobia Bess will be honored before the game. It’s actually the second senior day for Stephens, who also was honored last season. She graduated in May but still had  eligibility remaining because she sat out a year as a transfer. She returned to the team as a graduate student this season.

The game is also part of the Wagon Wheel Challenge, which matches the two schools in all sports. Saturday is worth a half point (because the teams play twice in basketball). Akron leads 4.0-2.0 this season.

To follow the game

Action starts at 2 p.m. at the M.A.C. Center. The men’s game against Bowling Green will follow at 6 p.m., but it’s not technically a doubleheader. You’ll need separate tickets for both games.

Video is through the KSU website. (For the second straight weak, the game is not on ESPN3.)

Audio starts at about 1:45 p.m. on Golden Flash iHeart Radio and WHLO.

Live statistics will be available through the Kent State website.

Preview from the Kent State website, including links to statistics, roster, schedule/results, record book and more.

Preview from the Akron website, including links. Detailed media game notes.

MAC statistics, including standings.

 

“A tough, tough one,” coach Todd Starkey called it.

Kent State fought from nine points down with seven minutes to go but fell in the final minute to Ohio, 79-78. in the Flashes’ best game in a month.

Forward McKenna Stephens gave KSU the lead three times between 3:49 and one minute to go with a three-point basket, a layup and jump shot. But Ohio’s Taylor Agler made two foul shots to give the Bobcats the lead, and the Flashes couldn’t score on two shots in its last possession.

“We fought, we fought, we fought,” Starkey said. “That’s about all we have to give. It’s just disappointing. We’ve been playing close games and just haven’t been able to get over the hump.”

The loss was Kent State’s fifth in a row and drops the Flashes to 4-11 in the MAC and 11-16 overall. KSU remains in 10th place in the conference, two games away from eighth and the last spot for a home game in the first round of the MAC tournament. The Flashes have three conference games to play.

Ohio is 9-6 in the MAC and tied with Miami for fourth in the conference, which would get the Bobcats a first-round bye in the tournament. Overall they are 15-11.

Jordan Korinek had a near-perfect night offensively for the Flashes and scored 26 points. She made nine of nine field goals, including her only three-pointer, and seven of seven foul shots. She had nine rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot. Twenty of her points came in the first half.

In the second half, Ohio “put two, sometimes two-and-a-half” players on her, Starkey said. The Flashes tried to kick the ball outside and shoot three-point shots but went just one of six in the second half.

“We knock those down, and they can’t play that way,” Starkey said. “When we don’t make the three-point shot, teams are able to really, really play the middle of the paint and take Jordan away.

“That’s been kind of the story of what we’ve been going through in this losing streak.”

Over the previous four games, Kent State had made just 17 percent of its three-point shots (nine of 43). The Flashes were somewhat better Wednesday at 29 percent (five of 17). Ohio was nine of 22 for 41 percent.

Ohio led by as many as 11 points in the first quarter. Three-pointers by Tyra James at the end of the first and second quarters kept the halftime lead to five points.

James, who was third on the team in scoring two years ago but has played sparingly this season, had a season-high 15 points in a season-high 27 minutes. She also had three blocked shots and a steal but also had six turnovers.

Kent State had 21 turnovers on the night but actually outscored Ohio 18-14 off turnovers. Ohio had 16 steals, with freshman point guard Cierra Hooks getting nine of them. Hooks also had 21 points and eight assists. During the game, Hooks set a single-season record for steals for Ohio. She now has 95 this year.

“She is going to be a problem for four years,” Starkey said.

Here’s how Starkey described the game’s last 17 seconds as Kent State worked for a winning basket.

Plan A was to get the ball to Korinek, but Ohio took that away. The second option was’t there either, but finally Stephens got off a relatively open three-point shot. It missed, but Megan Carter grabbed the ball under the basket and tossed it back up.

“She kind of rushed it, probably thinking she didn’t have time,” Starkey said. “She really did and probably could have made it.”

Notes

• The Flashes outrebounded Ohio 42-26, with 15 offensive rebounds. (Ohio had five.) KSU outscored the Bobcats 16-4 on second-chance points.
• Alexa Golden led Kent State with 10 rebounds and had 14 points, 12 in the second half. It was the first double-double of the 5-9 junior guard’s career. She also had two blocked shots and a steal.
• Stephens had nine points, five rebounds, five assists, a block and a steal. Point guard Naddiyah Cross had seven assists.
• Sophomore Ali Poole, a usual starter at guard, sat on the bench with a boot on her foot. She suffered a leg injury in KSU’s loss Saturday against Miami.

Kent State hosts Akron at 2 p.m. Saturday. The Zips (2-13 in the MAC, 8-18 overall) lost to Miami at home Wednesday, 77-50. Akron beat Kent State at Akron on Jan. 27, 75-60.

Box score

The view from Ohio

Coach Bob Bolden, on Korinek:

“There’s no secret that we can’t guard her. I think there were too many times in the first half that we were willing to test that theory. I thought that in the second half we were more committed to her not getting the ball.”

On Ohio freshman Hooks:

“Nine steals and eight assists is ridiculous. Going into the fourth quarter she’s playing pretty good, but not very aggressive offensively. When you look at the halftime stats you think she hit a wall and isn’t going to have a very good game. Then she ends up with 21. That’s stuff you usually see out of kids who have been in college for two to three years.”

Hooks on her game:

“My teammates kept picking my head up when I was down because I was missing free-throws. I’m one of the best defender on our team, so I just focused on defense.” 

Other MAC scores

• Central Michigan (14-1, 22-4) 91, Northern Illinois (5-10, 13-13) 77 at Central.
• Toledo (8-7, 17-10) 80, Eastern Michigan (6-9, 10-16) 69 at Toledo.
• Buffalo (13-2, 22-4) 88, Bowling Green (2-13, 10-16) 67 at BG.
• Ball State (11-4, 22-4) 85, Western Michigan (7-8, 14-13) 58 at Ball State.
• Miami (9-6, 17-9) 77, Akron (2-13, 8-18) 50 at Akron.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kent State rallied from nine points down early in the fourth quarter to take a late lead, but Ohio pulled out a 79-89 victory in the last minute.

The Flashes had two chances in its last possession, but a three-point shot and a put-back didn’t go in.

The loss drops KSU to 4-11 in the MAC and 11-16 on the season. Ohio is 9-6 and 15-11.

Jordan Korinek had 26 points for Kent State and didn’t miss a shot. She made nine of nine field goals attempts, including her only three-pain shot, and seven of seven free throws. She also had nine rebounds.

Tyra James had a season-high 15 points off the bench and Alexa Golden had 14, 12 in the second half. Golden also had 10 rebounds for the first double-double of her career.

Ohio freshman guard Cierra Hooks had 21 points, nine steals and eight assists.

Box score

This is the latest I’ve ever posted a preview. Other things going on in my life. Sorry.

Kent State (4-10 in MAC, 11-15 overall) plays at Ohio (8-6, 14-11). The Bobcats beat KSU in Kent 11 days ago, 78-65.

Action starts at 7 p.m.

Video is on ESPN3. You can follow it online if your subscribe to ESPN on cable or on satellite.

Audio starts at about 6:45 p.m. on Golden Flash iHeart Radio and WHLO 640.

Live statistics will be available through the Ohio website.

Preview from Kent State website, including links to statistics, roster, schedule/results, record book and more.

Preview from the Ohio website, including links.

Conference-game only MAC statistics, including standings.

 

What’s gone wrong — or perhaps what hasn’t gone right — this season was clearly on display in Kent State’s 65-59 loss to Miami at the M.A.C. Center Saturday’s.

Start with three–point shooting, the key factor in the game. Miami was nine of 17; Kent State was one of 13. The Flashes’ outside shooting has been a problem all season. They were second to last in the MAC in three-point percentage (27.7 percent) going into the game and are likely last now. They make 4.7 three-pointers a game, tied for last in the league.

“You can’t go one for 13 in a six-point game and expect to win,” coach Todd Starkey said. “Probably 11 of them were good looks.”

Three-point shooting isn’t the only problem on the offensive perimeter. Though it’s pretty close to impossible  to replace a MAC Player of the Year like Larissa Lurken, the Flashes haven’t found anyone to fit into kind of role she played.

“We had a go-to perimeter player,” Starkey said. “Now everybody’s kind of looking around for who wants to do something at the end of the shot clock, and nobody really wants it. And that makes it difficult to score on critical possessions.”

The Flashes’ top scorer, senior forward Jordan Korinek, got into first-half foul trouble and sat out 10 minutes of the first half.

“When Jordan get into foul trouble, we turn into a different offensive team,” Starkey said. Korinek had two points in the first half, 15 in the second, and Kent State outscored Miami in the last 20 minutes.

Guard Megan Carter stepped up with 17 points, also with 15 in the second half, but she had six turnovers.

“It’s almost a tradeoff when you give them extra possessions,” Starkey said.

The Flashes, who  have been near the bottom of the MAC in turnover margin all season, were outscored off of them 16-8 Saturday. They committed 14, one of their better efforts of the season. But Miami had only nine.

Saturday’s turnovers, Starkey said, were a matter of focus. That’s something he’s cited all season.

When Kent State closed to within three point in the middle of the fourth quarter, Miami quickly countered.

“We gave up three quick baskets and had two turnovers,” Starkey said.  “We missed some defensive rotations, gave them some open looks.”

Box score

 

Notes

• The loss drops the Flashes to 4-10 in the MAC and 11-15 on the season. It was KSU’s fourth loss in a row. Miami is 8-6 and 16-9.
• Kent State remains in 10th place in the MAC, two games out of eighth (the last spot for a home game in the MAC tournament). Eighth is held by Eastern Michigan, a team KSU has beaten twice. The Flashes therefore would get a higher seed in the tournament if they tied. But ninth is held by Northern Illinois, which has beaten Kent State twice.
• Kent State held Miami’s Lauren Dickerson, the MAC’s second leading scorer, to 13 points on four of 13 shooting. But four other Redhawks scored in double figures, led by forward Kendall McCoy, who had 14 points. Dickerson, who had averaged 2.8 points a game, did have eight assists.
• The teams had almost identical field goal numbers — 24 for 55 for Miami, 25 for 55 for Kent State. It was just a lot more of Miami’s were three-point shots (and baskets).
• McKenna Stephens had nine points, 11 rebounds, three assists and two blocks for the Flashes. Alexa Golden had eight rebounds and three assists.
• Kent State outrebounded Miami 37-24 and outscored the Redhawks in the paint 32-14.

Kent State on Wednesday heads to Ohio, a team that beat the Flashes 78-65 a week ago. Ohio (8-6, 14-11) beat Bowling Green 69-58 at Ohio Saturday.

Other MAC scores

• Central Michigan (13-1, 21-4) 95, Eastern Michigan (6-8, 10-15) 82 at Central.
• Buffalo (12-2, 21-4) 85, Akron (2-12, 8-17) 71 at Buffalo.
• Ball State (10-4, 21-4) 72, Northern Illinois (5-9, 13-12) 50 at Northern.
• Toledo (7-7, 16-10) 69, Western Michigan (7-7, 14-12) 68 in overtime at Toledo.
• Ohio (8-6, 14-11) 69, Bowling Green (2-12, 10-15) 58 at Ohio.

MAC standings