Flashes host Duquesne Monday in last (?) 2020 game

KSU center Linsey Marchese has averaged 3.8 points and 5 points and has started every game so far.

The Kent State women return to the court Monday against Duquesne for what likely is their last game of 2020.

AN EARLIER VERSION OF THIS POST — THANKFULLY POSTED ONLY A SHORT TIIME — SAID THE GAME WAS ON SUNDAY. WRONG. GAME IS AT 1 P.M. MONDAY.

The game starts at 1 p.m. at the M.A.C. Center. No fans are allowed because of COVID-19 protocol. The game will be live streamed on ESPN+ and on the Kent State Radio Network. ESPN cost $4.99 a month and will include most games — men’s and women’s — in the MAC season. Click on the link to get instructions to sign up.

Kent State (2-2) isn’t scheduled to play another game before returning to MAC play at Eastern Michigan on Saturday, Jan. 2. In an interview after KSU’s 61-57 win over Toledo Sunday, coach Todd Starkey didn’t think it was likely the Flashes would add another game before then.

Duquesne (2-2) and Kent State have played almost identical schedules this season. Both lost by big margins at Ohio State. Kent State lost by three points at Saint Francis; Duquesne beat Saint Francis by two. On Friday, Duquqesne lost 77-74 at Toledo, a team Kent State beat on the road 61-57. The Dukes also beat St. Bonaventure, a school originally on Kent State’s schedule until it was wiped out by COVID problems.

I think we can conclude from those scores that the teams should be very well matched.

They were last year. The Flashes and Duquesne met in the first game of the season with Kent State pulling out a 67-65 victory on a shot at the buzzer by Megan Carter.

Duquesne has averaged almost 22 wins a year over the last seven seasons.

The Dukes return three starters from last year’s 20-11 team, though the best of them — senior guard Libby Bazelak — has missed every game so far with an injury. Bazelak led the Dukes in scoring last season and was selected for the preseason All-Atlantic 10 team. Laia Sole, a 6-2 forward, made the All-Atlantic 10 preseason second team. she averages 10 points and 8.5 rebounds a game.

Current leading scorer is 5-8 guard Amanda Kalin, who averages 17.5 points a game. She scored 32 points and hit 5-of-6 3-point shots against Toledo. The Dukes also start 6-4 center Precious Johnson, who is averaging 2.5 blocks so far this season.

Duquesne’s front line is the same size as that of Kent State, which starts 6-4 Linsey Marchese, 6-2 Nila Blackford and 6-2 Lindsey Thall.

Marchese, a junior transfer from Indiana, has averaged only 11 minutes a game so far, partly because Kent State has played three teams with smaller lineups. She has averaged 3.8 points and 5.0 rebounds.

“She’ll definitely come around and be a big, big contributor for us,” coach Todd Starkey said after KSU’s win over Toledo. “She hasn’t played much basketball the last two years. (Until this season, transfers had to sit out a year).

“I think it’s just a matter of shaking off some of the rust and getting in a little bit of a flow. She has looked good in practice.”

After her 21-point, 15-rebound performance against Toledo, Blackford leads Kent State in scoring (13.8 points per game) and rebounding (9.5). Her rebounding average is best in the MAC.

Thall is third on the team at 9.5 points per game and leads the MAC in blocked shots at 1.5 a game. She has led the league in blocks the last two seasons.

Starkey said his team has shown progress but still has more to do.

“It’s a great sign that we were able to be two tough conference opponents and still have a pretty large margin for improvement.”

Notes

• Toledo outrebounded Duquesne 43-29. Kent State had outrebounded the Rockets 48-28 five days earlier.
• KSU point guard Mariah Modkins is second on the team in scoring at 10.5 points per game. She’s making 50% of her 3-point shots, which is tied for seventh in the MAC. She’s also eighth in the league with 3.8 assists per game.
• Live statistics for the Duquesne game can be found on the KSU website.

MAC scores

Saturday

• Buffalo (4-2) 71, St. Bonaventure (1-2, 0-2) 52 at Buffalo.
• Bowling Green (5-1) 76, Morehead State (1-5) 61 at Morehead State.
• Evansville (3-1) 66, Miami (1-4) 60 at Evansville.

Friday

• Michigan State (5-0) 79, Central Michigan (3-2) 70 at Michigan State.
• Toledo (4-1) 77 Duquesne (2-2) 74 at Toledo.

Wedneday

• Ohio (3-1) 77, Northern Illinois (2-4) 67 at NIU.