The Kent State women’s basketball team heads to Florida to find out how good it really is,
The Flashes are 3-0, with solid wins over mid-majors Northern Kentucky and Saint Francis of Pennsylvania and a rout of Division III John Carroll.
Friday they open the Gulf Coast Showcase, one of Division I’s most competitive non-conference tournaments, against No. 19 UCLA.
The game is at 1:30 p.m. and will be streamed on FloHoops. The service costs $29.99 per month. I plan to subscribe for KSU’s three tournament games, then cancel.
UCLA is also 3-0, with wins against 1-2 Pepperdine, 0-2 Cal Northridge and 1-4 Virginia.
The Bruins are loaded with talent but have struggled with injuries. They had only seven players in uniform against Virginia. It’s unclear how many will be available Friday.
Top UCLA scorer so far is junior guard Charisma Osborne, who has averaged 19.7 points per game. Imar’i Thomas, a 5-10 guard transfer from Cincinnati, averaged 21 points in the two games she has played.
If UCLA is still shorthanded, Kent State’s depth could give it an advantage. Nine players average at least 12 minutes a game for the Flashes. KSU’s leading scorer is sophomore guard Casey Santoro, who averaged 15 points a game. Forward Lindsey Thall (13.3), guard Katie ‘Shumate (12.0) and forward Nila Blackford (10.5) also average in double figures.
The winner of Friday’s game will play either Massachusetts (4-0) or South Dakota State (2-3 with losses to Mississippi State and Iowa State). In KSU’s third game, it could play Charlotte (1-3 and the preseason favorite to win Conference USA), No. 14 Iowa State (4-0), Penn State (3-1) and St. Johns (3-1).