Kent State has shot better than its Mid-American Conference opponents only three times this season.
The Flashes have won all those three games.
KSU made 45.8% of its field-goal attempts Wednesday as it beat Central Michigan 68-57 at the M.A.C. Center. The Flashes are 3-6 and in ninth place in the MAC; the win moved them a game closer to eighth and the final spot in the MAC Tournament next month. KSU is 11-7 overall.
Central Michigan, which has won either the MAC regular-season championship or the MAC Tournament for the last six years, is 2-9 (4-16 overall) and in last place in the league.
It was the first time Kent State has beaten CMU in 10 years and is coach Todd Starkey’s first over the Chippewas in his six years in Kent. Starkey now has beaten every other MAC team at least once.
Shumate the scorer
Junior guard Katie Shumate, who didn’t score at all in KSU’s 61-55 loss at Northern Illinois last week, made 7-of-11 shots and led the Flashes with 21 points. That equaled her season-high.
“I can’t say enough about how Katie played today,” Starkey said in his postgame press conference. “W really challenged her this week, and she absolutely responded.”
During the week after the NIU loss, Shumate said, “I just had to clear my mind and realize it was about focus.”
“I think it was easy for me and my team to lose focus when things weren’t going great,” she said. “So we got to practice and put our heads down and put in some work.”
Starkey said Shumate had been playing hurt since Christmas and KSU’s time off — the Flashes played only one game in the last 18 days — may have helped.
“She’s been playing on a bum leg,” the coach said. “It caused her some pain and, especially early in the conference play, affected her shot and affected her defensively. Hopefully we can continue to stay ahead of that. When she’s focused and determined, she’s one of the better players in the league.”
Shumate made the MAC all-freshman team and was honorable mention all-MAC her freshman and sophomore years.
The team’s shooting touch
KSU’s 46% shooting was, in MAC play, second only to a 52% performance in an 83-58 win over Eastern Michigan. It came mostly on 2-point shots. The Flashes 31.3% on 3-pointers, while better than they’ve been shooting in the MAC, was still far below the 42% they shot in non-conference play.
“We ran some different actions that were focused on getting the ball inside,” Starkey said. “We’ve been playing well recently when we’ve been playing through (forward Nila Blackford). 30 points in the paint were big for us.”
Blackford had 15 points and 11 rebounds for her third double-double in her last four games (she had 11 points and nine rebounds in the fourth game). Blackford has averaged 16.3 points and 11.8 rebounds in that time, which is better than when she led the team in scoring and rebounding last season.
“When Katie and Nila are both working and stuffing the stat sheet like that, we’re really tough team to beat,” Starkey said.
Success on defense
Central’s Michigan’s 57 points were the fourth time the Flashes have held a MAC opponent below 60.
“We talk about that all the time,” Starkey said. “If they communicate and stay connected, we’re a really good defensive team.”
Central Michigan had 21 turnovers, the most by a Division I opponent against Kent State all season. The Flashes scored 25 points off of turnovers, a MAC-season best. CMU point guard Molly Davis, a preseason all-MAC selection, had nine turnovers.
“We did a good job of crowding her and, and forcing her into some tight spaces where she had to kind of fumble the ball,” Starkey said.
The player of 1,000 points
Lindsey Thall was honored before the game for becoming a 1,000-point scorer, something she achieved against Penn State in the Gulf Coast Showcase in November. Thall scored 11 points Wednesday and now has 1,085, which ranks 21st in KSU history.
Running the numbers
- The Flashes were outrebounded for the first time this season, 31-30. “We weren’t missing as many shots, so maybe that’s a reason why we didn’t have more rebounds,” Starkey said with a smile.
- Kent State had 14 assists on 22 baskets, equaling a high in MAC play. Thall and Clare Kelly had four assists; Blackford had three.
- Kelly also had four steals to lead KSU’s total of 12. That’s Kent’s most against a Division I team. Blackford, Thall and freshman Bridget Dunn each had two steals.
- KSU blocked four shots, its most in MAC play. Dunn blocked two.
- Central Michigan made 41% of its shots but only four of its 16 three-pointers.
- Kent State never trailed after early in the second quarter. Central led for only 55 seconds of the game.
Next: Saturday at Eastern Michigan
The Flashes play the Eagles, whom they beat by 25 points in Kent, for a 2 p.m. game. Eastern lost to second-place Buffalo 69-62 at home on Wednesday and is in 11th place at 2-8 (5-12 overall).
Other MAC scores
- Toledo (10-1 MAC, 16-4 overall) 74, Miami (2-7, 6-12) 64 in Toledo.
- Western Michigan (6-3, 12-6) 57, Akron (6-4, 9-7) 53 in Akron.
- Ball State (6-4, 13-7) 84, Ohio (5-4, 11-7) 74 at Ohio.
- Bowling Green (5-4, 10-8) 64, Northern Illinois (5-6, 8-11) at NIU.