Kent State goes for its fourth-straight victory when it travels to Central Michigan for a 7 p.m. Wednesday game.
The game will be streamed on ESPN3 and the Golden Flashes Radio Network.
The Flashes, who started the Mid-American Conference season 1-4, have beaten Central 57-57, Eastern Michigan 70-61 and Miami 83-61 in the last seven days.
KSU’s 48% shooting and Blackford’s 22 points send Flashes past Miami 83-61
They are now 5-6 in the conference (13-7 overall) and in ninth place. But they’re only a half-game behind Northern Illinois (6-6), Ohio (5-5) and Bowling Green (5-5), who are tied for sixth. They’re one game behind Western Michigan and Akron, who are tied for fourth at 6-5.
The Flashes’ winning streak has come against teams below it in the standings. KSU’s six losses came against upper-division MAC teams. None of the defeats were by more than 10 points, five were by less than seven, and three were by less than four. Four of the losses were on the road.
Central Michigan is headed toward its worst season in at least 14 years. The Chippewas are in last place in the MAC at 2-8 (4-17 overall) and have lost eight of their last nine games. CMU, which has won either the MAC Tournament or regular-season championship for six years in a row, lost three key starters to graduation and has struggled in almost every facet of the game. The Chipps are 11th in the conference in scoring and 10th in shooting percentage and 3-point percentage. They are last in scoring defense.
Point guard Molly Davis leads the team in scoring at 21.7 points a game, fourth in the MAC. Forward Jahari Smith is second in the league in rebounding at 12.8. (All statistics are for MAC games only.)
When Kent and Central played last week, Katie Shumate scored 21 points and Nila Blackford had 15 points and 11 rebounds. The Flashes made 45.6% of their shots. KSU leads the MAC in scoring defense, allowing 60.9 a game, and is holding opponents to 38.6% on field goals, third in the conference, and 30.3% on 3-pointers, which is fourth.
Preview from KSU website, including links to statistics, roster, schedule and more.