Coach Todd Starkey called it a “lackluster” first quarter, and the Flashes trailed Eastern Michigan on the road 22-13.
In the end-of-quarter huddle, he challenged his team “to be the aggressor.”
The Flashes responded with as good a second quarter as they’ve played this season. Senior Katie Shumate responded with some of her best basketball in her four-year career.
Shumate scored KSU’s first 11 points of the quarter, making five-straight shots. Her personal four-minute run tied the game 24-24, and Kent State never trailed again on its way to a 75-66 victory.
The win was Kent State’s fourth straight and eighth in its last 10 games. With a week left in the regular season, the Flashes are in fourth place in the Mid-American Conference with an 11-5 record. They are four games ahead of Akron and Northern Illinois, who are tied for fifth.
KSU is two games behind Bowling Green and Ball State, who are tied for second. BG was upset by Buffalo at home 84-66 Saturday. Toledo took sole possession of first place with a 72-70 victory at Ball State.
Kent State and Toledo play Wednesday night in Toledo.
Kent State’s overall record is 19-8. That ties for the most victories in the regular season in Starkey’s seven seasons in Kent. The Flashes won 20 in 2018-19, but that included a victory in the WNIT.
Kent State has at least three games left.
KSU outscored Eastern 24-6 in the second quarter and didn’t allow a field goal until 1:54 before halftime.
“Defensively, we were really good collectively,” Starkey said. “And Katie was just kind of feeling it. She was going out and making plays for herself, and we were running some stuff for her as well.”
After halftime, the coach said, “We were able to play a solid game the rest of the way.”
Shumate’s marvelous month
Shumate’s game ended the best month of her career. She had 23 points, equaling her best output of the season. She had nine rebounds for the sixth time in February and now ranks 10th in the MAC in rebounding at 6.5 a game.
Against Eastern, she made 9-of-13 shots, hit 3-of-4 three-point attempts, had three assists and a blocked shot, and drew six fouls from EMU players.
“For the past month, she’s been one of the best players in the league,” Starkey said. “It’s determination — ‘I know my team needs me.’ That’s a mental decision, and it’s not easy. She’s playing with a lot of confidence and consistency, and I think it’s raised the level of everybody’s play.
“Katie is somebody who’s battled through some nagging injuries for the last few years, and she’s about as healthy as she’s been since her freshman year.”
Shumate had off-season knee surgery after her freshman season. At one point, it looks as if she wouldn’t play at all her sophomore year. But she ended up starting 17 of 19 games and averaged 12.2 points a game.
Shumate has been a model of consistency — and inconsistency — in her four seasons. She averaged 12.3 points her first season and made the MAC all-freshman team. She averaged 12.2 the next season and 12.1 the year after that. This season she’s averaged 11.6.
But game-to-game can be a different story. She averaged 6.3 points and 5.1 rebounds in the first eight games of the MAC season. Since then, she’s averaged 16.2 points and 8.8 rebounds.
In the fourth, it was Young
Graduate student Hannah Young scored 10 of her 17 points in the fourth quarter. Her total was her second highest of the season.
Young has started every game the last two seasons and this year averages 26.8 minutes a game, fourth on the team. She scores 8.6 points a game and explodes every four or five games. She had 20 against Miami on Jan. 11, 16 against Akron on Feb. 1, 12 against Akron on Feb. 18 and 17 Saturday.
“Hannah really had a nice game,” Starkey said. “In the first half, she was forcing a few drives. We told her we wanted to use her to space the floor, and she made the adjustment and played in rhythm for the rest of the way.”
Young made 3-of-4 three-point shots against EMU. She leads the MAC in 3-point percentage (.444 overall and .489 in MAC play).
Taking back the paint
Eastern starts two players taller than 6-2. A third, Ce’Nara Skanes, is 6-foot and ranks third in the MAC in rebounding.
In their first game with Kent State, the Eagles outscored KSU 48-26 in the paint. (KSU still won 79-66.) In Saturday’s game, the Flashes won in the paint 32-28.
“It was a point of emphasis,” Starkey said. “This team has done a really good job of trying to do what we ask them on defense. Give a lot of credit to our assistant coaches. They’ve put really good scouts together down the stretch. And we did a really good job throughout 40 minutes of play against one of the better front courts in the conference.”
The turnover tale
Kent State committed nine turnovers and had fewer than 10 for the fourth game in a row. For perspective, 10 of the 11 other MAC teams had at least 11 on Saturday.
“Our ball control’s been really good, ” Starkey said, “and that’s something that we’re going to need moving into our last two regular-season games and then on into the conference tournament. It’s a really good sign for us.”
Numbers
- Kent State played nine people, one of its lowest totals of the year. All scored. Lindsey Thall had nine points, Clare Kelly eight and Jenna Batsch five.
- The Flashes made 50.6% of their shots, their fifth-highest percentage of the season against Division I teams. Eastern shot 51.2%, the highest of the year against Kent State. EMU’s made 6-of-10 three-pointers, the highest percentage of the season against Kent. But the 10 attempts were the second-fewest by an opponent this season.
- KSU had 16 assists, tied for fourth highest of the season. They’ve had five-straight games with 13 or more. Freshman Corynne Hauser led Kent with five and leads the team for the season with a 3.5 average, which is 10th in the MAC.
- Eastern outrebounded the Flashes 28-23. No Kent State player but Shumate had more than three.
- Guard Olivia Smith led the Eagles in scoring with 20 points, making 6-of-7 shots.
Next: At first-place Toledo on Wednesday
The Flashes haven’t yet beaten any of the three teams ahead of them in the standings. They get their last chance Wednesday against first-place Toledo (14-2 MAC, 23-4 overall). The Rockets beat Kent 77-68 in Kent on Jan. 14.
“It’s going to be a tall task to win on the road at Toledo,” Starkey said. “Both of us are coming into this game as improved teams and have the opportunity to do some big things.”
The Flashes end the regular season at home at 2 p.m. Saturday against Northern Illinois.