Slow Second Half Results in 46-65 Defeat at Cincinnati

Sunday, November 17

Cincinnati OH

2:00 PM

Kent State University

1-2

University of Cincinnati

1-2

Team	1	2	F
Kent State	29	17	46
Cincinnati	32	33	65

Photo by: David Dermer

Slow Second Half Results in 46-65 Defeat at Cincinnati

11/17/2013 5:15:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

CINCINNATI, Ohio - Kent State (1-2) battled with Cincinnati (1-2) in the first, finding themselves down just 29-32 at the half, but the Golden Flashes had a slow start out of the locker room in the second, resulting in a 46-65 defeat.

"I thought that this was certainly a game where you can say it was a tale of two halves," said Head Coach Danielle O'Banion. "I thought we started the game in a very aggressive way."

In the first, the game was tied on four different occasions and the lead changed hands eight times. The Golden Flashes' biggest lead came when they went up 9-7 five minutes into the game. Their last lead was at the 2:41 mark in the first after a layup by Montia Johnson gave them a one-point edge.

However, in the second half, Kent State was unable to find the basket until four minutes in and didn't get their first field goal until 12:38. They were only able to hit five field goals in the closing 20 minutes. Meanwhile, Cincinnati went on an 11-3 run to grab a double-digit lead they would not give up.

"In the second half they made an adjustment to force us to shoot from the outside," said O'Banion, "and we just didn't make shots. I've got to give a lot of credit to [Cincinnati] for getting to the free throw line today."

Both teams struggled with fouls at times, with a total of 46 being called in the game; Kent State had ten more than Cincinnati. The Bearcats made the most of their opportunities at the line, sinking 26 free throws on 32 attempts, including a perfect 14-for-14 performance from Alexis Durley who finished with a game-high 18 points.

Larissa Lurken led the way for the Golden Flashes with 11 points, including three successful shots from three-point range. Amber Dunlap followed close behind with ten points. Johnson had the best day on the boards with ten rebounds.

Kent State remains on the road for the rest of the month, continuing on with a game at Arkansas State next Friday (Nov. 22) at 7:00 pm.

"We're excited about this month," O'Banion said. "Arkansas State is a very storied basketball program and they are sure to challenge us to continue to manage the basketball versus the full-court press."

The Golden Flashes return home to the M.A.C. Center on December 4 as they host Niagara at 7:00pm. Tickets are available for all home games at kentstatesports.com.