Kent State Battles for 54-52 Victory

Sunday, December 1

Houston, TX

2:00 PM

Kent State University

2-5

Stephen F. Austin State University

3-4

Team	1	2	F
Kent State	28	26	54
Stephen F. Austin	30	22	52

Photo by: David Dermer

12/1/2013 5:01:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

HOUSTON, Texas – Kent State (2-5) battled a full 40 minutes and executed their game plan against Stephen F. Austin (3-4) on Sunday afternoon (Dec. 1) to earn the 54-52 victory in the David Jones Memorial Classic.

"This is a huge win for our program," said Head Coach Danielle O'Banion. "To win on the road, to win against a team of Stephen F. Austin's caliber…certainly helps us feel excited about what lies ahead."

A 9-0 run after the 15:45 media timeout in the first half propelled the Golden Flashes to an 11 point margin early against the Ladyjacks, the largest lead by either team in the game. Stephen F. Austin worked their way back in it to take a slim 30-28 lead into the locker room at the half.

Kent State took the lead right back on a 4-0 run to start the second. Stephen F. Austin was able to answer, but a few minutes later, Larissa Lurken hit a three and fed CiCi Shannon the ball for a basket to take the lead for good.

An 11-for-12 free throw performance down the stretch helped Kent State secure the win. The Golden Flashes also had two big stops on defense in the final minute to withstand the Ladyjacks.

In the game, Kent State owned the boards, grabbing a season-high 44 rebounds compared to the opponent's 31. They also found success in the paint for the second straight game, registering 22 of their 54 points from there.

"We wanted to win in the paint and we wanted to win at the free throw line, and that's what we did," said O'Banion.

Lurken led the way in scoring with 15 points with eight rebounds. Montia Johnson recorded a double-double with 12 points and a career-high 15 rebounds, nine of which came on the offensive glass. CiCi Shannon matched her career-high with five blocks while scoring 12 points.

Kent State now returns home for the remainder of the month of December, beginning with a 5:00pm matchup against Niagara on Wednesday (Dec. 4).

"We want to continue our growth and maturation in the M.A.C. Center this week," O'Banion said. "Now the challenge is to take what we started on the road back home and take advantage of our fan support in the M.A.C.C."

Tickets for all home games are on sale at kentstatesports.com.