Kent State University
Central Michigan
Kent State Hosts Central Michigan in First-Place MAC Showdown Saturday at Noon
1/18/2019 12:05:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Kent State and Central Michigan will each look for a bounce-back victory when the teams tip-off at 12 p.m. on Saturday inside of the M.A.C. Center. The final undefeated teams in Mid-American Conference play both suffered losses on Wednesday.
The Golden Flashes (10-5, 3-1 MAC) nearly came all the way back from a 17-point deficit but fell just short in an 83-81 loss at Ohio that snapped a seven-game winning streak. Kent State poured in a program-record 31 points in the fourth quarter, shooting 12-for-18 over the final 10 minutes. Alexa Golden scored a career-high 22 points to go with seven rebounds, four steals, three assists and two blocks. Megan Carter scored 17 of her 20 points in the middle two periods to keep the Flashes within striking distance. Merissa Barber-Smith provided a lift off the bench with eight points and nine rebounds in 14 minutes of action. Freshmen Asiah Dingle (8 points) and Lindsey Thall (8 points) battled foul trouble most of the game and combined for only 37 minutes played.
Guard Megan Carter (15.3 ppg) has scored at least 12 points in all but three games this season and has a team-high 39 assists. Freshman Asiah Dingle (13.4 ppg) has provided a scoring threat at the point guard position. Forward Lindsey Thall (10.0 ppg, 4.9 rpg) leads Kent State with 26 three-pointers to go with a MAC-best 24 blocks. Center Merissa Barber-Smith is the team's top rebounder at 6.9 per game and has 19 blocked shots. Guards Ali Poole (9.5 ppg) and Alexa Golden (7.4 ppg) lead the team in three-point field goal percentage.
Scouting Central Michigan
Central Michigan (12-4, 3-1 MAC) dropped its first conference game, 70-67, to Miami at home on Wednesday. The Chippewas are No. 5 in the most recent CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll and No. 22 in the most recent NCAA RPI rankings. The two-time defending conference champions have not lost consecutive MAC games since January 2017 and owns 7-0 record in road games this season.
Featuring one of the top offenses in the country, Central Michigan ranks sixth in three-point field goal percentage (.406), 10th in field goal percentage (.480), 12th in free throw percentage (.771), 14th in three-pointers per game (9.83), 23rd in scoring (79.6) and 30th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.19).
Guards Presley Hudson (20.9 ppg) and Micaela Kelly (14.1 ppg) and forward Reyna Frost (18.6 ppg) form the highest-scoring trio in the conference. Hudson has drained more three-pointers (353) than any player in MAC history and ranks seventh in the country with 58 triples this season. Frost is the leading rebounder (1,282) in conference history and ranks eighth in the country in rebounding (12.2 rpg). All three players are shooting better than 40-percent from long distance. The Chippewas only use a seven-player rotation with the starting unit accounting for 1,227 of the team's 1,273 points.
Series History
• Kent State is 31-29 all-time vs. Central Michigan.
• The Chippewas have won seven straight meetings by an average of nearly 20.3 ppg.
• Kent State last defeated CMU, 67-64, on Jan. 22, 2012.
• The Flashes have an 19-11 all-time record vs. the Chippewas at home.
• Each team owns a nine-game winning streak in the series.
• The teams have split the two overtime games they have played with CMU coming out on top in the most recent occurrence, 87-70, on Feb. 9, 2008 in Kent.
• The Golden Flashes are 0-2 vs. Central Michigan under third-year head coach Todd Starkey.
TV / Radio
Jacob Pavilack will be on the call on 640 WHLO and the Golden Flashes iHeartRadio channel, while Dave Wilson and Tanner Castora bring the action on ESPN3.
Next Up for Kent State
The Golden Flashes will play their final two games of the month on the road, visiting Ball State on Wednesday, Jan. 23 and at Miami on Saturday, Jan. 26.
