Kent State University
Ball State
Flashes Visit Cardinals for Saturday Morning Tip
2/3/2023 4:43:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Kent State women's basketball team will attempt to hand Mid-American Conference co-leader Ball State its first home loss of the season when the teams meet on Saturday at 11 a.m.
The Golden Flashes (14-6, 6-3 MAC) are No. 19 in the Mid-Major Top 25 and have won three in a row after taking down rival Akron, 57-55, in a road contest on Wednesday. Kent State's 13-point lead in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter was trimmed down to two with 8.2 seconds to play when senior Katie Shumate calmly made two free throws to put the game out of reach. Graduate student Hannah Young scored a game-high 16 points and grabbed six rebounds to share the team lead. The Flashes had a season-low nine turnovers and led 17-7 in points off turnovers.
Kent State's defense has been among the best in the MAC this season. The Flashes lead the conference in scoring defense (60.3 ppg) and rank second in field goal percentage defense (.377). Kent State is 13-1 when holding opponents to fewer than 70 points and 5-0 when opposing teams shoot less than 30% from the field.
Forward Lindsey Thall is the top scorer at 11.9 points per game and has also totaled team-best marks of 34 three-pointers and 19 blocked shots. Thall is Kent State's all-time leader with 252 triples, which ranks 21st among active NCAA Division I players, and ranks 10th among active players in career blocks (191). Guard Corynne Hauser (9.9 ppg) is averaging a team-best 12.0 points per game during conference play. Guard Katie Shumate adds 9.7 points per game and pulls down a team-high 5.5 rebounds per contest.
Guard Clare Kelly (7.6 ppg) and forwards Bridget Dunn (4.7 ppg, 5.1 rpg) and Tatiana Thomas (4.3 ppg) lead a strong bench unit that is scoring 25.0 points per contest.
Scouting Ball State
The Cardinals (18-4, 8-1 MAC) have outscored opponents by an average of 18.8 points during their current six-game winning streak. Ball State has gone 11-0 at home this season and scores an average of 85.9 points per home contest on 50.9% shooting from the field. Overall, the Cardinals rank in the top 20 in the country in field goal percentage (.469). scoring offense (79.1 ppg), assists per game (17.1), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.23) and three-point field goals per game (8.5).
Guard Anna Clephane leads the team at 14.4 points per game and has scored in double-figures in each of the past 12 contests. Forward Thelma Dis Agustsdottir (12.3 ppg) ranks 11th in the nation with 64 three-pointers and shoots a MAC-best 40.3% from behind the arc. Guard Ally Becki (12.2 ppg) is 13 in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.66) and 28 in assists per game (5.2).
Series History
• Kent State is 41-22 all-time vs. Ball State.
• The Golden Flashes have won the past four matchups and defeated the Cardinals multiple times in the same season a year ago for the first time since 2006.
• Kent State is just 12-18 all-time in Muncie.
• Last season's 54-51 victory at Worthen Arena ended a streak of 13 consecutive road losses in the series for the Flashes, which had last defeated Ball State on its home court on Feb. 19, 1997 (78-66).
• Kent State is 4-4 vs. Ball State under head coach Todd Starkey.
Broadcast Info
Rick Johnston and Shelby Farwig will call the action on ESPN3, while Tyler Henry will be on the call on the Kent State Radio Network.
Next Up for Kent State
The Golden Flashes are scheduled to play five of the final eight games during the regular at the M.A.C. Center and will host Central Michigan on Wednesday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m.
