Kent State University
Northern Illinois
Golden Flashes and Huskies Run It Back in MAC Tournament Quarterfinals
3/7/2023 5:08:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Kent State will battle Northern Illinois for the second time in five days as the Mid-American Conference Tournament begins with quarterfinals action on Wednesday, March 8. Tip at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland will be approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion day's first contest, which is scheduled for 11 a.m.
The Golden Flashes (20-9) have been victorious in five of their last six games and enters the conference tournament with 20 wins for the first time since 2011. On Saturday, Kent State knocked down 13 three-point field goals at a season-best 46.4% rate to complete the season sweep of the Huskies with a 73-58 victory. The Flashes committed just seven turnovers and have limited their miscues to single digits in five of the last six games. Junior Casey Santoro shot 4-of-5 from long range and led all players with a season-high 19 points. Senior Katie Shumate and graduate student Lindsey Thall added 17 points and 12 points, respectively.
Kent State's defense has been among the best in the MAC this season. The Flashes lead the conference in scoring defense (61.5 ppg) and rank third field goal percentage defense (.393). Kent State is 19-1 when holding opponents to fewer than 70 points and 5-0 when opposing teams shoot less than 30% from the field.
All-MAC Third Team guard Katie Shumate posts team-best averages of 12.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per contest. Shumate has grabbed at least seven boards in nine consecutive games. All-MAC honorable mention forward Lindsey Thall is close behind at 11.3 points per game and has totaled team-best marks of 47 three-pointers and 28 blocked shots. Thall is the only women's basketball student-athlete and active NCAA Division I player with at least 250 three-point field goals (265) and 200 blocked shots (200) in her career. MAC All-Freshman Team guard Corynne Hauser (9.6 ppg) is averaging a team-best 3.1 assists per game.
Guard Clare Kelly (7.0 ppg) and forwards Bridget Dunn (4.7 ppg, 5.1 rpg) and Tatiana Thomas (4.6 ppg) lead a strong bench unit that is scoring 23.6 points per contest.
Kent State in the MAC Tournament
• Kent State is making its 35th appearance in the MAC Tournament and has a 35-30 record in tournament play.
• The Golden Flashes have advanced to the quarterfinals in Cleveland in six of seven seasons under seventh-year head coach Todd Starkey.
• Kent State has advanced to the semifinals 18 times, recording an 12-5 record in those games (2020 game was not played after tournament was canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic).
• The Flashes have won three MAC Tournament titles: 1999, 2000 and 2002.
• Kent State appeared in the championship game seven straight years from 1996-2002 and has played for the title 12 times overall.
• During that seven-year stretch, the Flashes owned an 18-4 MAC Tournament record.
MAC Tournament History vs. Northern Illinois
• Kent State is 1-1 all-time vs. Northern Illinois in MAC Tournament play, with both matchups coming in the quarterfinals.
• The Huskies won the first meeting, 72-68, in 2007.
• The teams met again the following season, and the Golden Flashes avenged the loss with a 75-67 victory.
Scouting Northern Illinois
The Huskies (16-13) punched their ticket to Cleveland next week by winning four of their final six games. The stretch began with back-to-back victories over Bowling Green and Ball State, snapping double-digit game winning streaks for both teams.
Leading scorer A'Jah Davis (16.0 ppg) ranks third in the country in rebounds per game (12.5) and fifth in double-doubles (21). Davis makes 54.5% of her shot attempts, which ranks second in the MAC. Guard Chelby Koker is right behind at 15.9 points per contest and averages 3.6 assists per game. Guard Janae Poisson, the MAC Sixth Player of the Year, adds 10.9 points per game ranks fifth in the MAC in three-point field goals (69).
Series History
• Kent State is 27-18 all-time vs. Northern Illinois and enters with a three-game winning streak.
• The Golden Flashes swept the season series with an 18.0-point margin of victory.
• Kent State is 7-5 against the Huskies under head coach Todd Starkey.
Broadcast Info
Dave Bacon and Cayleigh Griffin will call the action on ESPN+, while Tyler Henry will be on the call on the Kent State Radio Network.
Next Up for Kent State
With a win, the Golden Flashes advance to the MAC Tournament semifinals on Friday, March 10 against the winner of the quarterfinal between No. 1 seed Toledo and No. 8 seed Buffalo.
