Saturday's Scoreboard
Kent State 71, Miami 69
Bowling Green 69, Ohio 53
Central Michigan 74, Western Michigan 71
Akron 89, Ball State 84
Story Courtesy of MAC Sport Information
Kent State 71, Miami 69
Box Score
KENT, Ohio — Junior Lindsey Thall scored a putback layup with 1.8 seconds remaining for the decisive points in Kent State's 71-69 win against Miami on Saturday in the first of three games in five days at the M.A.C. Center.
The Golden Flashes (6-3, 5-1 MAC) improved to 4-0 at home this season and remain atop the Mid-American Conference standings.
Kent State's starting frontcourt of sophomore Nila Blackford and Thall led the way and outscored their counterparts, 40-9. Blackford scored a team-high 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season. Thall finished with 17 points and four blocked shots.
Miami scored the game's first five points before the Flashes' defense fueled a 16-2 run. Kent State scored 12 points off turnovers during the run, which included swipes for scores by Blackford on consecutive possessions. The Louisville native scored on an up-and-under in the lane in the closing seconds to give her eight points in the first quarter and the Flashes a 20-14 lead through 10 minutes.
The second period was Kent State's lowest-scoring since the opening stanza of the season against 19th-ranked Ohio State. The Flashes were outscored 19-9 following a 2-of-10 shooting performance and nine turnovers, and the RedHawks took a 36-32 lead into the locker room.
Miami scored on its third attempt of the third period's first possession to take its largest lead of the day. Both teams scored on their next two possession and the RedHawks' lead remained at six until an 8-0 run put Kent State back ahead. Lindsey Thall started the spurt with a three-pointer. Clare Kelly added a trifecta two possessions later to even the score and then a pullup to make it 41-39 with 6:36 remaining in the period. The Flashes' lead was still two, 52-50, going into the final quarter.
Kelly made her second three-pointer of the game to make it 62-55 with 5:18 to play, but Miami refused to go away and tied it at 65-65 at the 2:28 mark. Thall answered immediately with two free throws with 2:07 left. Following a defensive stop, Thall had a lefty hook shot in the lane roll halfway down the cylinder before spinning out, and the RedHawks connected on a baseline jump shot to tie it again with 58.0 seconds left.
Blackford scored on a well-executed play to make 69-67 with 43.4 seconds on the clock. Miami's Peyton Scott, who had 17 of her game-high 34 points in the fourth quarter, was able to bank in a contested shot with 30.5 seconds to play and gave it back to the Flashes with a chance to essentially hold for the final shot in regulation.
Just after the game clock went below 10 seconds, Thall entered the ball inside to Blackford, who patiently accepted a double-team and found an open teammate at the top of the three-point arc. Junior Mariah Modkins' shot was slightly off to the left, but Thall had crashed hard and grabbed Kent State's fifth offensive rebound of the day. Thall was able to avoid teammate Katie Shumate and banked the shot in.
Following an official review that adjusted the clock to 1.8 seconds and a Miami timeout to advance the ball into the frontcourt, Shumate smothered the inbounds pass and dribbled the clock out to secure the win.
Sophomore Clare Kelly bounced back from a tough night in Athens on Wednesday, making all five of her shot attempts for 12 points and grabbing five rebounds. Freshman Casey Santoro added five points and a career-high seven assists off the bench.
Kent State entered the contest with the second-lowest free throw percentage in the conference but converted 17 of 18 shots from the charity stripe for a season-best 94.4 percent.
The Flashes will have one day off before hosting Toledo at 2 p.m. on Monday, February 8. A showdown against second-place Bowling Green will follow on Wednesday, February 10.
Bowling Green 69, Ohio 53
Box Score
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Sophomore Elissa Brett led the way at both ends of the floor Saturday afternoon (Feb. 6), as the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team defeated Ohio University, 69-53, in Mid-American Conference action at the Stroh Center.
Brett had game-high totals in both scoring and rebounding for the Falcons (14-4, 10-3 MAC). She had a career-best 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for her first double-double of the season and the second of her BG career.
At the other end of the court, Brett was the primary defender on Ohio's Cierra Hooks, who entered the game ranked among the nation's scoring leaders with 26.6 points per game. Brett & the Falcons held Hooks to 12 points and forced her into nine turnovers.
The Falcons held the Bobcats (10-6, 8-5 MAC) to a season-low point total. BGSU forced the visitors into 23 turnovers, and while the hosts turned the ball over 19 times themselves, BG had a 25-11 advantage in points off turnovers.
Freshman Nyla Hampton had 14 points and junior Kadie Hempfling 13 for the Falcons, with Hempfling adding nine rebounds, four assists and four steals. Freshman Kenzie Lewis had seven points on perfect 3-for-3 shooting, and added a game-high seven assists.
Ohio got 13 points from both Madi Mace and Caitlyn Kroll, with Hooks adding 12.
Central Michigan 74, Western Michigan 71
Box Score
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Jahari Smith scored the go-ahead bucket and Molly Davis hit two clutch free throws in the final 32 seconds on Saturday as the Central Michigan women's basketball team white-knuckled a 74-71 Mid-American Conference come-from-behind victory over Western Michigan at the Broncos' Read Fieldhouse.
CMU improved to 11-6, 9-4 MAC, and has won eight straight over the Broncos. CMU extended its win streak in Kalamazoo to six games. Western is 2-12, 1-11.
Akron 89, Ball State 84
Box Score
MUNCIE, Ind. - University of Akron women's basketball senior F Jordyn Dawson (Huntington, W.Va.) scored a career-high 34 points, including 10 in overtime, to propel the Zips (5-10, 2-10 MAC) to an 89-84 triumph past Ball State (9-6, 7-4 MAC) on Saturday, Feb. 3.
"I'm so proud of our team and staff, we grew a lot as a team this week and it showed in today's game," Akron head coach Melissa Jackson commented. "I thought our group did a phenomenal job of handling some in-game adjustments. I give credit to Coach Day Henderson for a terrific scout. Jordyn (Dawson) was fantastic all game, but especially down the stretch with her clutch free throw shooting. Lo's (Brewer) activity level on defense was key. Rachel's (Martindale) threes were huge and came at crucial points in the game. I'm really proud of them."
Dawson's career day lifted the Zips to their first road win over the Cardinals since Feb. 15, 2014, as she scored a game- and career-high 34 points, while pulling down a team-best 10 rebounds, while dishing out a game-high seven assists. She sealed the victory with her shooting touch at the charity stripe where she was a perfect 11-for-11, including 6-of-6 in overtime.
Dawson led four Akron players garnering double-figure scoring performances, as she was joined by 17-, 12- and 11-point efforts from sophomore G Rachel Martindale (Pittsburgh, Pa.), sophomore F Lonasia Brewer (Akron, Ohio) and junior F Colleen Neitzel (Rocky River, Ohio). Martindale connected on a career-best five three pointers.
Oshlynn Brown crafted a 29-point and 19-rebound performance to headline Ball State's efforts, while Sydney Freeman and Anna Clephane added 17 and 12 points, respectively.
The Zips finished the contest shooting 41.3 percent from the floor, including connecting on nine three pointers, of which five came in the second half and overtime. The Cardinals shot 40 percent from the field on the afternoon.
Both teams pulled down 45 rebounds, with Akron owning edges in points in the paint, 38-26, fast-break points, 19-18, and bench scoring, 30-12.
With the contest tied at 72 after regulation, the Zips assumed the lead for good when Martindale drained a three pointer at the 4:27 mark to give Akron a 75-72 margin.
Ball State cut the deficit to a single point three times, but Dawson responded with a pair of baskets and Neitzel another to extend the Zips' lead back to three on each occasion.
A pair of free throws from Martindale gave Akron an 83-78 edge with 47 seconds left in overtime.
The Cardinals inability to convert at the free throw line coupled with the Zips making all eight of their charity tosses in overtime game Akron the victory.
Ball State challenged the Zips from the start of the tilt as the Cardinals jumped out to a nine-point advantage, 17-8, at the 2:59 mark of the opening quarter.
An 11-4 run, sparked by four points apiece from Dawson and sophomore F Molly Neitzel (Rocky River, Ohio), cut the Zips' deficit to two, 21-19, after the first quarter.
Ball State went on to outscore Akron in the second quarter, 24-18, to take a 45-37 lead into the halftime intermission.
Dawson paced the Zips with 14 first-half points, before scoring 10 points in the third quarter to allow Akron to outscore the Cardinals in the period, 21-12, to enter the final stanza leading by one, 58-57, following a jumper by Brewer in the quarter's final minute.
The fourth quarter was a back-and-forth affair, one that featured three ties and four lead changes, and neither team leading by more than three points.
Trailing by three, 70-67, following a pair of Freeman free throws with 2:50 left in regulation, a layup by Brewer and a three pointer by Martindale, gave the Zips a 72-70 edge with 1:07 remaining. The Cardinals scored the equalizer with a second left in regulation to send the game into overtime.
Akron is scheduled to travel to Kalamazoo, Mich., to face Western Michigan in a 1 p.m. matinee affair on Wednesday, Feb. 10. The contest will be broadcast on the Akron Radio Network 99.7 Canton's New Country with Bill Morgan calling the action.
