After a mediocre first-half performance, the Kent State women’s basketball team turned in a complete and balanced approach to win 76-58 against Northern Illinois Wednesday.
The Flashes spread the wealth from a scoring perspective, having six players with nine or more points in the win. Each player also performed their role perfectly, utilizing their own strengths throughout the game.
“We’re at our best when everybody is contributing more equally,” senior guard Jenna Batsch said. “We don’t have a Chellia Watson or Ally Becki who’s just gonna takeover every night. I can score a decent amount sometimes, but we’re at our best when we’re dishing the ball, getting assists and everyone’s playing together.”
With the win, the Flashes also clinched a spot in the Mid-American Conference Tournament. Coach Todd Starkey called it a big achievement, but added there’s still work to be done.
“We have to make sure we don’t take our foot off the gas,” he said. “It’s good to get that behind us, so we can really focus on playing now.”
During the game, another achievement occurred for the Flashes. With three minutes left in the first quarter, Batsch made a layup to get over the 1,000-point mark for her career.
“I’m really proud of myself,” she said. “I had no idea I was that close until after the Ball State game, and I found out I was one point away.”
As the game began, the Flashes struggled for the most part. The team was outscored 16-13 and had rough shooting splits of 5-16 (31%) from the field and 1-6 (17%) from 3-point distance.
On the other hand, Northern Illinois came out hot, shooting 8-15 (53%) from the field. The Huskies were unstoppable in the post, making several tough and physical baskets.
As the second quarter began, it was much of the same, as the Flashes outscored the Huskies 16-14 but continued to lose the battle in the paint. On the offensive end, the Flashes struggled there as well, missing multiple good looks.
The Flashes shot an improved 6-14 (43%) from the field but continued to struggle from beyond the 3-point line by going 1-8 (13%).
Entering halftime, the Huskies led by one.
“It felt like they scored 100 points in the first half,” Starkey said. “We held them to thirty, so it really wasn’t as bad as it felt.”
After Northern Illinois upset the Flashes earlier in the season, it seemed that route was possible with how the game was going. However, the third quarter left little doubt about who’d win this game: The Flashes.
“It was a tremendous third quarter from us,” Starkey said. “We were much more aggressive.”
The Flashes looked like a completely different team, playing physical defense in the post while looking unstoppable on the offensive end. The team outscored Northern Illinois 26-9.
Highlighted by a 14-0 run through the middle of the quarter, everyone on the team stepped up and played a role. Senior forward Bianca Juzzo provided a huge spark in the quarter, making two 3-pointers.
“I’m just glad I was ready,” she said. “I’m just proud that I contributed to it.”
The Flashes shot 11-21 (52%) from the field and 4-5 (80%) from beyond the arc. Northern Illinois also began to buckle on the offensive end, shooting 4-9 (44%) from the field.
Unlike the first half, the paint was sealed off for Northern Illinois.
“We changed a couple things defensively with our coverages,” Starkey said. “We were much more connected.”
Once the buzzer blew, the Flashes had amassed a 16-point lead.
Although Northern Illinois found some offensive success in the fourth quarter, it was too little too late, as the Flashes held on to win comfortably. Starkey said the change in extra effort was a major deciding factor in the game.
“I didn’t think we were making extra effort plays in the first half,” he said. “We spoke very specifically about that extra effort during halftime, and that we needed to do something about it. The players responded.”
Overall, the Flashes shot 28-65 (43%) from the field and 6-22 (27%) from 3-point range. While the stats don’t jump out, the team scored in other ways to make up for it.
The Flashes scored 36 points in the paint, 20 fast break points, 20 points off turnovers and 18 bench points. Northern Illinois was outscored in every category. The team also had 20 assists compared to eight turnovers.
Northern Illinois had shooting splits of 24-52 (46%) from the field and 4-14 (29%) from 3-point distance. The Huskies also turned it over 16 times and lost the rebounding battle 39-26.
The Flashes had a true team effort with the number of signature performances. Junior guard Dionna Gray led the way with 14 points and nine assists.
Northern Illinois consistently sagged off and dared her to shoot, and she made them pay.
“Dionna did a really good job of taking what they were giving her,” Starkey said.
Sophomore forward Janae Tyler finished with 13 points and five rebounds. Senior forward Bridget Dunn recorded a double-double with 15 rebounds and 11 points.
Batsch filled up the statsheet with 11 points, six assists and four steals. Juzzo rounds out the performances with 10 points on 3-3 shooting.
Northern Illinois’ best performance came from junior guard Alecia Doyle. She finished with 21 points on 8-13 shooting.
With the win, the Flashes move to 18-10 with a conference record of 10-5. The team remains in fourth place in the MAC.
Northern Illinois falls to 12-15 with a conference record of 5-10.
The Flashes will look to continue their momentum into the James A. Rhodes Arena with a rivalry matchup against Akron Saturday. Tipoff is at noon.
Akron is in the middle of a 12-game losing streak and currently sit in 11th place in the MAC with a 9-19 record. The Flashes dominated the Zips the first time around, but Starkey won’t take anything for granted.
“That’s a team that’s fighting hard, and we have to be ready to go,” he said. “If we take our foot off the gas against any team the rest of the way, we certainly can get clipped.”
John Engoglia is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].
