In blowout fashion, the Kent State women’s basketball team lost its season opener 48-80 to James Madison Monday.
The Flashes were outmatched in nearly all facets of the game, as the team couldn’t generate consistent offensive production and struggled to get stops on the defensive end.
“They [James Madison] are a really good team defensively,” coach Todd Starkey said. “They kind of overwhelmed us, and we really didn’t execute the way that we wanted to during the game to get good shots.”
It just wasn’t the Flashes’ day on offense, as the team turned the ball over 25 times, shot 15-59 (25%) from the field, and shot 1-16 (6%) from 3-point range.
The team also managed just 24 points in the paint and seven fast-break points. JMU handily outscored the Flashes in both categories.
On the other side of the ball, the Flashes let JMU run wild. The Dukes shot 28/69 (41%) from the field, had 40 points in the paint, 26 fast break points and 35 points off turnovers.
“We were overmatched in the game, from start to finish,” Starkey said.
KSU quickly fell behind 12-0 and didn’t score until five minutes into the game, courtesy of a junior forward Janae Tyler layup. By the end of the first quarter, the Dukes were up 22-8.
“Overall, I thought they were trying to handle a tough situation the best they could,” Starkey said.
Things didn’t get any easier in the second quarter, as KSU was outscored 23-10.
James Madison led 45-18 at halftime. KSU shot just 6/31 (19%) from the field during the first half.
KSU came out strong in the third quarter by scoring 18 points, but by then, the game was all but finished. KSU managed to outscore the Dukes 18-16, but the deficit was simply too much to overcome. The Flashes were still down 61-35.
“I thought in the second half, we had some players that stepped up and played better,” Starkey said.
The fourth quarter was largely uneventful, as the Dukes ran away with the victory.
Junior center Riley Rismiller was one of the few bright spots for the Flashes, managing a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Sophomore forward Emory Klatt provided a spark off the bench with six rebounds and four points.
“Emory Klatt came off the bench and played hard,” Starkey said. “She did some nice things.”
Redshirt junior guard Corynne Hauser, in her first game back from a major injury, scored 10 points.
Junior guard Mya Babbitt and Tyler largely struggled throughout the game. The two center pieces of the Flashes’ offense combined for 12 points on 3/22 (14%) shooting.
Up next
The Flashes will continue its season-opening road trip with a matchup at Morgantown, WV, this Friday to face the Mountaineers. The Mountaineers are 1-0 so far this season, and won its last game by 36 points.
“We’ve got to get better in all facets of the game really quickly because we’re playing against a really good team coming up,” Starkey said. “The biggest thing is that we have film to look at, and to really learn a lot from it.”
Emily Lowen is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected]
