Sports
Ohio Women’s Basketball falls to Kent State, drops to 1-3 in MAC play
By: Evan Johnson
Posted on:
ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) – Ohio Women’s Basketball (3-11) falls to a 1-3 record in MAC play after losing to the Kent State Golden Flashes (10-6), 79-64. A huge third quarter helped propel Kent State to their third MAC win of the season.
Ohio women’s basketball played in the back half of a doubleheader with the men’s program. After watching their fellow Bobcats take care of business against Northern Illinois, they looked to do the same against the Golden Flashes.
Both teams got out to sluggish starts with the first basket being made after two and a half minutes. Throughout the first quarter, both defenses were aggressive, and Ohio forced six turnovers in the quarter.
Kent State took a 20-17 lead at the end of the first quarter. They were led by freshman Journey Hildebrand who dropped nine points on three made shots from behind the arc.
For most of the first half, the Bobcats ran a full-court press and looked to get traps inside of the half-court line. Their persistent defense helped them force another seven turnovers in the second quarter. They were consistently disrupting passing lanes and tipping balls away from the Golden Flashes.
“I thought they played well together, they had good energy” head coach Bob Bolden said about his team’s defensive performance.
The Ohio defense kept them in the game and was able to cap off the half with a coast-to-coast buzzer-beater from sophomore Bailey Tabeling. That shot put the Bobcats up 36-34 at the end of the first half.
In the third quarter, it was all Kent State, they drained two threes in the first 40 seconds and forced Ohio to take a timeout. After the break the Golden Flashes got right back to where they left off, going on a 17-0 run.
“Basketball is a game of runs; it’s just a matter of coming back with our run after they go on one,” said senior Kate Dennis.
Kent State’s shooting was on fire in the quarter, everything they put up went in. They shot seven for nine from behind the arc in just the third quarter to put the Bobcats down big.
Ohio ended the quarter strongly, getting back to their aggressive defense, but the deficit was too large, and Kent State took a 59-48 lead going into the final quarter.
The Bobcats kept trying to claw their way back into the game but were unable to go on a big run to close the gap. Kennedi Watkins was able to do some damage in the paint, scoring eight of her twenty-one points in the fourth quarter.
The Golden Flashes had several players step up and take control of the scoring, as four players scored 15 or more points in the game. Kent State never let their lead slip, and they cruised to a 79-64 victory.
Kent State will be back home on Jan. 15 to take on Ball State, while Ohio will try and bounce back on Jan. 15 against Bowling Green.