Jan. 8, 2006
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ATHENS, Ohio - Ciara Iglehart scored a career-high 19, and Domenica Silva kicked in a career-best 15 for Ohio, but Kent State managed to hold off the Bobcats down the stretch and take an 83-73 decision in the Mid-American Conference women's basketball opener Sunday in the Convocation Center.
Iglehart (Mission Viejo, Calif.) and Silva (Sao Paulo, Brazil) were two of four double-figure scorers for the Bobcats (3-9 overall, 0-1 MAC) in the loss. The Golden Flashes (8-4, 1-0 MAC) used 23 points off the bench from Rachel Bennett and capitalized on 30 Bobcat turnovers to seal the victory.
After leading deep into the first half and trailing by just six at the break, Ohio fell behind by as many as 15 in the second frame. The Cats clawed back, though, cutting the deficit to two possessions--six points--with 65 seconds left on the clock. From that point on, though, Kent State took care of business at the charity stripe, hitting six of its eight tries from the line in the waning seconds to hold onto the win.
Though no Ohio player recorded double digits in rebounds, the Bobcats dominated Kent State on the glass with a 41-30 margin. Rachel Frederick (Gibsonia, Pa.) nabbed a game-high nine rebounds, while Silva and Iglehart each pulled down seven.
The Golden Flashes were defeated on the boards, but were not shut out inside. Kent State outscored Ohio 38-20 in the paint, thanks in large part to 19 points by Lindsay Shearer, who entered the game as the league's top scorer.
The Bobcats wouldn't lead by any more than three points on the night, but Ohio did manage to hold on to a lead with less than five minutes left in the first half. Despite committing 21 first-half turnovers, the Bobcats stayed in the game with a dose of hot shooting. The Cats connected on 63.2 percent of their tries from the field in the first half, and put away 75 percent of their three-point attempts.
Simone Redd (Warrensville Heights, Ohio) paced the Ohio attack in the first half with 12 points. She finished with 14 on the day.
Ohio's lead slipped away toward the end of the first half and the Golden Flashes went to the break with a six-point edge. Kent State led by double figures for the first time at the 14:59 mark of the second half and the Golden Flashes took their largest lead of the game, 53-68, with 6:52 left. Ohio cut the lead to single digits with less than two to play, but Kent State held on and captures its first MAC win of the season.
For the game, Ohio shot 40.8 percent from the floor, 47.1 percent from the three-point line and 86.2 from the stripe. The Bobcats forced 17 Kent State turnovers and turned it into 13 points. Ohio managed eight second-chance points and limited Kent State to just three.
The Cats are set to finish up a three-game home stand this week in The Convo. Ohio will play host to East Division rival Miami on Wednesday. Tip-time is set for 7 p.m.
