Women's Basketball | 11/23/2019 2:14:00 PM
Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University women's basketball hits the road for a single game when it plays Kent State at 1:00 PM on Sunday, Nov. 24. This is the fourth consecutive year that the Colonials and Golden Flashes have met, with the latter winning the last two matchups. Following this game, RMU plays its next three at home, beginning on Wednesday, Nov. 27 against Pitt-Johnstown.
GAME #5
Robert Morris Colonials (2-2, 0-0 NEC) @ Kent State Golden Flashes (3-2, 0-0 MAC)
Sunday, November 24, 2019 // 1:00 p.m. // Kent, Ohio – Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center (6,327)
Live Video: ESPN3 // Live Stats: KentStateSports.com
Notes Package: Robert Morris // Kent State
History w/ Kent State
Overall: 5-6 | Home: 2-3 | Away: 2-3 | Neutral: 1-0 | Streak: L2
Last Game: Dec. 7, 2018 – Moon Township, Pa. – Kent State 54, Robert Morris 46
Kent State owns a slight 6-5 edge over Robert Morris in the series history, and this will be the fourth consecutive year the teams have met. The Golden Flashes have won the last two in Moon Township, but the Colonials were victorious in the previous two road matchups.
KSU topped RMU, 54-46, last December at the North Athletic Complex. The Colonials held the Golden Flashes to just 26.5 percent shooting, but the visitors used a 20-10 third-quarter difference to come away victorious.
Nneka Ezeigbo (18 points) and
Isabella Posset (12 points) were in double-figures scoring for the hosts.
The last meeting in Ohio was a thriller, as RMU held off KSU in overtime, 68-65. Ezeigbo made her first career start and contributed 13 rebounds in 35 minutes, while
Megan Smith '18 carried the scoring load with a team-best 17 points (7-8 FG) in 22 minutes. Larissa Lurken of the Golden Flashes recorded 32 points (8-22 FG, 14-20 FT) and 12 rebounds in the defeat.
Scouting the Golden Flashes
Led by fourth-year head coach Todd Starkey, Kent State owns a 3-2 record with victories at Duquesne (77-75), Youngstown State (82-73), and in a neutral-site match against Purdue Fort Wayne (75-67). The Golden Flashes' two defeats came against No. 24 Michigan (53-88) and most recently at home against Ohio State (65-75).
Five players are averaging double figures in scoring, led by sophomore forward Lindsey Thall (16.2). Thall is shooting 45.8 percent from the floor, and has made half of her 34 three-point attempts and all 10 of her free throws. Freshman guard Katie Shumate and sophomore Asiah Dingle are scoring 12.8 and 12.6 points per game, respectively, while first-year forward Nila Blackford has registered 11.6 points and a team-best 8.0 rebounds per contest.
The Golden Flashes get to the free throw stripe quite often, averaging 16.2 attempts per game. Kent State averages 17.4 points off turnovers and 3.8 blocks per contest, but has allowed opponents to convert at a 48.2 percent rate from the floor.
Nneka Nears 1,000
Senior center
Nneka Ezeigbo is on the verge of joining the 1,000 point club, needing three more points to reach the milestone. Ezeigbo would become the 24th player in program history to meet the mark, and first Colonial since
Megan Smith '18 (Dec. 31, 2017 at Sacred Heart) to achieve the feat.
It's been a steady climb in the scoring category for Ezeigbo over her career. Primarily a key reserve in her first two seasons, she averaged 6.8 points per game as a freshman before increasing that mark to 10.4 as a sophomore. Last season, the center averaged 12.5 points per contest and entered 2019-20 just 64 points shy of the milestone. Ezeigbo is currently averaging 15.3 points per game, thanks in part to three straight performances of 14 or more points.
Turn 'Em Over
In the Colonials' first win of the season on Nov. 9, the defense was opportunistic against the Explorers, forcing 33 turnovers from the hosts. The 33 caused turnovers are the most for RMU since Nov. 15, 2011, when it forced 36 in a 78-44 win over Kent State.
Robert Morris ranks 12th nationally in caused turnovers with a per-game average of 25.25. The Colonials have now turned their last three opponents over at least 25 times. RMU ranked 24th in that category last season, averaging 20.18 per game. It forced 20 or more turnovers on 19 occasions in 2018-19, and kept all opponents in double figures.
Insurmountable Lead
Robert Morris has never lost a game in which it has held the lead at the end of the second half. The Colonials are 2-0 in such situations this season, and went 22-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 622-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.
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