Sat Feb 11 2012
CLEVELAND — It was the 17th appearance in the quarterfinals of the MAC Tournament for the Kent State University women’s basketball team (20-9) in the last 21 years under the direction of head coach Bob Lindsay.
Needless to say, it was another victory. This time it was Central Michigan (12-18).
The Flashes rallied from a 28-21 deficit at halftime to cruise through the last eight minutes of a 68-55 win on Wednesday at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland.
If this wasn’t the worst first half of basketball played by the Flashes, I’m glad I didn’t see what was.
It looked like a flock of little lost sheep, with no leader and aimlessly wandering around. For the Golden Flashes, it was a disaster waiting to happen.
Kent State was shooting 21 percent from the field (6-of-28) and racking up 17 turnovers. Only an 8-for-12 effort from the foul line kept the Flashes from staring at a larger deficit.
Additionally, the Flashes’ leading scorer, Jamilah Humes, was forced to sit with two fouls only six minutes into the game. Less than a minute later, starting center Lauren Odhiambo picked up her second foul.
You could just see the air go out of the team that is the third seed in the tournament.
When questioned about the lackluster first half, Lindsay said that Wednesday was not the first time he had seen it this season.
“I told our team at halftime that we played very poorly in the first half and without a lot of energy,” said Lindsay. “We were fortunate to get the win. We just weren’t a work of art on offense.”
The second half became a 180-degree swing for KSU.
The Flashes cut the lead to one point at 31-30 with 16:58 to go on a layup by guard Rachel Bennett.
Seconds later, Humes made her first basket of the second half. The energizer bunny was back and she knocked down three consecutive shots, including a drive-and-pop shot from 10 feet out. Humes changed the course of the game.
The Central Michigan defenders, who were protecting the paint, could only watch the lead evaporate.
Modern teams either shoot the 3-pointer or drive to the basket. No one seems to take the 10-footer, a shot that is seemingly always open.
Then at 9:32, Yoshica Spears made a 3-pointer. Humes followed with a trey of her own, and then Taisja Jones finished off the streak with a third triple, giving the Flashes a 49-40 lead.
From then on, with Bennett and Humes handling the ball, the Chippewas were done.
“What I got out of the halftime speech was that we played with no character in the first half,” said Humes. “It was my fault, because I had to sit with two fouls. The other girls on the bench kept on encouraging me that the second half was going to be different.
“All I could see was last year when we lost to Buffalo (66-54) in the quarterfinals,” Humes said. “Coach Lindsay lit a fire under us and told us we weren’t playing smart basketball. We had to pick up our game.”
No question, Humes was the key. She scored 24 points, and all but two of those came in the second half. She hauled down nine rebounds, oftentimes outhustling the Chippewas. All of this in just 25 minutes.
With Humes’ effort, the rest of the Flashes picked up their collective games. They scored 47 points in the second half and actually held the ball the last three minutes as the clock ticked away.
Humes was lavish with her praise of the rest of the team in the second half. She mentioned just about everyone as a contributor.
“Humes was not a factor in the first half,” said Lindsay. “The second half was a different story. She gave us a lift on offense. Once she hit her stride, the rest of the team picked it up. Nothing builds confidence to play defense like scoring. That’s what First Team All-MAC players do.”
The miserable first half was long forgotten by game’s end thanks to the Flashes’ effort in the second half, which turned out to be one of the team’s greatest of the year.
•••
Contact Don Dreger at ddreger@recordpub.com
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