The Kent State women’s basketball team will look to represent the Mid-American Conference and the university in their fourth appearance on national television this year, when they take on Notre Dame Saturday at 2:15pm on ESPN in the NCAA Tournament. The Golden Flashes are seeded #15 and the Fighting Irish #2, with the winner getting the winner of the #7 Ole Miss vs. #10 Marquette matchup. It’s the first tournament appearance since Bob Lindsay led the Flashes there in 2002.
Todd Starkey and his team are no stranger to success against Power Five opponents, with four wins against the P5 in his tenure, including wins the last three seasons. They competed well at LSU earlier this season, losing by one at halftime and taking a third quarter lead at one point.
“We do that so our players can be prepared in environments like this if we get the opportunity,” Starkey told the media Friday at his press conference. “It’s a little different level in the NCAA tournament but we want to play aggressive and make Notre Dame make some adjustments to us as well.”
In order to pull the upset, the Flashes will have to beat the Irish on their home court. Notre Dame has won eight straight, won the ACC Tournament over North Carolina State, and are 24-2 all time at home in the NCAA Tournament.
Playing Notre Dame means playing against one of the top freshmen in the country.
Hannah Hidalgo (23.3 ppg, 5.5 apg) was named to the AP All-America First Team, an honor only three freshmen had previously earned. Hidalgo leads the nation with 4.59 steals per game. She is joined by All-ACC Second Team members Sonia Citron (16.6 ppg) and Maddy Westbeld (14.2 ppg, 9.0 rpg) to form a dynamic trio.
Hidalgo is at the top of the scouting report in how she impacts the game in all facets.
“She leaps off the screen right? The ability she has to anticipate and disrupt the game on the defensive end is rare,” Starkey said. She has great instincts and I think that’s what makes her so good is, she’s not just a scorer, third in the nation, leads the nation in steals, leads the team in assists, second in rebounding. She effects the game in every statistical category.I’m coaching against her but I’m a fan of hers as well. We’re excited with the opportunity, but it’s a tall task.”
Kent State is hoping their depth will play to their strength. “We feel like we do have really good depth, it’s been one of our strengths all year. You have a game plan, the way we have to play to be able to create opportunities. We want to make sure we’re not playing tentative and I think in this atmosphere our players will have to make an adjustment but we played in a pretty hostile environment at LSU earlier this year and handled that pretty well.”
The Golden Flashes will hope to shock the nation and represent the Mid-American Conference and add to the conference’s tradition of March tournament runs. Starkey said former Bowling Green coach Curt Miller reached out this week said good luck. He also referenced Sue Guevara former coach from Central Michigan and former Buffalo coach Felish Legette-Jack and the runs that those MAC programs recently made.
“It’s an honor to carry the flag and we want to make the league proud,” Starkey said. “We know the eyes of the MAC are watching us and we want to make sure make the league proud of us and we compete in a way that is representative of what our conference is.”
CATCHINGS ON THE CALL: Former Tennessee and Indiana Fever legend Tamika Catchings will serve as color analyst for the game on ESPN. Catchings is a women’s basketball legend and Starkey made sure to pay homage to her. “Well first thing it’s an honor to have you as a hall of famer calling our game. That’s not lost on me. We appreciate you being here and the great work you do for women’s basketball.”
FLASHES TEAM SHINE ON COURT AND IN CLASS: “This team is phenomenal academically,” Starkey beamed. “These are true student athletes. This group is phenomenal, they love each other. They care about each other. They make my job easier because they love to compete and this group has continued to grow throughout the season. We want to be playing our best games in Match when games matter most and thats where we are at this point.”