Minutewomen Erase 15-point First Half Deficit To Outlast Kent State 75-70

KENT, Ohio -- University of Massachusetts women's basketball (10-2, 2-0 MAC) outlasted Kent State (5-9, 0-3 MAC), 75-70, during a Saturday matinee matchup at Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center.

Following an ice-cold first half in which the Minutewomen shot just 8-33 (.242) including 1-10 from behind the arc, UMass caught fire in the second half, shooting a blazing 17-29 (.586) from the field and 5-8 (.625) from three en route to a 15-point comeback.

Yahmani McKayle was the biggest factor for the Minutewomen's second-half surge, setting a career-high 28 points to go along with three assists and three steals. McKayle could not miss in the second half, scoring 26 points on 10-12 shooting and hitting five-consecutive threes.

Megan Olbrys chipped in 13 points and six rebounds with Allie Palmieri also adding 13 points along with four boards, three steals and two made threes. Chinenye Odenigbo also netted 10 points, scoring double-digits in the second straight game.

Breaking Down The Action

Following a first-play rejection from Ayanna Franks on the defensive end, Olbrys netted the first Minutewomen points of the night from the stripe, UMass taking a 1-0 lead one minute into action.
Odenigbo followed an Olbrys miss, finishing at the rim to put Massachusetts up 6-3 with 7:30 remaining in the first.
Olbrys found a cutting McKayle to cut into a 11-2 Golden Flashes run, bringing UMass back within four, 10-14, with 1:41 left to go in the first.
Franks turned persistent defense into instant offense, generating a steal and getting fouled on the ensuing possession, to bring the Minutewomen to a 13-14 deficit with a minute to go in the first.
Odenigbo collected her own miss and connected at the rim to bring UMass within one, 20-21, with 6:34 left to play in the half.
Lilly Ferguson stopped a 14-0 Kent State run over nearly five minutes of game time, connecting on a long jumper and a second-chance layup to cut the score to 24-35 at the half.
McKayle found the bottom of the net from the left arc, opening the second half scoring for UMass and bringing the score to 27-37 a minute into the third.
Following Franks sixth steal of the contest, McKayle found a wide-open Palmieri who hit nothing but net from the top of the arc, cutting the Golden Flashes lead to eight, 34-42.
McKayle connected on her second triple of the afternoon, to push the Minutewomen run to 10-0, trailing 39-42 with 5:51 left in the third.
Odenigbo hit a cutting Olbrys to bring the deficit to just one, 41-42, with three minutes remaining in the third.
McKayle got her defender off her feet with a pump fake and burried a side-step jumper to keep the game tight, 45-46, with 45 seconds left in the third.
Olbrys and McKayle worked a give-and-go to give the Minutewomen their first lead, 47-46, since 5:21 in the first quarter.
Franks finished at the rim with her left, to put the Minutewomen up 49-47 within the first 30 seconds of the fourth quarter.
McKayle connected on her third consecutive trey of the second half and Ferguson cleaned up an inside miss for a quick 5-0 UMass run to go ahead 54-49 with eight minutes to play.
McKayle continued to dominate, netting her 19th point of the game after a solid screen from Ferguson allowed for a wide-open layup.
McKayle scored her career-high 26th point of the contest with 3:03 left in the game, keeping UMass ahead 67-61.
Despite a last-minute surge, late-game free throws kept the game out of reach for the Golden Flashes with the Minutewomen securing a 75-70 victory.

By The Numbers

  4: Four Minutewomen netted double-digit points in the contest – McKayle (28), Olbrys (13), Palmieri (13) and Odenigbo (10)
15: The amount of points the Minutewomen came back from.
19: UMass collected 19 Stocks (steals and blocks) over the contest.
38: The total rebounds UMass secured
57: Massachusetts second-half field goal percentage

Up Next
The Minutewomen will continue on the road for another road conference game against Miami (OH) on Wednesay, January 7, at 7:00 p.m., on ESPN+, in Miami, Ohio. Links and live updates available at umassathletics.com or @UMassWBB on X (Twitter).

Scoreboard