KENT, Ohio. - The Western Michigan women's basketball team, down by 19 points midway through the third quarter, mounted a comeback in which they came within two points of Kent State University but eventually fell short 55-51 on Wednesday evening. 

Down 38-22 at halftime, the Broncos outscored the Golden Flashes 29-17 in the second half and generated an 11-0 run as the scoreboard read 48-46 in favor of KSU with 3:51 left on the game clock. However, the home team was able to hang on to its lead down the stretch to secure the Mid-American Conference victory. 

"I think we finally settled in to their physical defense," Clipfell commented on WMU's run in the fourth quarter. "I was a gutsy performance by our team and a couple defensive rebounding situations could have been the difference down the stretch. I told our players I'd take that team to battle any day of the week moving forward."

Kent State out-rebounded WMU 46-28 along with owning a 20-7 margin in points in the paint. KSU and WMU nearly shot identical marks from the field, with the Golden Flashes shooting 18-of-54 and the Broncos going 18-for-53. 

Kamrin Reed led the Brown & Gold with a career-high 20 points, shooting 7-of-12 from the field, including four three-pointers and four steals while playing 40 minutes. Deja Wimby added nine points and four assists, while Leighah-Amori Wool and Jasmyn Walker tied for the team-lead with five rebounds each. 

A slow start resulted in six WMU turnovers while Kent State went on a 13-0 run during the back end of the first quarter to claim a 20-7 lead. WMU answered in the second frame with a 15-point effort. Maxine Moore converted a three-pointer just over a minute into the quarter to end the KSU run, followed by a Wimby layup to trim the lead to 10 points, down 22-12.

Kent State out-rebounded the Broncos 25-9 in the first 20 minutes while shooting 48 percent from the field and 11-for-12 at the charity stripe. The home team grabbed its largest lead of the half with a Megan Carter three-point field goal at the 2:21 minute mark, giving the Golden Flashes a 17-point advantage. KSU led 38-22 at the intermission.

The Broncos started to recruit some momentum in the third quarter, with Reed opening the second-half scoring with a steal and layup in transition. Reed scored six points in the third frame alone while WMU outscored KSU 15-10 to cut the Golden Flashes' lead to 48-37 heading into the final stanza.

Reed notched the first field goal of the fourth quarter for both teams, two and a half minutes in with her second three-pointer of the night to put WMU within eight points, down 48-40. The 11-0 WMU run then ensued, led by a trio of three-pointers from Reed to trim the KSU lead to 48-46 with 3:51 to play.

With 12 seconds remaining, Wimby drove to the hoop and drew a foul and put away both free throws to put WMU down by one at 52-51. The Broncos were forced to foul the Golden Flashes. WMU set up a play after a timeout and found a good look but came up short as a Reed three-point attempt missed with 11 seconds left, down 53-51. KSU added a pair of free throws to close out the game. 

"It would have been real fitting for Kamrin to hit that shot at the end, but I'd still want the ball in her hands in that situation," Clipfell said. 

Up Next
Western Michigan, now 8-11 overall and 2-6 in the MAC, returns to Ohio on Saturday, Feb. 9 to face Akron.  

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