Ball State meets Kent State in MAC Tournament

Kent State Golden Flashes (21-11, 13-6 MAC) vs. Ball State Cardinals (25-7, 17-2 MAC)

Cleveland; Friday, 10 a.m. EDT

BOTTOM LINE: Ball State and Kent State meet in the MAC Tournament.

The Cardinals have gone 17-2 against MAC opponents, with an 8-5 record in non-conference play. Ball State is third in the MAC in team defense, allowing 60.1 points while holding opponents to 37.5% shooting.

The Golden Flashes are 13-6 in MAC play. Kent State is 8-1 when it has fewer turnovers than its opponents and averages 14.8 turnovers per game.

Ball State's average of 6.9 made 3-pointers per game this season is only 0.8 more made shots on average than the 6.1 per game Kent State gives up. Kent State averages 7.9 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.3 more made shots on average than the 6.6 per game Ball State allows.

The teams meet for the third time this season. The Golden Flashes won 60-54 in the last matchup on Feb. 22. Jenna Batsch led the Golden Flashes with 18 points, and Ally Becki led the Cardinals with 15 points.

TOP PERFORMERS: Madelyn Bischoff averages 2.5 made 3-pointers per game for the Cardinals, scoring 10.4 points while shooting 35.8% from beyond the arc. Alex Richard is shooting 57.2% and averaging 19.9 points over the past 10 games.

Batsch is averaging 16.9 points and 3.8 assists for the Golden Flashes. Janae Tyler is averaging 11.8 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Cardinals: 7-3, averaging 69.0 points, 36.4 rebounds, 17.1 assists, 5.3 steals and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting 44.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 60.1 points per game.

Golden Flashes: 6-4, averaging 68.3 points, 33.4 rebounds, 14.0 assists, 7.4 steals and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting 41.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 64.9 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.