Kent State and James Madison Win Through to Set Up Thursday’s MAC Semifinals

The MAC bracket did what it was supposed to do on Wednesday. The two lower seeds won, but neither game was a blowout, and now Thursday’s semifinals have a proper shape to them.

Fifth-seeded Kent State beat fourth-seeded App State 1-0 in the first quarterfinal at Miami, Ohio, and third-seeded James Madison beat sixth-seeded Ohio 2-0 in the second. That sets up Thursday’s semifinals, both at Miami: top-seeded UMass, 17-1 and 9-0 in the league, face Kent State at 11:30 a.m. ET, and second-seeded Miami, 13-4, take on James Madison at 2:30 p.m. ET. The final is Saturday at 1 p.m. ET.

UMass are the story of the season in this conference. Seventeen wins, one loss, a perfect league record. Kent State have just knocked out a higher seed on the road, though, and teams that survive a 1-0 quarterfinal tend to arrive in the semifinal believing in their defence. Miami, meanwhile, get the home crowd and a James Madison side that have already done the hard part by winning away from home.

For our money, UMass against anyone is still the final most people expect. But that’s exactly why Thursday matters: Kent State and James Madison have already shown they can win a knockout game by keeping it tight. If either semifinal stays level into the fourth quarter, the favourite’s nerve gets tested. That’s when tournaments get interesting.