MUNCIE, Ind. – The BGSU women’s basketball team clinched a first-round bye in the Kraft MAC Tournament with a gritty win over host Ball State University on Saturday.
Trailing by four at halftime, the Falcons relied on steady defense and extremely accurate shooting to pull out the victory, 72-60.
The win is the Falcons’ 11th in a row and puts their overall record at 20-2 and 11-0 in the MAC.
Junior Ali Mann led all scorers with 18 points and added a team-high nine rebounds.
Sophomore Kate Achter shook off a slow first half in which she scored only two from the free-throw line and finished with 15 points. She also had a team-high five assists and zero turnovers.
Junior Liz Honegger contributed a season and game-high five blocks, game-high four steals and 14 points. She was 3-for-3 from behind the arc.
“This was a really big road win for us,” said BG coach Curt Miller. “This is a tough place to play.
“We are happy about securing a first-round bye and a trip to Cleveland.”
The first half was closely contested. Both teams were playing aggressive defense, but Ball State’s three point shooting and its ability to keep Bowling Green from scoring inside gave the Cardinals a 10-point lead midway through the half.
“They were really executing and doing a lot of things that certainly put us on our heels,” Miller said.
However, the Falcons were able to go on a run sparked by two Liz Honegger 3s, making the score 36-32.
“There were not a lot of changes, in terms of Xs and Os, at halftime,” Miller said. “I thought our game plan was on-the-money both offensively and defensively.”
Something clicked, because Bowling Green went on a 7-0 run to begin the second half, gaining the lead once and for all.
Ball State went back to what had proven successful in the first half, but when the 3s stopped falling, BG was able to widen the lead to 17 – its largest lead of the game.
“Three-pointers really give Ball State energy, and a key for us was keeping them from having a huge night at the arc,” Miller said.
Ball State hit 7-of-23 for long distance.
The Falcons doubled their opponents’ shooting percentage in the second half, shooting 58.6 percent while holding Ball State to just 29.4 percent. The Falcons also shot 58.3 percent from behind the arc for the game.
“In the second half, we stayed patient and took what the defense gave us, while still remaining aggressive with our offense,” Miller said.
Julie DeMuth, Ball State’s leading scorer averaging 12.4 points per game, was held to only one point in limited action because of foul trouble.
“Once again, another team started the game like they were shot out of a cannon, and gave us everything we wanted in the first half,” Miller said. “But we were able to stay in the game until halftime, and that gave us a feeling that we could come out and play a good 20 minutes in the second half.”
The Falcons will travel to Akron on Wednesday to play the 4-18 Zips. When the teams met Jan. 7, BG won 71-54.
