After one of the biggest regular season wins for the women’s basketball team in recent memory last Friday, coach Curt Miller said his team has a new found confidence.
The Falcons (5-2) upset No. 16 Vanderbilt 66-60 on the road, and Miller said the national recognition gave his team a boost going into tonight’s game against Detroit-Mercy.
‘Certainly a big national road win ‘hellip; gave us a little shot in the arm,’ Miller said. ‘The early, tough road tests give us some confidence that we can get over the hump.’
But as junior guard Tracy Pontius said, the team has to be careful not to overlook the Titans after the big win.
‘It’s given us a little boost of confidence, but coach Miller always tells us not to get too high off wins and too low of losses,’ Pontius said.
And they better not get too high because Miller said Detroit-Mercy is an ‘underrated’ team that has a ‘misleading’ record. The 1-5 Titans have played Michigan State, Cincinnati and Oakland among others this season.
They are led by senior guard Bridgid Mulroy, who averages 17.2 points per game by making 36-of-72 shots, including 21-of-35 (60 percent) on 3-pointers.
Their leading rebounder is sophomore forward Yar Shayok, who is averaging a double-double per game with 14 points and 10.5 rebounds.
‘It’s a trap game,’ Miller said. ‘It was a close game for all 30 minutes last year and then we broke it wide open. We’re certainly not overlooking them or taking them lightly.’
BG won in a rout last season, downing the Detroit-Mercy 72-42 for the fourth straight time. The last time the Titans defeated BG was on Nov. 20, 2001, in what was Miller’s first loss as a collegiate head coach.
The teams will face-off tonight at 7 at Calihan Hall.
Breske’s back
Miller said the team is fortunate that senior center Tara Breske only missed two games with a knee injury.
Thought to have been a ‘significant’ injury when she suffered it against Oakland, Miller said Breske’s knee responded well to rehab.
‘It was a huge shot in the arm getting Tara Breske back,’ Miller said. ‘She’s not 100 percent. We’re going to still ease her back into things. The great news is it wasn’t an ACL injury, and obviously, we have her back.’
Breske played 16 minutes against Vanderbilt but will not start tonight.
Team health
Sophomore Maribeth Giese is out ‘until further notice’ due to mono.
Giese did not dress for BG’s last home game, a 77-72 win against St. Francis on Dec. 1, and was not on the practice floor yesterday.
Freshman Jessie Tamerlano was also believed to have had mono at the beginning of the month, but Miller said that was not the case. Tamerlano is practicing with the team.
Love the state
The Falcons have won 12 of their past 13 games in Michigan. The only loss was at Michigan State in the 2008 WNIT.
Milestone
With a victory, Miller will win his 185th career game with the Falcons.
Former BG coach Fran Voll is third among Mid-American Conference coaches in total victories with 189, and Miller will pass him at some point this season.
