Late foul trouble in the fourth ultimately cost the BGSU womens basketball team a win as they fell at home to the Kent State Golden Flashes by a score of 70-60. BG’s overall record currently stands at 7-20 and are 3-12 against Mid-American Conference opponents.
Leading all scorers for BG was freshmen forward Andrea Cecil with 14 points. Also chipping in for the Falcons were sophomores Sydney Lambert and Carly Santoro with 11 points each.
“This was a game we were confident going in,” said BG head coach Jennifer Roos. “We played so well against them last time and I thought we did a great job of playing hard and smart. Our Achilles heel in this game, and has been all season, is the foul shooting. We knew what was coming at us and the foul shooting was the difference.”
In the first quarter, BG managed to get open looks by getting good ball movement and having a fast pace that got KSU on their heels early as they got a narrow 7-4 lead in the first three minutes. KSU was then able to slow down and match BG offensively as they were driving to the lane and getting to the free throw line. Following a missed three from junior guard Rachel Myers, with 27 seconds left, KSU’s Megan Carter hit a fade away jump shot at the buzzer giving the Golden Flashes a narrow 15-14 lead after the first.
In the second, BG was winning the rebound battle throughout the quarter, as they were able to get second chance points from their senior frontcourt in Abby Siefker and Ashley Tunstall. However, whenever it seemed BG was looking to take a big lead, the Golden Flashes had an answer on the offensive end. The biggest deficit for each team in this quarter was four points, as this looked to be a tightly contested ball game. BG led 29-27 going into the half.
In the third, BG would get its biggest lead of the game following a 7-0 run that began with an Ashley Tunstall acrobatic reverse layup that got the crowd fired up. This spark helped BG have a 39-31 lead with six minutes left in the quarter. However, KSU responded very quickly with a 12-2 run that consisted of BG getting into foul trouble and turning the ball over. The Golden Flashes seized the momentum as they led 45-41 going into the final quarter.
In the fourth quarter, KSU kept being the aggressor as they got on an 8-3 run in the first two minutes by attacking the basket. BG would trail by double digits throughout until around the 4:15 minute-mark when Andrea Cecil hit a three at the top of the key to cut the deficit to nine points. Unfortunately for BG, they were in the penalty in the final four minutes and KSU would take advantage by getting to the free throw line the rest of the way. Despite a great quarter from Santoro and Cecil, there was not enough time to make a BG comeback. Coach Roos would clear the bench in the final minute, and KSU ran the time out giving them the victory.
The Golden Flashes shot 22-28 at the free throw line, while BG would only shoot 9-11 on free throws.
“We just wanted to score quickly at the end,” Andrea Cecil said. “When we are not playing at our pace it’s very hard for us to get our rhythm going, and when we are not scoring it’s hard to play our brand of basketball.”
The Falcons next game will be on road against the Buffalo Bulls on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m.
