Bowling Green women’s basketball defeated Western Michigan 77-53 at the Stroh Wednesday night. The Falcons are now 12-3 with an 8-2 record in the MAC.
“I was proud of our team’s ability to sustain. I felt like it took us a while to get any sustained rhythm,” BGSU head coach Robyn Fralick said.
Sophomore guard Elissa Brett would be the leading scorer in the game with 17 points, going 3 of 6 from deep. She also led the Falcons in rebounds with eight.
The offense for BGSU shined in this game for the second straight contest . As a team, they shot 52.6% from the field and 46.2% from three.
WMU would end the game shooting 38.5% from the field and 20% from three. The Broncos found success on offense during the second and third quarters. In the second, they shot 63.6% from the field and 53.8% from the field in the third.
Points were scarce in the first quarter. BGSU would lead 16-10 after the first. At the first media timeout with about 3:45 left in the quarter, the score was 5-4. The Falcons would end the quarter shooting 40% from the field compared to the 25% the Broncos were shooting.
Brett got the scoring going after the media timeout. She made two threes before the quarter ended to help the offense get into a rhythm. Brett ended the quarter with eight points on 3 of 5 shooting.
The team got back on track after the first quarter by getting it done on the defensive end.
“I think picking it up on defense, doing the little things, working on rebounding and not giving them second chances,” Brett said.
At the half, the Falcons would be up 39-29. The offensive surge from the end of the first quarter extended into the second quarter. As a team, the Falcons shot 81.8% from the field and 66.7% from three.
Brett would lead all scorers with 11 points. Freshman guard Nyla Hampton would not be far behind her with nine points.
Despite not having a player in foul trouble, the Falcons had 10 fouls in the first half as a team. The Broncos would have two fouls called on them, both coming with less than a minute less in the first half.
BGSU would also be losing in the turnover category. The Falcons coughed up the ball seven times. The Broncos only had four turnovers.
After maintaining their lead through the third quarter, the Falcons tightened up on defense in the fourth. WMU was held to 16.7% from the field and 14.3% from three.
“Our best quarter was the fourth quarter. There’s a lot of ways to win a game. I was proud of our ability to keep with it throughout a forty minute game,” Fralick said.
BGSU will stay at home for their next game on Saturday. It will be a rematch of the Battle of I-75 with Toledo coming to the Stroh. Tip-off is scheduled for noon and will be available on ESPN+.
