Defeating a Florida Atlantic team that barely missed the NCAA Tournament a year ago and was picked to win their half of the Atlantic Sun Conference this season was a measure of trying new schemes and new combinations.
Playing against a team like UNC-Wilmington, which had won 11 of their last 15 games dating back to last season and giving them all they could handle for an entire game, was a measure of growth and effort.
Simply, the Bowling Green women’s basketball team during last weekend’s Radisson Suites Roundball classic was anything but quiet.
It was a victory over the FAU Lady Owls and the record-tying performance of senior Kim Greich in the 72-55 loss to the Seahawks, among other things that seemed to capture moments and signify what BG is capable of achieving.
“The win over Florida Atlantic was really big for us, but I think the road trip was good for a lot of other reasons. Some good things happened off the court and you could see the team coming closer together,” said Coach Curt Miller. “It was a total effort, and I think that Kim played great. It was really encouraging to see how hard we competed last weekend, and I think they have to walk away confident knowing they can play with good teams.”
For the first time all season, Coach Miller had an opportunity to play what might have been his projected starting five at the beginning of the season, leaving the Falcons full of optimism. Also, the emergence of Griech, who shot 7-10 from behind the three-point line en route to a 30-point night against UNCW, has given BG another scoring threat to go along with Francine Miller and Stefanie Wenzel.
“There was a stretch when I looked out on the floor against Florida Atlantic and saw Lindsay Austin at the point, Kim and Stefanie at the wings, Francine at the power forward and Pam Brown at the center spot. Right now, Karen Stocz has been playing well enough to continue being our starting center,” Miller said.
BG now takes its show on the road to face Indiana Purdue-Fort Wayne, which will be the third time this season the Falcons will play a team that they defeated from a year ago.
The two previous games ended with losses to Young State to open the season and Butler just seven days go.
IPFW will not be the same squad that suffered a 73-57 loss at Anderson Arena last season; the team has lost four seniors from a team that finished 4-23 last season.
However, the addition of 10 new faces and the return of guard Amy Gearlds, who led the Mastodons in scoring as a sophomore with 15.4 points per-game, has IPFW two wins shy of last seasons total.
The Mastodons are coming off of two consecutive road losses to Toledo and Detroit-Mercy, but coach Miller knows that they will be seeking some redemption and might be the favorites going into the game.
“IPFW is much-improved from the team that we beat last year, so we have to play our type of game. They have a lot of freshmen added into the mix. They’ll be on their home court and were heading into finals week, so it’s a lot of scary combinations going into this game,” Coach Miller said. “I really think that IPFW is the favorite going into this game. And they’re hungry because we beat them last year, but I hope our mindset is to go in there to compete and challenge them.”
Tonight’s match-up against the Mastodons will be the third of a six-game road trip for the Falcons. The game is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at the Hilliard Gates Sports Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
