After the women’s basketball team’s 61-54 loss to Butler last night at Anderson Arena, Butler coach Beth Couture was asked how her team was able to shut down the Falcons’ top offensive threats, Francine Miller and Stefanie Wenzel.
“We told our girls before the game if we could pressure and deny and get [BG’s] offense spread out, that we could defend them a little better,” Couture said. “They’re great shooters, and we didn’t want to get caught on screens.”
The strategy was effective, as Butler held Francine to 13 points. She had just four in the first half. Wenzel was held to just three points all game.
The rest of the team didn’t fare much better, shooting just under 35 percent from the field. BG coach Curt Miller said that Butler’s defensive pressure took the Falcons out of their game. “Their pressure had us out of sync all night,” Miller said. “They dare you to beat them inside.”
Coach Miller said the pressure bothered Wenzel more than Francine Miller. Francine was 5-16 from the field and 1-5 from three-point range.
“She missed a lot of makeable shots that she’ll usually knock down,” Miller said. “We tried to pound it into her more inside than you probably have seen in my two years here. She missed a lot of bunnies that I feel confident she’ll make in a normal night.”
Another key statistic in the game was foul shooting. Coach Miller has maintained that BG needs to get to the line to be successful. They were 6-10 from the line last night. Butler had 25 free throw attempts, making 10.
“We did not, off the dribble, attack them all night,” Miller said. “With the way our offense works, we have to be willing to break down that first line of defense, and create shots for other people or get to the foul line.”
Miller said that not having Lindsay Austin for the first half limited the offense as well. She played for 10 minutes in the second half, and scored six points. Miller said that it was important to get Austin in to get her ready to play this coming weekend.
BG’s best offensive stretch of the game came in the final three minutes, when BG went on a 12-3 run. Francine Miller scored seven of those points. Miller said that while the team didn’t play great at the end of the game, they did seem to play with more intensity.
“I felt like we had a sense of urgency at the end of the game,” Miller said. “We played a little bit harder and with a little more passion when the time was out. You only hope you can see that from the tip.”
The Falcons will now travel to Boca Raton Florida to take part in the Radisson Suites Classic. Their next game will be on Friday against Florida Atlantic at 7 p.m.
