BGSU women’s basketball (4-4) hosts Defiance (3-7) on Sunday afternoon at the Stroh Center, looking to earn their fourth straight win and remain unbeaten at home.
Falcon Media Sports Network’s Adam Duffin and Dan Ridenour will be the broadcast duo to call the 1 p.m. tipoff on WBGU 88.1 FM. Pre-game studio coverage begins at 12:35 p.m. with Ben Corakand Holden Ruck.
Bowling Green is 6-1 all-time versus Defiance, with the most recent game happening in 1981, a 76-55 Bowling Green victory.
Bowling Green
BG has won its first two home games and is riding a three-game win streak. BGSU’s latest victory was a 103-32 offensive showcase over Kentucky State on Wednesday.
The 71-point victory was kick-started by a 27-0 first quarter. A scoreless quarter for a Falcon opponent had not happened in three years.
A large factor in the scoring outburst was the Orange and Brown’s ability to score from anywhere on the court. BG shot 55 percent from the field and an impressive 42 percent from three. Both are their highest marks all season.
The starting five shot a collective 14 of 24, with three of the starters scoring in double figures. Junior forward Taya Ellis had a game-high 14 points, while sophomore guard Johnea Donahue tallied 13, followed by junior guard Paige Kohler with 11.
Donahue also collected eight steals. With her 34 steals on the year, she leads the MAC (Mid-American Conference) and is tied at seventh in the nation.
For the Falcon bench, redshirt freshman forward Sofia Moschen led the way with 12 points. She sparked the aerial attack from three-point range, as she made three of the team’s 11 on Wednesday.
A win on Sunday would give BG a positive record for the first time since their season-opening win against Louisiana.
Defiance
The Yellow Jackets are in the midst of a four-game losing streak and coming off a 96-44 loss against Eastern Michigan.
Leading the way for Defiance is sophomore point guard Taylor Haynes. She is leading the team with 12 points per game and had 11 points versus Eastern Michigan.
Haynes is followed closely by freshman forward Kayla Houston, as she is averaging 10.5 points per game along with 5.1 rebounds per game.
Defiance has struggled to shoot the ball at a high clip so far in the season. The team has shot over 40 percent only in two of their ten games.
It will be a tough test for Defiance, a squad that has not defeated a Division I opponent since Wright State in 2019.
FALCON FOUR PLAYERS TO WATCH
Paige Kohler (Bowling Green — No. 10, junior guard)
Kohler has still been productive in games, but she missed all three of her 3-point attempts against Kentucky State. Sunday’s game is a good opportunity to get it going from outside the arc.
Taya Ellis (Bowling Green — No. 11, junior forward)
Ellis has continued to have a heightened presence in the paint in out-of-conference play. Defiance only has one player over six feet on their roster; Ellis will look to take advantage of the height discrepancy.
Taylor Haynes (Defiance — No. 3, sophomore point guard)
Haynes, a Cleveland, Ohio native, is in for a difficult matchup on Sunday. She will mostly be guarded by Johnea Donahue and has to limit turnovers while engineering the offense
Kayla Houston (Defiance — No. 21, freshman forward)
Houston will have to fight for rebounds underneath the basket against much taller BG opponents. It will be a good test for her innate skills in the paint.
