BGSU women’s basketball (8-5, 1-1) looks to shake off a midweek stumble and return to the win column as they host the Central Michigan Chippewas (7-5, 1-1) Saturday afternoon.
Falcon Media Sports Network’s broadcast duo of Lucas Kleinmeyer and Trey Kennedy will be broadcasting the matchup, with the action beginning at 2:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center in Bowling Green, Ohio, on WBGU 88.1 FM.
Matchup History
Bowling Green enters the contest riding a six-game winning streak against Central Michigan, boosting their all-time series advantage to 54-23.
With the Orange and Brown’s winning streak in mind, BG is 7-3 against the Chippewas within the last 10 meetings. The last time the two schools met was in March of last year, with the Falcons prevailing 70-55.
Bowling Green
Before BGSU had fallen to Eastern Michigan 86-76, they were riding a seven-game winning streak and were looking to make strides in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) after defeating Kent State the game prior.
Entering Tuesday’s affair, junior guard Taya Ellis gave the team a jumpstart after she returned to the rotation after sustaining an apparent injury against Lourdes on Dec 14th. Instead of returning to the starting lineup, she produced eight points and four rebounds in 14 minutes of action off the bench.
Even with Ellis active and healthy again, head coach Fred Chmiel maintained the starting five that he constructed against the Golden Flashes, which included junior guard Paige Kohler, sophomore guard Johnea Donahue, sophomore forward Lauren Gerken, junior guard Jasmine Fearne, and senior guard Kaia Woods.
In Tuesday’s loss to Eastern Michigan, the Falcons battled another severely cold spell from the field, as they struggled to find any rhythm on the offensive side of the ball after shooting 37% from the floor.
Kohler and Woods together led BGSU in scoring, combining for 33 of their 76 points. Kohler scored 18 points, while Woods mustered 15 points off an efficient 6-9 shooting.
Donahue finished the game having logged her second consecutive double-double of the season, finishing the night with 10 points and 10 rebounds against the Chippewas.
Central Michigan
Central Michigan approaches Saturday’s game looking to bounce back after its two-game winning streak was snapped on Tuesday, as the Chippewas lost 85-83 in an overtime thriller to the Ohio Bobcats.
Sophomore forward Ayanna-Sarai Darrington and sophomore guard Madi Morson accounted for 50 of the Chippewas’ 83 points. Darrington led both Central Michigan and Ohio for the most points scored in the game with 27 points and 21 rebounds. Morson contributed to the scoring with her 23 points, three rebounds, and four assists.
On the season, the Chippewas are shooting on average 42% from the floor. On Tuesday, they shot 38% from the hardwood and worse 27% from distance.
Other than both Darrington and Morson, senior forward Demetria Prewitt led Chippewa’s bench with nine points in 25 minutes of action.
FALCON FOUR PLAYERS TO WATCH
Kaia Woods (Bowling Green No. 1 senior guard)
Since joining the starting lineup, Woods has been a catalyst for both the Falcons’ offense and defense during the past month of play. She is averaging 7.9 points per game off a 52.7% field goal percentage this season. Whenever the Falcons execute a successful fast break play, it feels like Woods always has her fingerprints all over the ball.
Paige Kohler (Bowling Green No. 10 junior guard)
Kohler paces the Orange and Brown with 15 points per contest, routinely making plays that fuel the Falcons’ attack. However, she needs to be locked in defensively to prevent her counterpart, Morson, from getting to her spots and finding a rhythm.
Taylor Anderson (Central Michigan No. 24 senior guard)
Anderson comes in Saturday’s game having scored seven points, produced seven assists, and seven rebounds in 33 minutes of play. She paces the Chippewas in rebounds per game with 7.8. With that in mind, the Falcons must be assertive in the paint to control the glass on both ends of the floor.
Ayanna-Sarai Darrington (Central Michigan No. 25 sophomore forward)
Darrington averages 14.5 points and 7.6 rebounds a contest with an impressive 60.2% field goal percentage. She is an aggressive scorer who thrives on punishing defenders in the paint, but she can also hurt teams with her mid-range game.
