Falcons Face Flashes to Begin Second Half of MAC Schedule

Wednesday, January 31

Kent, OH

7:00 PM ET

Bowling Green State University

Kent State

Bench Maddie Cole Sierra Thompson - Jan 27 2018

January 30, 2018 | Women's Basketball

BGSU ends January slate with Wednesday's game at the M.A.C. Center

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

BGSU at KENT STATE
<><> Wednesday, January 31, 2018 • 7:00 p.m. <><>
<><> M.A.C Center (6,327) • Kent, Ohio <><>
<><><><><><><><><><><><>
<><> TELEVISION / VIDEO: ESPN3.com <><>
<><> RADIO / AUDIO: BGRSO – Ryan Strodtbeck <><>
<><> LIVE STATS: www.KentStateSports.com <><>
<><> TWITTER: @BGSUwbb <><>

all available audio, stats & video links can be found at BGSUFalcons.com on game day

UP NEXT FOR THE FALCONS...
The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team begins the second half of the Mid-American Conference schedule this week. Head coach Jennifer Roos and the Falcons head east for a Wednesday (Jan. 31) game vs. Kent State University, with tipoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at the Memorial Athletic & Convocation Center.

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FOLLOW THE FALCONS
If you can't make it to the arena on game day, fear not – you can still follow the Falcons via your radio- or computer-like devices. Wednesday's game at KSU will feature free video and audio streams, as well as live stats and Twitter updates. All links will be available via BGSUFalcons.com.

All of BGSU's home games, and many road contests (including the KSU contest), will have audio broadcasts, courtesy of the Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization (BGRSO). And, every BGSU home game this season will have a free live stream, with all but one home contest in 2017-18 aired via ESPN3.com. Additionally, all of BG's conference road games are scheduled to be streamed via ESPN3.com.

Live stats are also available for all games, and in-game Twitter updates for every BGSU game can be found at @BGSUwbb.

To follow the Falcons, simply log on to BGSUFalcons.com and click the 'calendar' link on the day of the game, or navigate your way to the women's basketball page. Any and all available links to ticket info. and game coverage will be available there.

FALCONS HEAD EAST
The Falcons, as mentioned earlier, have reached the midpoint of the MAC schedule. BGSU played only three games vs. fellow East Division members during the first half of the schedule, going 2-1 against the East and 0-6 vs. West Division opponents in that time.

Beginning with Wednesday's KSU kerfuffle, the Falcons will play two-straight games, and seven of the last nine conference contests, against East Division foes. BG hosts Miami this weekend, and after facing Western Michigan and Northern Illinois, the Falcons' last five games come inside the division.

SYD THE KID
Junior point guard Sydney Lambert scored a career-high 24 points in the Falcons' game vs. arch-rival Toledo Saturday afternoon (Jan. 27). It marked the fifth game of 20 or more points in her BGSU career. Lambert had scored exactly 20 points on four prior occasions.

The Toledo game was the 79th BGSU contest since Lambert arrived on campus as a freshman. She has been in the starting lineup for all 79 BG games since that time.

Lambert hit four three-pointers in the UT tilt, and now has made 167 treys in her career. She is ninth in school history on that list, just one behind eighth-place Kim Griech (168 from 1998-2003) and three in back of seventh-place Carin Horne (170 from 2003-07). In fact, Lambert – just a junior – is only six three-pointers away from moving into the top five in school history on that list.

"CS" IS SHORT FOR BOTH "Carly Santoro" AND "CHARITY STRIPE"
Junior Carly Santoro has had a knack for getting to the foul line this season. Through 20 games, Santoro leads the Falcons with 80 free throws made and 121 attempts. The FTM total is the highest by a BG player in three years (since Deborah Hoekstra was 91-of-101 at the line in 2014-15).

Santoro is currently averaging 4.00 free throws made and 6.05 attempts per game. No BG player has come close to those averages since the legendary Lauren Prochaska went 204-for-224 at the stripe in the 2010-11 campaign. That season, Prochaska averaged 6.18 FTM and 6.79 FTA.

LAMTORO
Juniors Sydney Lambert and Carly Santoro have been constants in the BGSU lineup. Lambert, as mentioned, has started all 79 of the Falcons' games since she arrived on campus. Santoro, one of the Falcons' top players off the bench as a freshman, has started all 51 contests since the beginning of her sophomore year.

Lambert and Santoro rank first and second among active Falcons in multiple categories. Santoro leads the Falcons with 38 career double-digit scoring games and six games of 20 or more points. Lambert is right behind, with five 20-point games among her 37 career double-figure efforts.

Lambert leads all current Falcons with 783 career points, while Santoro has scored 757 points since joining the Orange and Brown.

THE FALCONS: A QUICK OVERVIEW
BGSU is 10-10 on the season, and the Falcons are 2-7 in Mid-American Conference play. BG is 5-5 at the Stroh Center, 4-5 in true road games and 1-0 in neutral-site contests this season to date.

The Falcons opened the season with seven games in a 19-day span. BGSU went 6-1 during that time, then began December by downing Xavier before a large School Day crowd at the Stroh. But, BG then dropped six of the last seven games.

BG snapped a five-game losing streak with a 66-64 win at Akron on Jan. 13, and the Falcons then downed Kent State, 60-50, four days later. But, BGSU has lost the last three games, with narrow home setbacks to Ohio and Toledo sandwiched around a road loss against Ball State.

Head coach Jennifer Roos and her staff – which is comprised of assistant coaches Jacey Brooks, Nick Moore and Jessie Ivey, director of operations Monique Rosati and video coordinator Amanda Cutcher – welcomed back a total of nine returning players, including three starters, from a year ago. The list of returnees includes two seniors, three juniors and four second-year Falcons.

Rachel Myers and Haley Puk make up the senior class, while Maddie Cole, Sydney Lambert and Carly Santoro each are in their junior year. Sophomores Andrea Cecil, Caterrion Thompson and Jane Uecker also return, as does Clare Glowniak, who is a redshirt freshman in terms of eligibility after missing the bulk of last season due to injury.

The nine returnees are joined by five freshmen, including Terri Battle, Madisen Parker, Angela Perry, Sierra Thompson and Kennedy Williams. Perry made her collegiate debut in the MAC opener at Western Michigan, after missing the entire non-league portion of the schedule due to injury.

Cecil, Lambert, Puk and Santoro each have started all 20 games this season. Uecker started the first 13 contests of the year, while Glowniak has been in the starting five in each of the last seven games.

Heading into the KSU conflict, four Falcons are averaging over nine points per game. Santoro leads the way with 13.4 ppg, and is nearly averaging a double-double, with a team-leading 9.5 rpg. She ranks second in the MAC in rebounds.

Lambert has an even 10.0 ppg, while Cecil and Puk are averaging 9.6 and 9.1 ppg, respectively. Uecker (5.4 ppg) and Caterrion Thompson (5.3) are ranked fifth and sixth on the team in scoring. Uecker had 10 points in the Toledo game, going a perfect 5-for-5 from the field vs. the Rockets.

Lambert leads the team in assists, with 2.4 per game, while Santoro has 1.8 helpers per contest. Santoro (1.8) and Lambert (1.7) are ranked 1-2 on the team in steals per game. Lambert has knocked down 40 three-point field goals this year, while Puk has hit 33.

Through nine MAC games, Santoro has BG-best averages of 11.7 ppg and 8.3 rpg, while Lambert has 9.0 ppg, Puk 7.8 and Caterrion Thompson 7.6. Thompson is shooting 47.1 percent from three-point range in league contests, having gone 16-of-34 from the arc, and Puk has gone 46.4% from downtown. They rank fourth and fifth, respectively, in the conference in that category.

#CanScoreO (#AndReboundO)
Junior Carly Santoro has recorded 10 double-doubles this season to date, making her only the third Falcon with a double-digit double-double total in the last 20 years.

As of Monday afternoon (Jan. 29), Santoro led the MAC and was tied for 18th in the nation in double-doubles. She also ranked among the top-50 players in the country in rebounding.

FALCONS VS. THE MAC
The Falcons continue to own the best record in MAC history. Entering Wednesday's KSU contest, BGSU has an all-time record of 404-202 (.667) in MAC regular-season games, for the most wins and highest winning percentage of all league institutions.

And, BG leads the series with all 11 MAC foes, making the Falcons the only team in the league with a winning series record against every other school. BG also has the most overall victories and highest overall winning pct. of any league institution.

SCOUTING KSU
Kent State is 10-11 this season to date, and the Golden Flashes are 3-6 in MAC play entering Wednesday night's game. The Flashes snapped a three-game losing streak with a 62-55 road win over Toledo last Wednesday, but dropped a 75-60 decision at Akron on Saturday. KSU is 2-3 at home, 6-5 on the road and 2-3 in neutral-site matchups this season. In MAC play, the Flashes are 1-2 at the M.A.C. Center and 2-4 in hostile venues. Jordan Korinek paces KSU with 20.1 points per game, good for third in the MAC. In league games only, she ranks second in the conference with 22.0 ppg. Korinek, who also leads the Flashes in rebounding (6.6 rpg), is ranked among the top-five players in the nation in both free throws made (133) and attempted (159). Megan Carter, who became eligible at the start of conference play, has 11.9 ppg, while McKenna Stephens has 10.2 ppg and 6.4 rpg. Last year, KSU was one of the most improved teams in the nation, going 19-13 overall and 13-5 in the MAC. Head coach Todd Starkey welcomed back eight letterwinners, including four starters, from that team.

THE SERIES
The Falcons lead Kent State, 54-32, in the all-time series between the teams – a fact that's not surprising at all, since we already told you that BGSU leads the series with EVERY MAC school – and BG captured this year's first meeting. The Falcons posted a 60-50 victory at the Stroh Center two weeks ago (Jan. 17, 2018). The Falcons' last visit to the M.A.C. Center saw the Flashes pick up an 80-78 win after a jumper by Megan Carter with just 2.2 seconds left. KSU has won four of the last seven matchups, after BG had won eight-straight meetings and 20 of the previous 21 tilts. BGSU is 27-12 in home games (including 6-2 in the Stroh), 21-18 on the road and 7-2 at neutral sites vs. Kent/Kent State over the years.

UP NEXT
Following the Kent State trip, the Falcons will return to the Stroh for the first two February games. BG meets Miami on Saturday (Feb. 3) at 1:00 p.m. That game is Alumnae Day for the Falcons, and the 2006-07 team – which won a MAC-record 31 games and advanced to the NCAA Championships Round of 16 – will be recognized.

The Miami matchup is the first half of a Falcon hoops doubleheader at the Stroh. It also marks the final weekend home game of the 2017-18 regular season for the Orange and Brown.

BG then faces Western Michigan at the Stroh next Wednesday (Feb. 7), before returning to the road to meet Northern Illinois (Feb. 10) and Ohio (Feb. 17) on back-to-back Saturdays.

BGSU WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Wed., Jan. 31 – at Kent State, 7:00 p.m.
Sat., Feb. 3 – MIAMI, 1:00 p.m. (Alumnae Day / Sweet Sixteen Team Recognition)
Wed., Feb. 7 – WESTERN MICHIGAN, 7:00 p.m.

HOME games at the Stroh Center
All times Eastern unless noted