Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Open MAC West Play At NIU
January 10, 2003 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 10, 2003
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio -
Bowling Green (8-4, 1-0)
at
Northern Illinois (4-8, 0-1)
GAME #13
Sat., Jan. 11, 2003
3:05 PM CT
Convocation Center (9,100)
DeKalb, Illinois
RADIO: WBGU-FM (88.1)
Series: Tied, 9-9
Last Meeting: Northern Ill. 56, at BGSU 52 (Jan. 9, 2002)
Complete Game Notes (22 pages) in PDF Format
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THE GAME
The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team, coming off a win in the Mid-American Conference opener, now begin the road portion of the league slate with a tough test. The Falcons (8-4, 1-0 MAC) of head coach Curt Miller, having won four-straight games and six of the last seven contests, will play four of the next five games on the road, beginning with a Saturday (Jan. 11) contest vs. Northern Illinois University. Tipoff is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. locally (4:05 EST) at NIU's brand-new Convocation Center (9,100).
Following the NIU game, the Falcons will make the short trip north for a Wednesday (Jan. 15) contest against the arch-rival University of Toledo. That game will begin at 7:00 p.m. at UT's John F. Savage Hall (9,000).
GOOD START
The Falcons are just one win away from the team's victory total for all of last year ... BGSU, 9-19 last winter, has an overall record of 8-4 heading into the NIU contest ... the 8-4 mark ties the Falcons with Toledo for the best record among all 13 MAC schools to date ... this year's 12-game start is the best for a Falcon club since the 1997-98 team went 9-3 to begin the year ... that 1997-98 squad went on to post 21 wins and earn a WNIT berth.
COVER GIRL
Falcon junior Lindsay Austin's picture adorned the cover of the game program for Wednesday's (Jan. 8) Ohio contest ... the point guard showed that there is no "cover jinx" by dishing out a career-high 10 assists en route to her first collegiate double-double in BG's 73-72 win ... Austin had 17 points, just three away from her career best, and her game-high total of four steals fell just one shy of her career standard in that category ... Austin had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 5.00 in the game, turning the ball over just twice in 36 minutes of action, despite Ohio's pressure defense for much of the contest ... the Falcons are now 6-2 since Austin returned to the starting lineup after suffering a sprained ankle just prior to the regular-season opener.
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
Prior to the Ohio game, the Falcons ended the most successful non-conference season in over a decade ... BGSU's total of seven wins was the highest since the 1991-92 team set a school record with nine wins prior to the MAC season ... over the last 21 years (since the Falcons began playing a true non-conference slate prior to the league schedule), only three other BG teams have won seven or more games.
GO WEST
Saturday's game marks BGSU's first intradivisional contest since moving to the MAC's West Division ... the Falcons, who have played in the East Division since the MAC went to a divisional format five years ago, moved to the West Division for the 2002-03 campaign ... the move was a result of the MAC's adding the University of Central Florida as a football-only member and placing UCF in the East Division.
THE AIR UP THERE
The Falcons are four games above the .500 mark for the first time since the end of the 1997-98 season, which BG finished at 21-8.
WBGU RADIO TO BROADCAST AT LEAST 25 GAMES THIS SEASON
WBGU-FM (88.1) is scheduled to air 24 regular-season games, including all remaining regular-season contests, plus any postseason action ... the BGSU department of athletics and the Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization (BGRSO) have reached an agreement to have WBGU serve as the flagship station for both hockey and women's basketball for the 2002-03 academic year ... the broadcasters for women's hoops will vary on a game-to-game basis ... games produced by BGRSO are scheduled to be heard on the Internet at bgrso.org and via the Real One Package available through bgsufalcons.com.
ABOUT THE FALCONS
BGSU, as mentioned, will take an 8-4 record into the NIU game ... the Falcons opened the MAC schedule with a 73-72 win over visiting Ohio Wednesday (Jan. 8) ... senior Francine Miller had a game-high 20 points, while junior Lindsay Austin had her first collegiate double-double, with 17 points and a career-high 10 assists ... the Falcons have won four consecutive games, and six of the last seven contests ... the Ohio game marked the Falcons' second consecutive one-point win, as BG closed the non-conference slate by hanging on for a 70-69 victory at Oakland (Jan. 3) ... Miller had a team-high 23 points in that contest, while sophomore Tene Lewis clinched the win by stealing an OU inbounds pass in the final seconds ... that game came on the heels of a come-from-behind win over IUPUI, 69-59, on Dec. 30.
The Falcons had ended the pre-Christmas slate by splitting a pair of games at the Bearcat Invitational (Dec. 21-22) ... BG dropped an 88-57 decision to host Cincinnati, but bounced back in a big way, beating Savannah State by a 50-point margin, 89-39, in the consolation game ... freshman Marisa Smith exploded for 22 points, including six three-point field goals, in the latter game ... Austin, a Cincinnati native, was BGSU's lone representative to the all-tournament team.
Prior to the UC tourney, BG won road games at IPFW, 76-58 (Dec. 11), behind a career-high 20 points from Austin, and at Cleveland State, 62-59 (Dec. 14) ... Miller had 23 points, including 17 in the first half, of the CSU game.
Miller continues to lead the team in scoring, with 14.1 points per game ... she also paces the Falcons in rebounding, with 5.5 per contest, and is second in steals, with 2.2 per outing.
Austin has moved into second place on the team with 10.8 points per game, and she leads the Falcons in both assists (4.4 apg) and steals (2.30 spg) ... Austin is tops on the team and second in the MAC with an assist-to-TO ratio of 2.59.
Senior Kim Griech is third in scoring (10.6 ppg), and paces the Brown and Orange in three-point field goals made (20) and free-throw pct. (.920; 23-of-25) ... Griech leads BGSU in minutes played (26.8 mpg).
Junior Stefanie Wenzel has 9.8 points per outing and a three-point field-goal percentage of .368 (14-of-38) on the year ... redshirt junior Pam Brown has averages of 5.3 points and 3.4 rebounds, but has missed the last four games due to injury and will likely sit out the NIU game as well.
Marisa Smith, senior Megan Jerome and freshman Jill Lause all are averaging 4.5 points per game ... Smith has a team-best three-point FG pct. of .500 (12-of-24) on the year, while Jerome is second on the team in both assists (1.8 apg) and asst./TO ratio (2.33) ... Lause, who is shooting .529 (18-of-34) from the field this year, has made nine consecutive field-goal attempts over the last three games.
Griech, Miller, Wenzel and senior Karen Stocz (4.1 ppg) have started all 12 games to date for the Falcons ... freshman Molly Martin had started the first four contests at point guard ... Martin, however, left the team in late December for personal reasons ... Austin, slowed by a sprained ankle at the start of the season, has started each of the last eight contests, and the Falcons are 6-2 during that time.
BG finished the 2001-02 season with a record of 9-19, and the Falcons completed Mid-American Conference play with a league ledger of 6-10 ... the Brown and Orange ended conference play in fourth place in the MAC's East Division ... a total of nine letterwinners returned for 2002-03 ... that list includes one player who did not letter last year, Miller ... Miller played in just four of the Falcons' 28 games last winter, and was granted an additional year of eligibility.
The freshman class now includes three players, from three different states ... Britt Anderson (Fort Collins, Colo.), Lause (Dublin, Ohio) and Marisa Smith (Arnold, Pa.) joined the squad for the 2002-03 campaign... Anderson has seen action in all 12 games, while the other two frosh each have played in 11 contests ... additionally, Casey McDowell (Hudson, Ohio), a transfer from Indiana State University, is on campus, but is sitting out the 2002-03 season per NCAA transfer rules ... McDowell will have three years of eligibility remaining.
On the sidelines, Curt Miller is joined by second-year assistants Jennifer Roos and Brandi Poole ... Kevin Eckert, who spent the last four seasons at the University at Buffalo, is in his first season on the staff.
The Falcons are 3-2 at home, 4-1 on the road and 1-1 in neutral-site games ... BGSU went 5-7 at home last winter, and the Falcons were 3-10 on the road and 1-2 in neutral-site contests in 2001-02 ... BG went 4-4 at home and 2-6 on the road in MAC games last year.
The Falcons are shooting .412 from the field, while holding the opponents to a FG pct. of .381 ... BG has made 75 three-point field goals, and the Falcons are shooting .332 from behind the arc ... the foes have made 76 treys and have a long-distance pct. of .330 ... the Brown and Orange converted 174 free throws to the foes' 129 over the first 12 contests ... BGSU is shooting .737 from the stripe, compared to .620 for the opponents.
SCOUTING NIU
Northern Illinois brings a 4-8 overall record into the BGSU game ... the Huskies saw a frantic second-half comeback fall just short in a 74-71 road loss to Ball State Wednesday (Jan. 8) ... freshman Joi Scott, who entered that game with a total of 35 points on the season, led the Huskies in both scoring and rebounding, with 17 points and seven boards off the bench ... NIU had a rough non-conference slate against a number of strong opponents, including a five-point loss to #4 Kansas State ... the Huskies are 3-2 at home, with wins over Wisconsin, Illinois State and Bradley in the Convocation Center ... individually, junior forward Jennifer Youngblood leads the team in both scoring and rebounding, with 14.2 points and 7.7 rebounds ... seniors Kristan Knake (12.4 ppg), a guard, and center Kim Boeding (10.5) also have double-digit scoring averages ... junior forward Stephanie Smith (7.5 ppg) and junior guard Monique Davis (5.2 ppg, 3.1 apg) joing Boeding, Knake and Youngblood in the probable starting lineup for head coach Carol Hammerle ... Hammerle, 53-75 in her fifth season in DeKalb, has a career record of 509-301 in her 30th campaign as a collegiate head coach ... Hammerle returned 10 letterwinners, including four starters, from last year's team that went 17-13 overall and 10-6 in MAC action ... the Huskies advanced to the semifinal round of the league tournament ... the school's athletic web site is www.niuhuskies.com.
THE SERIES
The Falcons are the lone MAC team that does not have a losing record in an all-time series with a single conference opponent ... BG leads the all-time series with 10 of the 12 MAC foes, and the other two series -- including the Falcons' series with NIU -- are tied ... BGSU and the Huskies each have nine wins in the series ... Northern has won the last two series meetings, including a 56-52 victory at Anderson Arena in last year's lone meeting (Jan. 9, 2002) and a 73-58 triumph in the last matchup in DeKalb (Jan. 24, 2001) ... NIU holds a 6-2 advantage in home games vs. the Falcons ... each team has won three games in the series since the Huskies rejoined the MAC in 1997-98 ... the teams will meet again in three weeks, as NIU will come to Anderson Arena for a Feb. 1 matinee.
LAST TIME OUT
The Falcons opened the MAC schedule with a 73-72 win over visiting Ohio Wednesday night (Jan. 8) ... BGSU (8-4, 1-0 MAC) got a 20-point effort from senior Francine Miller, while junior Lindsay Austin had 17 points and a career-high 10 assists ... the double-double was Austin's first as a collegian ... Miller's free throw with 44 seconds remaining broke a 72-all tie, and the Falcons made a pair of defensive stops to seal the victory ... first, sophomore Tene Lewis dove on a loose ball to force a jump ball, with the Falcons getting the ball on the alternating possession ... then, after Miller missed a pair of free throws with 20.9 seconds left, the Bobcats had one more chance ... the visitors called timeout with 12.0 seconds remaining, and looked to get the ball to Andrea Johnson ... Johnson, with Lewis hounding her the entire way, finally got off a last-second shot that was wide of the mark, and BGSU had the victory ... the win was the Falcons' second consecutive one-point victory, and BGSU has now won four-straight games and six of the last seven contests ... junior Stefanie Wenzel added 14 points for the Falcons, while senior Kim Griech had 11 ... Latreece Bagley had 18 points to pace five Bobcats in double digits, while Johnson added 13 points.
SUCCESS ON THE ROAD
With the narrow win at Oakland, the Falcons have won four of the last five games away from home ... BGSU is 4-1 in true road games this season, after going 3-10 during all of 2001-02 ... BG is 5-2 in games played away from Anderson (both road and neutral-site contests) this winter, after posting a 4-12 mark in such games a year ago.
FOUR IN A ROW
The Falcons have won four consecutive games and six of the last seven overall contests ... BGSU had not won four games in a row in almost two years, since a four-game win streak from Jan. 3-13, 2001 ... the last time BGSU won six-of-seven games was nearly three years ago, from Feb. 7-28, 2000.
FALCONS' 450TH
The win at Oakland marked the 450th victory in school history ... the Falcons are now 451-308 all-time, for a winning percentage of .594 ... according to this week's Mid-American Conference release, BGSU is the third MAC school to reach 450 wins, after Northern Illinois (480) and Toledo (460).
FRANCINE THE SCORING MACHINE: MILLER SURPASSES 1,300 CAREER POINTS
Senior Francine Miller continues her climb up the BGSU career scoring chart ... in the Cleveland State game, Miller moved up a notch for the second consecutive contest ... she had 23 points vs. the Vikings (Dec. 14), moving past Michelle Shade (1,233 pts.; 1991-95) into ninth place in school history ... with 20 points in the Ohio game, Miller surpassed the 1,300-point mark for her career ... she enters the NIU contest with a total of 1,318 points ... the next target for Miller is Stephanie Coe (1983-87), who had 1,363 career points ... Miller has averaged 14.02 points per game over the first 94 contests of her career, the third-best average in BGSU annals.
LAUSE LIGHTS IT UP
Freshman Jill Lause had the finest game of her young Falcon career in the win over IUPUI (Dec. 30), and has not missed a shot since that time ... entering the NIU contest, Lause is shooting a team-best .529 from the field (18-of-34), and she has made her last nine shots ... in the IUPUI contest, Lause came off the bench to post a season high in scoring for the second consecutive game ... after scoring eight points in the Savannah State game (Dec. 22), Lause was 6-of-6 from the field en route to 14 points vs. IUPUI ... she tied her season best for rebounds, with five, and set new standards in assists (two), steals (one) and minutes played (26) ... after scoring a total of 19 points in her first seven collegiate games, Lause scored 22 points over the next two contests.
