.png&type=webp)
Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
Florida International
Second-Half Surge Leads Falcons Past FIU, 67-56
December 10, 2005 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 10, 2005
Final Stats | Quotes
MIAMI, Fla. - Trailing by two points at the half, the Bowling Green State University used a second-half run to surge past host Florida International University, 67-56, Saturday night. The non-conference game was held at Pharmed Arena.
With the win, the Falcons improve to 7-0 on the year, setting a school record for the best start to a season. The Golden Panthers dropped to 4-3.
The BGSU victory came against a team that rarely loses at home. In the 20-year history of Pharmed Arena, the Golden Panthers are now 247-54 all-time.
Sophomore Kate Achter scored a game-high 20 points while junior Ali Mann had 16 in the win. Junior Carin Horne joined that pair in double digits with a 12-point night, and Horne also had a game-best five steals. The Falcons forced FIU into 26 turnovers.
For the hosts, Lasma Jekabsone led the way with 17 points and a game-best nine rebounds, while Faeza Bouderra had 16 points and Eva Makela 11.
The Falcons got off to a solid start in each half. In the opening stanza, the Brown and Orange scored the first eight points. A Mann layup just over a minute into the game broke the scoreless tie, and the Falcons doubled the lead after a steal by freshman Lindsey Goldsberry nearly three minutes into the contest.
Goldsberry deftly picked the pocket of Makela at midcourt, and fed Achter for a layup at the 17:15 mark. Then, after an Achter free throw, Goldsberry found Mann for a three-pointer, and the visitors led, 8-0, forcing FIU coach Cindy Russo to take a timeout.
The Falcons held the Golden Panthers off the board for the game's first 5:12, as the hosts missed six shots and committed five turnovers in that span. Bouderra got FIU on the scoreboard, however, in a big way. She hit a three-point field goal as a foul was whistled on the Falcons, and hit her free throw to complete the four-point play and cut BG's lead in half.
Horne, however, hit a running layup at the 14:05 mark, then drained a three-ball off a pass from junior Liz Honegger, and the lead was 13-4. After Jekabsone hit a jumper, Honegger backed her defender down and scored from close range, restoring the nine-point margin.
The lead was still nine points, at 21-12, when the hosts went on an 8-0 run. Makela completed that run with a layup on the fastbreak, cutting BG's margin to a single point with 5:37 left in the half.
Junior Megan Thorburn broke a BG scoreless drought of nearly four minutes, hitting a foul-line jumper at the 5:18 mark, and Mann hit a charity toss half a minute later. But, a Marquita Adley shot halved the lead, and Makela's trey at the four-minute mark gave the hosts the lead for the first time, 25-24.
When Bouderra's prayer was answered 40 seconds later, it looked like it might not be the Falcons' night. After a BG turnover, FIU scrambled to get a shot off as the shot clock ticked perilously close to zero. Bouderra received a pass that was deflected, grabbed the ball and whirled toward the basket. Her turnaround, no-look three-pointer found nothing but net as the shot-clock buzzer sounded, putting the hosts up by four points, 28-24, with 3:10 left in the half.
That would be the last basket of the first half for either team, however. A pair of Achter free throws in the final minute would be the only points for either squad prior to the intermission.
In the second half, as in the first, the Falcons started quickly. A Mann jumper tied the game briefly, before Bouderra gave the hosts the lead once again with a three-pointer at the 19:10 mark. The next few minutes, however, were all BG.
Over the next 7:11, the Falcons went on a 19-1 run to take a 47-32 lead.
Honegger began the run, taking a pass from Achter and hitting a three-pointer to tie the game. Then, Goldsberry hit a trey of her own, off another Achter feed, to give the Falcons a 34-31 lead at the 17:59 mark. The Brown and Orange would not trail again.
A Horne steal and layup gave the Falcons a five-point margin, before Jekabsone split a pair of tosses to cut the lead to 36-32. But, BG scored the next 11 points, with Mann leading the charge.
The junior scored seven of those 11 points, beginning with a pair of free throws at the 16:08 mark, after she drove inside and drew a foul on Liene Bernsone, her third of the game.
Goldsberry hit a right-side runner, giving the Falcons a 40-32 lead, then took a charge at the other end as LaQuetta Ferguson was whistled for an offensive foul.
Mann drew another FIU foul, getting Adley in the air with a pump-fake and heading to the line. Her two charity tosses put the Falcons up by 10 points with 14:55 left.
Achter converted a jumper at the 14:14 mark, and Mann wowed the crowd with a reverse layup that was vaguely reminiscent of Julius Erving in his heyday. In addition to the spectacular play, Mann drew a foul on Makela and converted the ensuing free throw, and BG had a 47-32 lead.
Jekabsone split a pair of free throws, and hit a hoop to break the hosts' long streak without a basket. Achter answered with a jumper, but the Golden Panthers then scored the game's next five points to cut BG's lead to single digits, 49-40.
Freshman Jasmine McCall, who had committed the turnover that led to the final two points of that FIU run, redeemed herself quite nicely, thank you. McCall stepped up and hit a three-pointer off a pass from Goldsberry at the 8:23 mark, giving the Falcons a 52-40 margin. On the play, Goldsberry dribbled under the basket and drew several defenders toward her before finding McCall on the right wing.
The teams battled through the next few minutes, with the lead fluctuating between nine and 12 points. Horne got a rebound and hit a putback jumper in traffic, culminating a possession that saw BG get three offensive boards. That hoop gave the Falcons a 55-44 lead with 6:39 remaining.
The Golden Panthers got as close as eight points, 62-54, on a Makela jumper with 2:01 remaining. But, Achter went 3-of-4 from the foul line, while Horne was perfect on two tries, over the final two minutes.
On the night, the Falcons shot 38.2 percent from the field, while holding FIU to a 36.4% rate. Goldsberry led the Falcons with three assists, tying for game honors in that category.
In addition to Horne's five steals, Mann had three and Goldsberry and Achter two apiece. The Falcons had a season-high 14 steals in the game.
Honegger led the Falcons with seven rebounds, and also had three blocked shots.
BGSU now has nearly two weeks before the next game. After taking a break for final exams, the Falcons will play at Oakland University on Dec. 22.
NOTES
