Bonnies Too Much For BGSU, 70-54

Saturday, December 12

St. Bonaventure, NY

1:30 PM

Bowling Green State University

St. Bonaventure

Junior Lauren Prochaska scored a game-high 21 points at SBU

December 12, 2009 | Women's Basketball

By: ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. (BGSU Athletic Communications)

Dana Mitchell scored 19 points as host Saint Bonaventure University led from wire to wire in a 70-54 victory over the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team Saturday afternoon (Dec. 12). The non-conference game was held at Bob Lanier Court at the Reilly Center.

SBU 70, BGSU 54 - Final Stats
SBU 70, BGSU 54 - PDF Boxscore
BGSU Cumulative Stats - PDF
Postgame Audio: Curt Miller

With the win, the Bonnies remain undefeated at 10-0 on the year, while dropping the Falcons to 6-3.

Mitchell led four double-digit scorers for the home team, which used timely shooting and solid execution to pick up the victory. BGSU junior Lauren Prochaska led all players with 21 points, but was the only Falcon player to score in double figures on the afternoon.

Both teams shot an identical 54.2 percent from the field, making 13 shots in 24 attempts. But, SBU shot .423 from the floor in the second half, while holding the Falcons to just a 6-for-23 (.261) second-half success rate.

Chelsea Bowker scored 14 points off the bench for the Bonnies, while Megan Van Tatenhove added 12 points and Andrea Doneth 10.

SBU scored the game's first four points, and took a 7-2 lead after Jessica Jenkins banked home a three-point field-goal try. Prochaska scored off a feed from senior Tamika Nurse to cut the Falcons' deficit to a single point, at 7-6. But, the Bonnies reeled off five quick points to take a 12-6 lead into the first media timeout of the day.

Another Prochaska bucket was followed by a jumper from junior Maggie Hennegan, who hit a turnaround shot over Mitchell, and the Bonnies' lead was 12-10. But, the Bonnies proceeded to go on a 12-0 run over the next four minutes.

That run began with a Bowker three-pointer, and culminated with Alaina Walker's jumper at the 10:43 mark. SBU led by a 24-10 count, but the Falcons responded with a double-figure run of their own.

BG scored 11-straight points to cut Bona's lead to just three. The run began when sophomore Jessica Slagle hit a right-elbow triple after senior Tara Breske kicked the ball out to her, and after an SBU miss, Prochaska took a pass from junior Tracy Pontius on the break and hit a trailing three.

SBU coach Jim Crowley quickly called a timeout, but the break did not slow the Falcons. Breske took Slagle's entry pass and hit one of her patented turnaround fadeaway shots. On the next possession, Breske blocked a three-point try by Bowker, and the Falcon senior co-captain grabbed the rebound. That led to Slagle hitting Prochaska for another long-range connection and a 24-21 game.

Mitchell ended SBU's drought by hitting a three-pointer with the shot clock winding down. But, the Falcons continued to rally. Senior Sarah Clapper hit a three-pointer, then spotted Uhl for a layup that made it a one-point game, 29-28.

Junior Chelsea Albert drew a foul on the home team and hit both free throws to cut Bona's lead to 31-30, but Doneth hit a triple, again with the shot clock about to expire. Breske showed good patience underneath the hoop, taking a pass from Slagle and avoiding several defenders to hit a layup.

With just 17.3 seconds left in the half, though, an 'and-one' layup by Bowker gave the home team a five-point lead, 39-34, as the teams headed to their respective lockerrooms.

Prochaska scored five points in the first 1:40 of the second half, including a three-pointer that cut SBU's advantage to only three points, at 43-40, but the Falcons would get no closer.

SBU scored 12-straight points over a seven-minute span, taking a double-digit lead for good. The first two points of that run, a Walker layup, came on the possession after Prochaska's triple, but neither team would score for over four minutes after that.

On the possession following Walker's layup, the Falcons had three attempts from beyond the arc, but shots by Prochaska, Nurse and Pontius would not drop, and the home team finally grabbed a rebound.

Eight more scoreless possessions -- four for each team -- followed, before Armelia Horton knocked down a jumper at the 13:40 mark. Back-to-back baskets by Van Tatenhove were followed by a Bowker triple, and the Bonnies' lead was 55-40.

The Falcons got as close as 12 points on several occasions, the last on a Uhl layup with 4:54 left, but -- again with the shot clock winding down -- Mitchell received a pass from Cara Gustafson and drailed a back-breaking triple from the top of the arc, giving the hosts a 67-52 lead. The teams combined for only five points over the final four-plus minutes of the afternoon.

For the game, the Bonnies shot .480 from the field, while holding the Falcons to a .404 rate. SBU held slight advantages in three-pointers made, free throws made and rebounds, with a 31-25 margin in the latter category. Walker pulled down a game-high eight boards, while both Mitchell and Horton had six.

Breske, Prochaska and Uhl had four rebounds each for the Brown and Orange. Prochaska made 8-of-15 shots from the field, but the rest of the team combined to go just 11-for-32. Breske was second on the team in scoring with six points, and blocked three shots to lead all players.

The Falcons turned the ball over just 12 times, but could force SBU into only 11 turnovers.

BGSU now takes a break for final exams before returning to action with another trip to Western New York next weekend. The Falcons will face Canisius next Saturday (Dec. 19), beginning a stretch of three games in five days prior to Christmas. BG's next home game is Dec. 23 vs. Appalachian State.