BGSU Battles Buffalo in Key Midweek MAC Matchup

Wednesday, February 24

Buffalo, N.Y.

7:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

Buffalo

Tickets

Haley Puk v Toledo - Feb 17 2016 - Scott Grau photo

February 23, 2016 | Women's Basketball

Falcons & Bulls meet Wednesday night in Western New York

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team, coming off a road win over a fellow Mid-American Conference East Division team over the weekend, again heads eastward for a key intradivisional matchup. The Falcons of head coach Jennifer Roos face the University at Buffalo on Wednesday night (Feb. 24), with tipoff set for 7:00 p.m. at Alumni Arena.

LINKS
GAME NOTES: BGSU | Buffalo
2015-16 Women's Basketball Media Central
BGSU's 2015-16 Notes for All Games
Season Statistics | Career Stats for Current Falcons
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#TBT on a Tuesday: Remember when BG Closed the Doors in Style? | Stats

TOURNEY TIME IS NEAR...
With just four games left on the regular-season schedule, Wednesday's contest in Western New York takes on additional significance. Why? Let's answer that one-word question with multiple answers, in bullet-point form...

• Currently, BGSU and Buffalo are tied for eighth in the overall standings with identical 5-9 conference records. If the regular season ended today, the Bulls would win a tiebreaker with the Falcons by virtue of a victory in the teams' first meeting of the season.

• Both BG and UB are two games behind the seventh seed, and two games ahead of the 10th seed, with four to play (i.e., there's a good chance the Falcons and Bulls could finish the season as the eighth and ninth seeds).

• The difference between the eighth and ninth seed is the difference between being at home and having to hit the road to begin the MAC Tournament. The teams seeded fifth through eighth will host seeds nine through 12 in the league tourney first round on Monday, March 7.

• A BG win over the Bulls would put the Falcons a game ahead of Buffalo with three to play. However, a loss on Wednesday would leave BGSU a game behind the Bulls, with UB holding the tiebreaker.

TIBBS NAMED MAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• On Monday afternoon (Feb. 22), Falcon senior Lauren Tibbs was named MAC Player of the Week, earning the honor for the first time in her career. Tibbs, a native of Taylor Mill, Ky. (Scott H.S.), led the Falcons in a plethora of categories as BGSU split a pair of games last week. She averaged 23.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.5 blocked shots against Toledo and Kent State.

• Tibbs shot 66.7 perfect from the field (20-of-30) and a perfect 100% from three-point range (5-for-5) in the two games.

• On Wednesday night (Feb. 17), Tibbs had a season-high 22 points vs. the Rockets, and she topped that total with 24 points at KSU three days later. In the UT game, she had a game-high nine rebounds and tied for game honors with three blocks, and the Falcons' center was a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc. Tibbs made 9-of-15 shots from the field in that game, a 68-60 loss.

• At KSU, Tibbs led all players in points (24), rebounds (eight) and blocks (four), and she added a pair of assists and a steal in a 65-55 road win. Tibbs went 11-of-15 from the field and again was perfect (2-for-2) from three-point range. Her total of 11 field goals made in that game is the highest by a Falcon in over four years (since January of 2012).

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
If you can't make it to Buffalo for Wednesday's game, fear not – you can still follow the Falcons via your radio- or computer-like devices. The BGSU-UB game, like all of BG's games, will be broadcast by WBGU-FM 88.1, the flagship home of Falcon women's basketball, and will be available over the air or on the web. Additionally, the game will be aired on ESPN3. Live stats will be available as well, and in-game updates can be found at @BGSUwbb on your twitter machine. 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.

JUSTINGER EYES 1,000 CAREER POINTS
Senior Miriam Justinger had 12 points at Kent State, and enters the UB game with a career total of 978 points at BGSU, good for 27th in school history. Justinger passed Rhonda Moore (966 points from 1982-86) with her first bucket at Kent State, and her next target on the BGSU career scoring list is Lindsay Austin, who had exactly 1,000 career points from 2000-04.

LAST TIME OUT: TIBBS GUIDES FALCONS TO 65-55 WIN AT KSU
• Senior Lauren Tibbs had a game- and season-high 24 points to lead the Falcons to a 65-55 road win over Kent State University Saturday evening (Feb. 20) at KSU's M.A.C. Center.

• Tibbs was 11-of-15 from the field, including a perfect 2-for-2 from three-point land, and added eight rebounds and four blocked shots to lead all players in both categories. Senior Miriam Justinger was 3-for-3 from long distance en route to 12 points, and she added six boards as the Falcons (9-13, 5-9 MAC) held a 34-28 advantage on the glass.

• BGSU made eight treys in the win and shot 48 percent from the field overall. The Falcons had 18 assists on 25 baskets, with sophomore Haley Puk and freshman Sydney Lambert each dishing out five helpers, Justinger three and Tibbs and freshman Carly Santoro two apiece.

• Tyra James led the Golden Flashes (5-19, 2-12 MAC) with 19 points off the bench, while Jordan Korinek scored 14.

• Sophomore Rachel Myers scored nine points for the Falcons, including a big three-pointer with two minutes left in the game. Freshman Maddie Cole had a career-high seven points in six minutes of work, and was a perfect 3-for-3 from the field.

• BGSU led for most of the game, but after back-to-back Falcon turnovers, James connected to cut BG's lead to just three points. On the next possession, though, Myers took a Justinger pass and knocked down a three-point try from the left wing, giving her team a 59-53 lead with exactly two minutes to go. Then, Justinger took a charge, as KSU's Larissa Lurken was called for an offensive foul, giving the ball back to the Falcons. Lambert was fouled and hit two free throws, putting her team up by eight with 1:29 to go.

• Beginning with those Lambert tosses, the Falcons made six free throws over the final 90 seconds of the game, extending the lead back out to double digits. Slowly but surely, BG would score nine-straight points before a pair of KSU throws in the final seconds closed the game's scoring.

• KSU missed six consecutive field-goal tries over the final few minutes of the game, and the Flashes shot 41.2% from the floor on the day, to BG's 48.1%. The Falcons, as mentioned, hit eight three-pointers on the day, while KSU made four in 14 attempts.

• BG had advantages of 21-14 in points off turnovers and 13-6 in second-chance points in the victory.

ABOUT THE FALCONS
• Bowling Green enters Wednesday's game with an overall record of 9-14, and the Falcons are 5-9 in MAC play. BGSU snapped a five-game losing streak with a 65-55 win on the road against Kent State Saturday evening (Feb. 20).

• After winning three-straight games in late January, the Falcons dropped the first 'Battle of I-75' of the season, falling to Toledo by a 75-61 count to end the month (Jan. 30). BGSU then gave MAC West Division-leading Central Michigan a scare, before the Chippewas got a buzzer-beating bucket for a 76-75 win in Mount Pleasant (Feb. 6). BG returned home and fell to Western Michigan, Buffalo and UT before heading to Kent and picking up a 10-point victory.

• The Falcons' three-game winning streak in January included a 67-63 triumph over Eastern Michigan, picked to win the MAC's West Division in the preseason coaches poll, on Jan. 27. The EMU game came on the heels of wins over Northern Illinois on the road (58-43; Jan. 20) and KSU at home (71-49; Jan. 23).

• BG opened conference action with a 64-58 win at Miami (Jan. 2), but the Brown and Orange then suffered a road loss to WMU before falling at home to defending MAC champion Ohio, Akron and Ball State.

• BGSU is 5-7 at home, 3-6 on the road and 1-1 in neutral-site games this season. The Falcons are 2-6 at the Stroh in MAC play, and BG is 3-3 on the road in league action after going 0-10 against conference opponents away from Bowling Green last year (0-9 in the regular season, 0-1 in the MAC Tournament).

• BG began the season with a pair of double-digit wins at the Stroh, then left Northwest Ohio and played three games that were decided by a total of 10 points. After beating Illinois State and Bradley to begin the season, the Falcons also posted non-conference wins over Jacksonville and Evansville.

• A pair of BGSU newcomers have posted double-digit scoring averages to date. Fifth-year senior Lauren Tibbs has 12.5 points per game, while freshman Sydney Lambert is scoring 10.3 ppg. Tibbs, in her first season at BGSU after transferring from Marquette, also leads the Falcons with 7.1 rebounds and 1.0 blocked shots per contest. Tibbs, who made 9-of-15 shots from the field en route to a season-high 22 points vs. Toledo, followed that up with a 24-point, eight-rebound, four-block effort in the win at Kent State. The reigning MAC Player of the Week went 11-of-15 from the floor in that victory.

• Tibbs is shooting 57.8 percent from the field to lead the team – and the MAC – in that category. She shot 66.7% from the floor last week, going 20-of-30 in the Falcons' two games.

• Lambert leads the Falcons in minutes played (30.8) and is tied for the BG steals lead (1.1 spg). Lambert also tops the Falcons in assists, with 2.1 helpers per game. She paces the team in three-point field goals made, with 51, and leads the entire MAC in three-point percentage, having made 42.9% of her long-distance attempts to rank among the national leaders as well.

• Senior Miriam Justinger and sophomore Rachel Myers have 8.6 and 7.6 ppg, respectively. Justinger has 2.0 apg, with 47 helpers to Lambert's 48, and both players have 26 steals. Justinger has made 28 long-distance shots and pulled down 4.0 rpg, ranking third on the Falcons on both lists. Justinger was a perfect 4-for-4 from long range in the CMU contest, and is shooting 35.0% from three-point land.

• Myers has hit 43 three-pointers this winter to date, including seven triples – just one shy of the school record – at Central. She ranks 11th in the MAC with a three-point field-goal percentage of 35.5%.

• Freshman Carly Santoro and junior Ashley Tunstall have 4.2 and 4.1 ppg, respectively, while redshirt sophomore Kennedy Kirkpatrick has 3.7 ppg. Tunstall is second on the team in rebounds per game (4.1 rpg), Kirkpatrick is third in assists (1.4 apg) and Santoro is fifth on the Falcons in three-pointers made (11).

• Sophomore Haley Puk has 3.1 ppg, while juniors Abby Siefker and Rachel Konieczki are averaging 1.7 and 1.4 ppg, respectively. Puk has averaged a team-leading 2.6 assists per game over the last five contests, including a career-high five in the win at Kent State. She has started the last two games, her first two starts of the season. Siefker is second on the team in blocked shots.

• Seven players – Justinger, Kirkpatrick, Lambert, Myers, Santoro, Siefker and Tibbs – each have seen action in all 23 games, while Konieczki and Puk both have played in 21 and Tunstall 19. Sophomore Sarah Baer and freshman Maddie Cole have come off the bench in 13 and nine games, respectively.

• Cole had a career-high seven points at Kent State, going a perfect 3-for-3 from the field, and now is averaging 1.4 ppg this season.

• Justinger, Lambert, Myers and Tibbs each have started all 23 games for the Brown and Orange this season, while Tunstall has started 11, Siefker four and Puk two.

• The Falcons are shooting 39.3% from the field, 33.6% from three-point land (good for fourth in the MAC) and 68.8% from the free-throw line. The opponents are shooting 39.8% from the floor, 33.2% from the arc and 68.3% from the stripe.

• BGSU is third in the MAC with 7.7 three-pointers made per game.

• In MAC games only, Tibbs is averaging 13.7 points and 7.0 rebounds and is shooting 56.9% from the floor, while Lambert has 10.9 ppg and has hit a team-leading 36 triples. Myers and Justinger have 8.6 and 8.4 ppg, respectively.

• Lambert (43.9%) and Myers (36.6%) rank first and 11th, respectively, in three-point field-goal percentage in MAC games. Tibbs is shooting an otherworldly 47.8% from long distance, having gone 11-of-23 in MAC games, but does not have enough triples made to qualify for the MAC rankings. The Falcons are second in the MAC in long-range accuracy (34.4%) and third in treys per game (8.1) in league contests.

• Head coach Jennifer Roos and the Falcons returned a total of eight letterwinners, all of whom had started at least five games in their BGSU careers entering the season. The returnees were joined by five newcomers, including a pair of transfers (Tibbs and Tunstall) who were eligible to play immediately.

• A total of 10 players on the current roster now have started five or more games in their BGSU careers to date.

• The 2014-15 Falcons went 9-21 overall after four players on the 12-woman preseason roster suffered season- or career-ending injuries, and a fifth missed the bulk of the conference schedule due to injury as well. The returning players entered the season with a combined total of 203 starts in the Brown and Orange.

AMONG THE LEADERS
• Freshman Sydney Lambert leads the MAC and is ranked 16th in the entire nation in three-point field goal percentage. Lambert has hit 51 triples in 119 tries, for a success rate of 42.9 percent.

• Senior Lauren Tibbs is shooting 57.8% from the field this season to date. She is currently first in the MAC, and is up to 14th in the nation, in that category.

• As a team, BGSU is ranked 31st in the nation in three-point field goals made (7.7 per game).

A LOOK AT BUFFALO
Buffalo has an overall record of 13-12, and the Bulls are 5-9 in MAC action heading into Wednesday evening's game. UB is tied with BGSU for third in the East Division and eighth in the MAC's overall standings. The Bulls are coming off of a dominant defensive performance, as UB defeated Miami, 58-39, on Saturday (Feb. 20). The Bulls are the only team in the league to have defeated both of the current division leaders. UB downed West-leading Central Michigan in the second game of the conference schedule, and Buffalo is the only MAC team to have defeated Ohio, with a 51-43 win at Alumni Arena on Feb. 3. The Bulls are 6-5 at home, 6-7 on the road and 1-0 in neutral-site games this season to date. In MAC games, UB is 3-4 at home and 2-5 at hostile venues. Individually, junior guard Joanna Smith leads the Bulls and ranks fourth in the MAC in scoring, with 18.5 poiner per game. Smith has made 74 three-point field goals, more than four times the amount of any of her teammates and nearly half of the team's total (146). Sophomore guard Stephanie Reid has 10.0 ppg, and leads the Bulls in both assists (4.6 apg) and steals (1.9 spg). She is fourth in the MAC in assists. Junior center Cassie Oursler has 7.8 ppg and leads UB with 6.5 rebounds per outing. In MAC games only, Smith has 20.6 ppg to rank second in the league, while Reid is tied for second in the conference in assists, with 5.2 per game. Last season, the Bulls finished with a 19-13 overall mark and an 11-7 MAC ledger. Head coach Felisha Legette-Jack and her staff welcomed back seven letterwinners, including two starters, from that 2014-15 team.

THE BGSU-UB SERIES
The Falcons lead Buffalo, 24-8, in the all-time series between the teams, but the Bulls have won three-straight meetings. In the first 2015-16 matchup, less than two weeks ago (Feb. 13, 2016), UB topped the Falcons by a 63-50 count at the Stroh Center. Last season, UB downed BG, 66-45, in Western New York (Feb. 7, 2015), to snap a 20-game BGSU series winning streak. The Bulls had not defeated the Brown and Orange since February of 2003. Then, the next month, UB came to Northwest Ohio and escaped the Stroh with a narrow 55-47 win (March 4, 2015). BGSU is 11-4 in home games, 12-4 on the road and 1-0 at neutral sites vs. UB over the years. Jennifer Roos is 4-3 against the Bulls as a collegiate head coach..

FALCONS VS. THE MAC
The Falcons continue to own the best record in MAC history. Entering Wednesday's UB game, BGSU has an all-time record of 397-178 (.690) in MAC regular-season contests, 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, obviously, with a winning series record against every other school. BG also has the most overall victories and highest overall winning pct. of any conference institution.

MADDIE MAKES THE MOST OF HER MINUTES
• Freshman Maddie Cole saw increased playing time in last week's two games, and made the most of it. On Wednesday night against Toledo, Cole gave the Falcons and the home crowd a lift with her play off the bench during BG's second-half comeback. She lunged to deflect a UT pass, diving to the floor to corral the ball before the Falcons called timeout. Cole had three rebounds and an assist in addition to that steal, along with a number of other plays that don't show up on the box score.

• Then, at Kent State on Saturday, Cole scored seven points, the highest total of her young career. She was a perfect 3-for-3 from the field, including a three-pointer, and pulled down two rebounds. Cole had those seven points and two boards in just six minutes of action.

TIBBS TAKES CARE OF BUSINESS
• Senior Lauren Tibbs had career-best scoring efforts in back-to-back games last week, en route to MAC Player-of-the-Week honors.

• Tibbs scored 22 points against Toledo on Wednesday night. She was 9-for-15 from the field on the evening, and was a perfect 3-for-3 from three-point range. In addition to points, Tibbs set season bests in field goals made and attempted and three-pointers made. She also had a game-high nine rebounds and tied for game honors with three blocked shots.

• Then, on Saturday at Kent State, Tibbs surpassed her newly-set records in two of those categories and tied several other marks. The transfer from Marquette scored 24 points vs. the Golden Flashes, going 11-for-15 from the field and hitting both of her three-point tries. She added a game-high eight boards and tied her season best by blocking four KSU shots.

• Tibbs' total of 11 field goals made was the highest by a Falcon in over four years, since Alexis Rogers made 11 buckets in a win over Eastern Michigan (Jan. 22, 2012).

THREE-MARKABLE
Freshman Maddie Cole stepped out to the left corner and hit a three-point field goal in Saturday's win at Kent State. It was the first triple of her career. No fewer than 12 different players have made at least one three-pointer for the Falcons this season.

THREE-MENDOUS
• The Falcons exploded for 15 three-point field goals in the first Kent State (Jan. 23) game. BGSU's total tied the Stroh Center record and was just one shy of the school mark. As a team, BG went 15-for-29 from long range, a success rate of 51.7 percent.

• Then, BGSU hit 11 triples in 23 tries (47.8%) en route to a win over Mid-American Conference West Division favorite Eastern Michigan at the Stroh four days later (Jan. 27). BG went 5-for-7 (71.4%) from beyond the arc in the second quarter of that game.

• Two games later, of course, the Falcons went 16-of-27 at Central Michigan (Feb. 6), tying the school record for three-pointers made in a game. BG's success rate of 59.3% from beyond the arc was the program's best in nearly six years (since a 13-for-20 performance in a MAC Tournament win over Miami on March 10, 2010).

THREE-LIGHTFUL
The Falcons have made at least five three-point field goals in 20 of this season's 23 games to date, and BG has hit at least four triples in all 23 contests.

THREE-GION OF BOOM
In fact, BG has hit four or more treys in 55 of the last 56 games, dating to late in the 2013-14 season. The lone exception during that stretch was last year's MAC Tournament first-round game, when BG made three treys at Western Michigan.

THREE- ... UMMM, SOME OTHER PHRASE THAT STARTS WITH 'THREE'
BGSU will be looking to extend an impressive streak in the UB game. The Falcons have hit at least one three-pointer in each of the last 364 games. BG has not been held without a triple in over 10 years – since Feb. 12, 2005, at Akron, when the Falcons won, 61-52, despite going 0-of-13 from long distance.

UP NEXT
Following the Buffalo game, the Falcons will return home to face Miami on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 27). Tipoff is scheduled for shortly after 2:00 p.m., and Miriam Justinger and Lauren Tibbs will be recognized in 'Senior Day' ceremonies prior to the game. BGSU ends the regular season with road trips to face Ohio (March 2) and Akron (March 5).

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