Flashes, Fouls Foil Falcons

Wednesday, February 22

Bowling Green, OH

7:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

7-20, 3-12MAC

Kent State

16-11, 10-5MAC

Kent State

Bowling Green

Andrea Cecil had 14 points, the highest total of her young career, Wednesday night (Larry Clapper photo)

Photo by: Larry Clapper

February 22, 2017 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

KSU takes the lead with a third-quarter run, seals the win at the line in the fourth period

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

Visiting Kent State University took the lead for good with a third-quarter run, and the Golden Flashes kept that lead with a solid performance from the free-throw line in the fourth period Wednesday night (Feb. 22). KSU came away with a 70-60 win over the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team in Mid-American Conference action at the Stroh Center.

Larissa Lurken, held to just three first-half points, wound up with a game-high 20 to pace the Flashes. Lurken, ranked fifth in the nation in scoring entering the week, had eight rebounds, three blocked shots and three steals to lead the visitors in those categories as well.

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PHOTO GALLERY: Photos courtesy Larry Clapper

Jordan Korinek added 18 points and Megan Carter 14 for the Flashes, who took over sole possession of the MAC's East Division lead with the win and an Ohio loss at Buffalo Wednesday evening.

For the Falcons, freshman Andrea Cecil led the Falcons with 14 points, the highest total of her young career. Sophomores Sydney Lambert and Carly Santoro added 11 points apiece for the Brown and Orange.

BGSU was whistled for a total of 27 fouls in the game, and the visitors went 22-of-28 at the free-throw line. The Flashes outscored the Falcons by 13 points at the stripe in the 10-point win. KSU was called for 12 fouls, and the Brown and Orange hit 9-of-11 shots from the line.

"Our kids came out focused, played hard and played smart tonight," said BGSU head coach Jennifer Roos. "I thought we did a good job containing Lurken in the first half. But, she took off in the second half. The difference was at the foul line. They did a good job of getting to the line and making them when they got there, and that was the Achilles' heel for us tonight.

After a first half that saw neither team led by more than four points, BG took a 29-27 lead into the intermission. the Falcons used a 7-0 run early in the third quarter to take an eight points lead, capped by sophomore Maddie Cole's transition layup with 6:08 on the clock. But, KSU answered that seven-point Falcon run with a 14-0 run.

Lurken scored nine points, including the last five, during that run, and her long three-pointer gave the Flashes a 45-39 lead late in the period. BG got back within four points on two occasions, but the hosts would draw no closer.

KSU slowly increased the margin, taking the game's first double-digit lead on two Lurken free throws with 6:56 left, and going ahead by a game-high 15 points on another pair of Lurken tosses at the 2:01 mark.

"We've got to do a better job of not fouling," said Roos. "But, if we make more shots during the last four or five minutes of that third quarter, it's a different game."

The Flashes shot 39.3 percent from the field for the game, going 5-for-9 from the floor in the fourth quarter. The visitors were also 14-for-16 from the line in the final 10 minutes. In addition to being called for just 12 fouls -- including only five over the first three quarters combined -- KSU turned the ball over only eight times on the night.

BGSU had just 12 turnovers in the game, and the Falcons had a 45-37 rebounding advantage. The home team had 22 offensive rebounds to just 23 defensive rebounds for the Flashes.

Seniors Ashley Tunstall and Abby Siefker had solid nights in the post for the Brown and Orange. Tunstall had eight points, a game-high 11 rebounds and a pair of assists. Siefker had six points, 10 boards and a team-leading three assists. Siefker (eight) and Tunstall (seven) combined for 15 offensive rebounds in the game.

KSU scored the first four points of the night, but that would be the largest lead in the first quarter. Lambert's driving one-hander began a 7-0 run for the Falcons. Siefker's putback tied the score, and junior Haley Puk connected from beyond the arc to give the Falcons a 7-4 lead.

A 5-0 Kent State run was answered by a five-point Falcon run, as Santoro scored inside, and freshman Caterrion Thompson kicked the ball out to Cecil for a triple and a 12-9 lead. The teams traded layups before Carter scored the last four points of the period for the Flashes. Carter's shot near the top of the key gave the visitors a 15-14 lead just before the buzzer.

Santoro got a deflection on the first possession of the second quarter, and Tunstall grabbed the ball and found Santoro ahead of the pack for a run-out layup. The Flashes answered with four-straight points, but Santoro connected from long range for a 21-19 BG lead.

After McKenna Stephens tied the score with a jumper, neither team scored for over two minutes, before Korinek's free throws gave KSU the lead. But, Cecil scored four-straight points, with a nifty driving layup as the seas parted, then a shot off glass after another drive down the right side of the lane. When Lambert hit a layup of her own after a teeth-rattling screen by Siefker, the Falcons had a 27-23 lead.

But, the Flashes scored four of the last six points of the half to cut that four-point lead in half at the break. Korinek, who closed the first-half scoring, opened the second-half scoring with a layup just 13 seconds in.

Lambert, however, took a pass from Puk and knocked down a triple try from the right wing. After Korinek converted another layup, a third-chance bucket by Tunstall began a BG run.

That Tunstall shot was a sweet 'and-one' layup, as she drove the baseline, went under the basket and hit a reverse one-hander while being fouled by Stephens. Tunstall hit the ensuing free throw -- BG's first of the game -- for a 35-31 Falcon lead.

Then, BG turned defense into offense. Thompson's steal resulted in a Lambert drive down the right side of the lane. She drew a pair of defenders toward her, then whipped a pass to a wide-open Siefker for a layup.

Then, Santoro stole the ball and hit Cole with a pass on a 2-on-1 counterattack. Cole's layup gave the Brown and Orange a 39-31 lead. But, the Flashes battled back.

KSU held the Falcons without a point for over five minutes, scoring 14-straight points to take a 45-39 lead. Lurken ended that run with a long three-pointer from the right wing with 1:20 left in the quarter. Cecil's two free throws closed the third-period scoring, and the Falcons were within four.

The fourth period began with a Korinek three-point play, and after Lambert took a Siefker pass and knocked down a corner three, Alexa Golden answered with a long-range shot for a 51-44 lead with just under nine minutes to go.

Cecil hit a hanging jumper in the paint at the 7:47 mark, but Lurken answered with a layup, then got to the line and knocked down a pair of shots with 6:56 left, giving the Flashes a 57-46 lead.

Cecil took a Siefker pass and drilled a long-distance shot with 4:15 left, cutting KSU's lead to 59-50, and the Falcons used a timeout. But, the Flashes used nearly all of the shot clock on the next possession, with Lurken feeding Korinek for a layup and an 11-point lead.

Korinek made two free throws before Thompson knocked down a three-point try, cutting the KSU lead to 10 with 3:02 on the clock. But, Carter got to the line and scored twice, and after Lambert split a pair of charity tosses, a Carter layup made it a 13-point game with 2:19 left and two more shots from the stripe put the visitors up 15 with just over two minutes remaining.

The Falcons will hit the road for the next two games, beginning with a Saturday (Feb. 25) contest at Buffalo. That game is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. at UB's Alumni Arena.