Falcons Explode for 86-50 Win over Zips

Saturday, February 4

Bowling Green, OH

12:30 PM

Bowling Green State University

6-16, 2-8MAC

Akron

9-12, 2-8MAC

Akron

Bowling Green

Sydney Lambert hits one of her four 3-pointers in Saturday's win (Larry Clapper photo)

February 04, 2017 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

BGSU ties the Stroh Center record with 15 3's as Falcons become first MAC program to reach 400 conference wins

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team tied the Stroh Center record with 15 three-point field goals on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 4), riding that offensive onslaught to an 86-50 dismantling of the University of Akron.

Sophomores Carly Santoro and Sydney Lambert each hit four long-distance shots as the Falcons shot 53.6 percent from beyond the arc. Santoro was 4-for-5 and Lambert 4-of-7 from three-point land as BG went 15-of-28 as a team.

With the win, Bowling Green becomes the first Mid-American Conference women's basketball program to reach 400 conference wins. The Falcons now have an all-time record of 400-189.

LINKS
FINAL STATISTICS: HTML | PDF
AUDIO: Santoro | Coach Roos
VIDEO: Santoro | Coach Roos
PHOTO GALLERY: Craig Bell, BGSU Mkt. & Comm.
PHOTO GALLERY: Larry Clapper

The Falcons led, 20-13, after one quarter of play, and extended the lead to 17 (37-20) at the half. The Brown and Orange then erupted for 33 third-quarter points to take an insurmountable 70-34 lead after 30 minutes.

In that third period, the home team shot 58.8 percent from the field, including an otherworldly 7-of-9 (77.8%) from three-point range. In fact, BGSU hit seven-straight triples to begin the period, with five different players making at least one long-range shot during that stretch.

"It was just what we've been waiting for," said BGSU coach Jennifer Roos. "The floodgates opened today against their zone. We had six different kids hit a three, and I'm really proud of the effort today. Everybody played double-digit minutes, everybody scored and everybody rebounded the ball. We are doing a great job on the glass at both ends. Our staff has made that a priority, and for us to have almost 50 rebounds today contributed greatly to our momentum."

The win came on Alumnae Day at the Stroh Center, as a handful of former BGSU women's basketball standouts were in attendance to witness the 36-point victory.

"It's always special when our alumnae come back to watch us play," said Roos. "We set the stage in the first half of today's doubleheader, and there is a lot of positive energy in the building. I'm proud of the effort our kids showed today, and our fans really made a difference as well."

Santoro led all players with 16 points on Saturday, while Lambert added 14 and freshman Caterrion Thompson 12. All 11 BGSU players in uniform had at least two points and one rebound in the win.

The Falcons held a 48-32 rebounding advantage, and BGSU had 18 assists on 30 baskets Saturday afternoon.

BGSU set season bests in points, field goals made, three-pointers made, three-point field-goal percentage, free-throw percentage (91.7%) and assists on Saturday. Thompson and juniors Rachel Myers and Haley Puk each hit two long-distance shots in the win, with both Myers and Thompson going 2-for-3 from the arc.

Myers, Puk and senior Ashley Tunstall all scored eight points, while freshman Andrea Cecil added seven.

Megan Sefcik paced the Zips with 14 points, but no other Akron player scored more than six.

The game was tied twice in the early moments, as BGSU answered Akron buckets in the first two-plus minutes. After an Alex Ricketts three-pointer opened the scoring, senior Abby Siefker kicked the ball to Puk for a left-wing triple. Then, after the Zips responded with a jumper, Puk found Siefker for a foul-line jumper that began a 7-0 run.

Santoro hit a long two-pointer at the 6:11 mark, and the Falcons had the lead for good. Then, Siefker found Tunstall for an and-one layup, with Tunstall's free throw giving the Brown and Orange a 10-5 advantage.

The teams traded baskets over the next few minutes, with Tunstall scoring inside and Lambert hitting a three-pointer for a 15-9 lead. After the Zips cut the BG lead to four points on Caitlin Vari's layup, Lambert scored five more points, with a catch-and-shoot three followed by a pair of free throws, giving the hosts a 20-11 lead. Sefcik's jumper closed the first-quarter scoring.

All five Falcon starters scored in that first period, with Lambert -- the last BG starter to find the scoresheet -- scoring the last eight BG points of the quarter.

Puk found Santoro for a left-wing trey that opened the second-quarter scoring, and Puk then took a Lambert pass and pulled up for a transition jumper and a 25-13 lead, prompting an Akron timeout.

The Zips countered with a layup out of the timeout, but Cecil curled off of a screen, took a Santoro pass and drilled a long-range shot. On BG's next possession, Santoro hit a straightaway three, and BG's lead was 31-15.

Just over a minute later, Siefker converted a layup, and Thompson then hit a jumper in the paint. When Thompson was fouled and made both charity tosses with exactly three minutes left in the half, BG held a 37-17 lead. Hannah Plybon answered with a three-pointer, and after both teams went scoreless over the final 2:47 of the period, the Falcons took a 17-point lead into the intermission.

After taking control of the game in the first half, BGSU removed all doubt about the final outcome in the third period. The Falcons opened the quarter on a 14-2 run, and the Falcons outscored the Zips by a 26-5 count in the first seven minutes of the period.

During that stretch, as mentioned, BGSU went a perfect 7-of-7 from three-point range, with five different Falcons hitting at least one long-range shot.

Lambert opened the third-quarter scoring with a shot from the top of the arc, and after a Tunstall offensive rebound, the senior kicked the ball out to Puk for a triple and a 43-22 lead. That Puk trey began an 11-0 run, which continued with Tunstall's second three-point play of the game. Then, Santoro fed Lambert for a corner three, and a Lambert steal led to a Santoro layup in transition and a 51-22 lead.

Sefcik knocked down a three-point try for the Zips, but Santoro hit a corner three, and Myers knocked down a long-distance shot. When senior Rachel Konieczki fed Thompson for another trey, the Falcons had a 60-25 lead. And, after Thompson fed Myers for a shot from the top of the arc, BG's lead was 63-25 with 2:44 left in the quarter.

The Zips then scored seven of the game's next eight points, including back-to-back three-pointers by Sefcik, but the Falcons responded with the last six points of the quarter. The first four points came at the foul line, and when Konieczki's right-side one-hander bounced in at the horn, BG led by a 70-34 count after 30 minutes.

Santoro opened the fourth-quarter scoring with yet another Falcon three-pointer, giving the home team a 39-point lead, the largest of the game. The Zips never got closer than 34 points the rest of the way, and the lead reached 39 points on two other occasions, the last on a Thompson triple with 2:27 to go.

Santoro had a team-leading six rebounds, with three of her teammates pulling down five boards and three others coming up with four apiece. Lambert dished out four assists and Siefker and Tunstall three apiece.

The Falcons shot 44.8% from the field while holding the Zips to a 32.8% success rate. BGSU was 11-of-12 at the free-throw line (91.7%), while UA went 4-for-8 at the stripe. BG held advantages of 25-10 in points off turnovers, 18-6 in second-chance points and 36-27 in bench scoring.

The Falcons now hit the road for the next two games, beginning with a Wednesday (Feb. 8) contest at Ball State. That game will begin at 7:00 p.m.