Korinek, KSU Topple Falcons, 81-57

Wednesday, January 31

Kent, OH

7:00 PM ET

Bowling Green State University

10-11, 2-8MAC

Kent State

11-11, 4-6MAC

Bowling Green

Kent State

Kennedy Williams had a career-high 10 points at KSU (file photo by Isaish Vazquez)

January 31, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

A slow start is too much for BGSU to overcome

By: KENT, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

A fast start by host Kent State University proved to be too much for the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team to overcome on Wednesday night (Jan. 31). Jordan Korinek and the Golden Flashes posted an 81-57 win over the Falcons in Mid-American Conference action at the Memorial Athletic & Convocation Center.

LINKS
BGSU-KSU STATISTICS: PDF
POSTGAME AUDIO: Coach Roos

Korinek scored a career-high 36 points for the Flashes (11-11, 4-6 MAC). She went 12-of-18 from the floor, including two three-pointers in three attempts. Korinek, ranked in the top five in the nation in both free throws made and attempted, was also 10-of-11 from the line on the night.

The KSU senior scored 12 points in the opening quarter, as the Flashes ended that period on a 19-2 run to open up a 29-11 lead. Then, she scored 12 more points in the third period to help keep BG's comeback hopes at bay.

Junior Sydney Lambert led the Falcons (10-11, 2-8 MAC) with 16 points, despite battling foul trouble for much of the evening. BGSU's point guards combined for 26 of the Falcons' 57 points, as freshman Kennedy Williams scored 10 points for the first double-digit game of her young career.

QUOTING COACH ROOS
"This is the second game in a row where we came out with less intensity than our opponent. We get down early, and we spend the rest of the game clawing back. We can't overcome that first quarter; we've got to address what that intensity problem is, and we've got to make some adjustments."

"We beat Kent at the Stroh Center two weeks ago, and they were looking to take it to us early on tonight. Their intensity in the first quarter, compared to ours, was the difference. We got in some early foul trouble and could not dig out of a hole that was way too deep."

"Alumnae Day is always a special day for our program, because every one of our alums has special memories of this program, and they understand what the culture is about. They have a lot of pride. We've had a lot of alums speak to our team, and it is fun for them to tell their stories and for our kids to hear those stories. But, we have a two-day prep to get ready for a Miami team that has won four out of the last five games and is playing very well. We have to be able to match their intensity for the full four quarters."

FIRST-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

The Golden Flashes threw the ball away on the opening possession. KSU had 16 turnovers on the night, to just 10 for the Falcons. Redshirt freshman Clare Glowniak responded with a bucket on BG's first possession of the game.
The hosts responded with a three-pointer and went on a five-point mini-run, before Lambert knocked down a corner three. But, the junior picked up her second foul with 5:19 left in the period.
Freshman Angela Perry blocked a KSU layup attempt – the first of three blocked shots on the night for Perry – and sophomore Andrea Cecil grabbed the rebound. She headed upcourt and found classmate Caterrion Thompson for a three-pointer that cut the Flashes' lead to a single point, at 10-9. That was the score as the teams entered the game's first media timeout.
But, from then on it was all KSU. Korinek was fouled on the next possession and hit two charity tosses, and three-pointers by Ali Poole and McKenna Stephens gave KSU an 18-9 lead. Poole added a pair of free throws.
Thompson faked a three-point try and converted a driving layup to snap KSU's 10-0 run, but the hosts responded by scoring the next nine points to end the quarter. Korinek had the first seven points in that run, and after the hosts nearly threw the ball away, Stephens picked it up under the hoop and laid it in as the buzzer sounded. The hosts had a 29-11 lead after 10 minutes.

SECOND-QUARTER NOTES

Thompson opened the quarter with a three-ball, but Naddiyah Cross answered from downtown. An Erin Thames free throw was the game's only scoring for over three minutes, before freshman Kennedy Williams converted a nifty driving layup.
But, Korinek got a tough runner to drop, then converted a three-point play to give the hosts a 38-16 lead. Glowniak canned a jumper, but two more Korinek free throws restored the Flashes' 22-point lead as the teams reached the half.

THIRD-QUARTER ACTION

After scoring 19 first-half points, Korinek proceeded to score the first six points of the third quarter. Her layup at the 7:52 mark made it a 28-point game.
Junior Carly Santoro split a pair of shots at the stripe 46 seconds later, and Glowniak hit a jumper after a pass from sophomore Jane Uecker. But, Poole countered with a reverse layup.
Uecker's blocked shot resulted in a possession that saw Santoro hit a driving layup, and Williams swiped a KSU inbounds pass for a 'pick-six' layup. BG got the ball back and Santoro was fouled underneath the bucket. Her free throws made the score 50-27.
Another Perry block led to a quick three-ball by Williams, and after Korinek traveled, BG had the ball back. Santoro was hacked by several players in the paint, and the ball bounced out to Williams, who knocked down a corner three, her second triple in 34 seconds. BG's run was 13-1 and the Flashes, leading by a 51-34 score, used a timeout with 2:50 on the clock.
Korinek, however, responded with a three-point play. Perry backed Korinek down and hit a shot inside, but Poole answered with a triple, and she tossed up a long-range prayer that was answered as the shot-clock buzzer sounded in the final minute of the quarter. The latter shot gave KSU a 60-36 lead.

FOURTH-QUARTER HAPPENINGS

Cross hit a shot at the 8:44 mark, but the fourth-quarter fouls quickly mounted for the Flashes. Alexa Golden picked up her fourth and fifth fouls just seconds apart, leaving the game for good with 8:16 to go. KSU's fourth foul of the period came just four seconds later, and the Flashes fouled for the fifth time with 7:01 on the clock.
BGSU went on a 7-0 run, with Perry hitting a free throw and Cecil making three shots from the line. Then, Lambert hit a three out top, cutting the Flashes' lead to 19.
Korinek responded with a three-point play, but Lambert came right back with another three-pointer. Then, the junior's third triple in four BG possessions cut the KSU lead to 16, at 65-49, with 4:34 to go.
But, after Megan Carter hit a pair of free throws, the Flashes got a stop, and Korinek hit a layup late in the next possession, giving the hosts a 20-point margin with roughly 3:33 to go.

LEADERS

Korinek, as mentioned, had 36 points on the night, and Poole scored 14 for the Flashes. Lambert had 16 points and Williams 10 for the Falcons, with Caterrion Thompson adding eight points, Santoro seven and Glowniak six.
The Flashes held a 43-31 rebounding advantage, but Santoro led all players with 13 rebounds on the night. Korinek paced the hosts with nine boards.
BG forced the Flashes into 16 turnovers, with Cecil recording four steals and Lambert two.
KSU shot 47.2 percent from the floor in the win, going 7-for-18 (38.9%) from three-point range and 24-of-26 (92.3%) from the free-throw line. BGSU shot just 28.3% from the floor, and the Falcons went 8-for-32 (25%) from the arc and 15-of-20 (75%) from the stripe.

UP NEXT

The Falcons will return to the Stroh Center for the first two February games. BG meets Miami on Saturday (Feb. 3) at 1:00 p.m. That game is Alumnae Day, and the 2006-07 team – which won a MAC-record 31 games and advanced to the NCAA Championships Round of 16 – will be recognized.
The Miami matchup is the first half of a Falcon hoops doubleheader at the Stroh. It also marks the final weekend home game of the 2017-18 regular season for the Orange and Brown.
BG then faces Western Michigan at the Stroh next Wednesday (Feb. 7), before returning to the road to meet Northern Illinois (Feb. 10) and Ohio (Feb. 17) on back-to-back Saturdays.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS

For more information on all things BGSU women's basketball, follow the Falcons on Twitter (@BGAthletics and @BGSUwbb), Instagram (@bgsuwbasketball) and Snapchat (BGSU Falcons) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.