Falcons Meet MKE in Early-Season Battle of Unbeatens

BGSU vs. VALPARAISO
Sun., December 6, 2020 • 12:00 p.m.
Stroh Center • Bowling Green, Ohio

TELEVISION / VIDEO: ESPN+
AUDIO: Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization (BGRSO)
LIVE STATS: BGSUFalcons.com | TWITTER: @BGSUwbb
All audio, stats & video links can be found right here at BGSUFalcons.com on game day

SETTING THE SCENE
• The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team returns home to face Milwaukee in an early-season battle of unbeatens. Head coach Robyn Fralick and the Falcons will face the Panthers on Sunday (Dec. 6), with tipoff scheduled for 12:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center.

• The Milwaukee game is the first of two-straight home contests for the Orange and Brown, as BGSU is slated to begin the Mid-American Conference portion of the schedule with a Friday (Dec. 11) matchup with Eastern Michigan University.

• Sunday's game is also the Falcons' second-straight matchup with a Horizon League foe. BG picked up a 63-49 win at Northern Kentucky on Thursday (Dec. 3). Following the EMU game, BGSU will travel to face Purdue (Dec. 13) and Morehead State (Dec. 19) before returning home to meet Miami (Dec. 22) in the final pre-holiday contest..

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• Due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, BGSU will unfortunately not have any public attendance for women's basketball games in the 2020-21 season. However, there are multiple ways to follow the Falcons this winter...

• TV/VIDEO: All of BGSU's home games, as well as many road contests, will be streamed via ESPN3 or ESPN+.
• RADIO/AUDIO: All BGSU home games and a few road games will have an audio stream thanks to the efforts of the Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization (BGRSO).
• LIVE STATS: Live stats will be available for all BGSU games in 2020-21.
• TWITTER: In-game updates, along with key graphics and information, can be found on the BGSU women's basketball twitter account, @BGSUwbb.

Links to any and all ways to follow the Falcons will be available on the schedule page at BGSUFalcons.com on game day.

LEWIS, FALCONS STEAL A WIN AT NKU
• Freshman Kenzie Lewis led the way as the Falcons used a stout defensive effort to pick up a 63-49 win at Northern Kentucky on Thursday afternoon (Dec. 3). Lewis, in just the second game of her collegiate career, had nine steals – just one shy of the school record.

• Lewis became just the fourth different Falcon, and the second member of the current roster, to amass as many as nine steals in a game. Senior Mari Hill had nine thefts in her BGSU debut, a win over Cleveland State in the 2019-20 season opener.

BGSU RECORD BOOK – MOST STEALS, GAME
10 -- Lindsay Austin vs. Miami (Feb. 3, 2004)
9 -- Lindsay Austin vs. Ball State (Feb. 29, 2004)
9 -- Melissa Chase vs. Northern Illinois (Nov. 28, 1980)
9 -- Mari Hill vs. Cleveland State (Nov. 6, 2019)
9 -- Kenzie Lewis vs. Northern Kentucky (Dec. 3, 2020)

• Classmate Lexi Fleming, a native of nearby Cincinnati, had three steals of her own at NKU, as the Falcons forced the Norse into 23 turnovers.

TURN THEM OVER AND MAKE THEM PAY
• The Falcons, as mentioned, forced NKU to commit 23 turnovers on Thursday, with freshmen Kenzie Lewis and Lexi Fleming combining for 12 of BGSU's 15 steals in the win.

• BGSU had a points-off-turnovers advantage of 30-5 in the game, including a 19-0 lead in that category in the first half.

RUNNING WITH THE FALCONS
• BGSU has posted a late-game run in each of the season's first two contests. The Falcons trailed for a total of just 17 seconds in the season-opening win over Valparaiso on Sunday (Nov. 29). But, after BG led by as many as 10 points late in the third quarter, Valpo rallied to pull within a single point, 48-47, after 30 minutes.

• The Falcons, however, scored the first 13 points of the fourth quarter as part of a 19-1 run. Freshman Lexi Fleming began that run with a three-point field goal, and the Cincinnati native would score eight points during that 19-1 surge.

• Then, on Thursday, the Falcons went on an 18-2 run spanning the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth. BGSU scored the last nine points of the third period. Then, after the Norse scored two points to begin the fourth quarter, the Falcons went on another nine-point run to take a 27-point lead.

A QUICK LOOK AT THE PANTHERS
• Milwaukee brings a 3-0 record to the Stroh Center. The Panthers picked up a home win over Ball State, and have gone on the road to defeat both Bradley and Marquette. MKE is off to a 3-0 start for the first time since the 1988-89 season.

• Senior Sydney Staver leads a very balanced scoring attack with 12.0 points per game, while classmates Brandi Bisping and McKaela Schmelzer have 11.7 and 11.0 ppg, respectively.

• Redshirt soph Megan Walstad has 9.0 ppg and a team-high 11.3 rebounds per game, and Bisping has 9.0 boards per contest. In all, eight Panthers are averaging over 5.0 ppg.

• Head coach Kyle Rechlicz welcomed back nine letterwinners, including four starters, from last year's club. The 2019-20 Panthers finished with an overall record of 15-16 and a Horizon League mark of 11-7.

THE SERIES
• The Falcons lead Milwaukee, 5-2, in the all-time series, and BGSU picked up a 63-51 win in Wisconsin last season (Dec. 14, 2019). Kadie Hempfling had a game-high 18 points to pace three double-digit scorers for the Orange and Brown.

• BGSU has won the last three matchups, with the last meeting prior to last season coming in 2014. The teams have not met at the Stroh Center since December of 2013, when the Falcons came away with an 87-64 win.

• The Falcons are 2-1 at home and 3-1 on the road vs. the Panthers through the years.

DOWN THE ROAD
• Following the MKE game, the Falcons will begin the Mid-American Conference portion of the schedule with a Friday (Dec. 11) matchup vs. Eastern Michigan. The Falcons and Eagles will meet in a 6:00 p.m. start at the Stroh.

• Then, BGSU will head to West Lafayette for a game against Purdue two days later (Dec. 13). The December schedule concludes with games at Morehead State (Dec. 19) and at home vs. Miami (Dec. 22).

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Lexi Fleming

Kadie Hempfling

Mari Hill

Kenzie Lewis

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