Huskies Win a Wild One in DeKalb, 79-78

Wednesday, February 3

DeKalb, Ill.

6:00 PM CT (7:00 PM ET)

Bowling Green State University

13-4,9-3MAC

Northern Illinois

9-6,7-3MAC

Bowling Green

Northern Ill.

Hempfling Parker Fleming v Toledo Jan 30 2021

Kadie Hempfling (35), Madisen Parker (4) & Lexi Fleming combined for 12 of BGSU's 16 3-pointers at NIU

Photo by: Isaiah Vazquez/BGSU Athletics

February 03, 2021 | Women's Basketball

Box Score BGSU-NIU Final Stats

Furious Falcon rally in final minutes falls just short

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Athletics

DeKALB, Ill. – In a Mid-American Conference midweek matchup with a veritable plethora of twists and turns, host Northern Illinois University eked out a one-point win, 79-78, over the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team Wednesday night (Feb. 3) at the NIU Convocation Center.

The Falcons (13-4, 9-3 MAC) got a game-high 22 points from freshman Lexi Fleming, while junior Kadie Hempfling hit a career-high six three-point field goals en route to an 18-point night.

BGSU tied the school single-game record by making 16 three-pointers, with four players making at least three apiece.

But, the Huskies (9-6, 7-3 MAC) made a huge second-half comeback to go ahead by seven points, before holding off a furious Falcon rally in the final minutes. BGSU, trailing by seven with under two minutes to go, got within a single point before seeing a potential game-winning shot bounce away in the final seconds.

Senior Angela Perry had 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting, while both senior Madison Parker and sophomore Olivia Trice hit three triples and scored nine points.

NIU got 15 points from Chelby Koker and 14 from Janae Poisson.

NOTE OF THE NIGHT
• BGSU, as mentioned, tied the school single-game record by making 16 three-point field goals in the game. The Falcons had hit 16 triples on six previous occasions, most recently on Nov. 13, 2018, vs. Marshall.
• The Falcons shot 48.5 percent from the arc on Wednesday night, going 16-of-33. Kadie Hempfling hit a career-high six treys, while Lexi Fleming, Madisen Parker and Olivia Trice knocked down three apiece.

QUOTING COACH FRALICK
"I thought we played a great first half and had a very disappointing defensive effort in the second half. I loved our fight until the final buzzer, and we will learn from this moving forward."

FIRST QUARTER
• The Falcons surged out to an early lead, with junior Kadie Hempfling hitting two of her career-high six triples within the first two-plus minutes of the game. She knocked down a trey on BG's first offensive possession of the night.
• After BGSU forced NIU turnovers on the Huskies' first three possessions, Erinn Hodges came up with a bucket after a Falcon turnover, but moments later, a steal by freshman Lexi Fleming resulted in another long-range make by Hempfling.
• Northern would commit a turnover on seven of the first eight possessions of the night. Following the sixth, Fleming took a pass from sophomore Elissa Brett and hit a long straightaway trey for a 9-2 BG lead.
• Freshman Kenzie Lewis hit a free throw before another Hempfling triple made it a 13-4 game. Then, Lewis found Fleming for a catch-and-shoot three-ball and a 16-5 lead with four minutes left in the quarter.
• That Fleming trey began a 12-0 run in the span of just over two minutes (2:03) for the Orange and Brown. NIU missed a shot, and senior Angela Perry hit one of her patented turnaround one-hand shots. Hempfling grabbed another Northern miss, and Fleming found senior Madisen Parker in transition for a right-wing three-pointer and a 21-5 lead as the hosts used a timeout.
• On the next possession, Fleming stole the ball and promptly hit a pull-up floater, and another Perry bucket made it a 25-5 BG lead. At that point, the Falcons had made nine field goals, including six three-pointers, while NIU had only attempted a total of five shots.
• Mikayla Brandon hit a layup in the final minute of the quarter for the home team.

SECOND QUARTER
• Northern got back within 10 points early in the second period, on three free throws by A'Jah Davis, a corner three by Brandon and a Jayden Marable layup.
• Meanwhile, Hempfling and Fleming each picked up their second foul of the game and headed to the bench. NIU's Chelby Koker, the team's leading scorer, also got her second foul of the night during that stretch.
• The Falcons went just over five minutes without scoring in the period, before sophomore Olivia Trice took a pass from freshman Nyla Hampton and drained a three-point try for a 28-15 BG lead. After a Northern bucket, Hampton fed Parker for another trey and a 31-17 advantage.
• Beginning with Parker's trey, BG went 5-for-5 from the field – including 4-of-4 from the arc – to end the half. Senior Clare Glowniak kicked the ball out to Trice for another long-range make, and Trice assisted Parker on yet another triple.
• Glowniak hit a one-hander after a nifty spin move, for BG's only two-point bucket of the quarter, and Hampton found her former high-school teammate for a buzzer-beater, as Trice drained her third three-pointer of the quarter to give the Falcons a 42-25 halftime lead.

THIRD QUARTER
• Hempfling hit a three-pointer to begin the second half, but NIU would cut the Falcons' lead from 20 points to just three before the third quarter ended. The teams traded points for the first few minutes, with the second of Perry layups in just over a minute making it a 51-34 game at the 6:53 mark.
• Brandon hit a three for the hosts, but Hempfling came right back with her fifth triple of the game at the 4:57 mark. But, Janae Poisson's triple began a 15-1 run for the hosts.
• Koker scored seven points during that run, and when Grace Hunter hit a layup with 24 seconds left in the quarter, BG's lead was down to 55-52. Perry put back a teammate's miss at the horn to give the Falcons a five-point advantage.

FOURTH QUARTER
• The Huskies' momentum continued as the fourth quarter began. A Hodges putback on the first possession was followed by an NIU steal and a Poisson triple that tied the game, 57-57, with 8:51 to go.
• Hempfling found Perry for a bucket, and Lewis knocked the ball away from a Northern player in the paint, before Riley Blackwell scooped up the loose ball and scored. With just over seven minutes on the clock, Koker stole the ball and went coast to coast for a layup, and NIU led for the first time, 61-59.
• Fleming was fouled and hit both shots from the stripe, and after an offensive foul on the Huskies, Hempfling found Brett for a three-pointer. But, Brandon's crazy shot somehow dropped, cutting BG's lead to one, and several minutes later, Hodges hit a run-out, and-one layup, with the free throw giving her team a 66-64 lead with 4:36 left.
• BG turned the ball over, but Lewis and Perry blocked back-to-back NIU shots, with Hempfling rebounding the second one. The next possession resulted in Fleming being fouled and knocking down two shots from the stripe, tying the game at the 3:36 mark.
• But, a Poisson three-point try rattled home, giving the hosts the lead once again. Parker found Perry for a quick bucket, but Koker hit a three-pointer and, after a BG turnover, another triple to give the hosts a 75-68 lead with 2:01 to go.
• Down by seven points, the Falcons got a Fleming three-pointer with 1:44 remaining. Koker's three-pointer was no good, but BG missed a pair of free throws after Hodges committed a foul, and Poisson's layup gave Northern a 77-71 lead with only 1:12 to go.
• Fleming's layup would not drop, but the freshman was fouled while grabbing the rebound, hitting two charity tosses. Brandon, though, made a pair of free throws at the other end, and it was a six-point game with 41.7 seconds left.
• After a BG miss, Parker grabbed the rebound near the foul line and whipped the ball to Hempfling at the top of the arc. The junior's sixth three-pointer of the night cut the lead in half, making it a 79-76 NIU lead with 31.7 seconds to go. Then, a crazy game got downright surreal.
• NIU inbounded the ball, but the Falcons knocked it away from Koker in the backcourt. In the scramble for the loose ball, a timeout was awarded to the Huskies (24.7 seconds to go).
• Following the timeout, Northern inbounded the ball, and Lewis and Fleming combined to tie up Koker for a jump ball. The possession arrow, however, favored the Huskies (20.8 seconds).
• NIU inbounded the ball again, and this time, the Falcons knocked the ball away. As Hempfling attempted to grab it and throw a pass from her knees, NIU regained possession and the Falcons were forced to foul. The foul was just BG's third of the quarter (10.7 seconds).
• The Huskies inbounded the ball yet again, and this time, Lewis tied up a Northern player for another jump ball, giving possession back to the Falcons (9.3 seconds).
• Fleming's long three-point try was no good, and Hempfling and Riley Blackwell battled for the rebound. A jump ball was called, with the possession arrow pointing the Huskies' way (3.2 seconds).
• NIU inbounded the ball to Koker, and as Fleming and Lewis converged on the Huskie guard, the whistle blew. After a lengthy review and discussion, a technical foul was called on Koker for throwing an elbow during the play, giving BGSU two free throws and the ball (2.1 seconds).
• Fleming hit both free throws, cutting the margin to a single point. Hempfling inbounded the ball from near midcourt, and threw a pass toward Perry under the hoop. The long pass was just a little high, but Perry was able to lunge and tip the ball toward Lewis. Lewis actually got a shot off before the horn, but it was off the mark and NIU escaped with the victory.

STATS, NOTES & NUMBERS
• The Falcons, as mentioned, tied the school record for three-pointers, hitting 16 on the night. BGSU shot 48.5 percent from the arc, going 16-of-33.
• Overall, the Falcons shot 43.1% for the game. NIU shot 50.9% on the night, including a 62.5% rate in the second half. The Huskies were 27-of-53 from the field, but 20-for-32 after halftime.
• Northern hit 8-of-22 three-pointers in the contest.
• NIU was 17-of-22 (77.3%) at the free-throw line, while BG went 12-of-16 (75%), and the Huskies had a 35-26 rebounding advantage.
• Fleming and Hempfling combined for 40 points, with Perry adding 14 to pace a BG bench that scored 34 points in the game. Parker and Trice each had nine points on the night.
• Koker scored 15 and Poisson 14 for the home team, with Brandon and Hodges adding 12 apiece. Brandon led all players with seven rebounds, while Fleming had six boards to pace the Falcons.
• BGSU had 20 assists on 25 buckets, with six players dishing out at least two. Lewis and Hempfling each had four, and Lewis had six of the Falcons' 14 assists.
• Lewis also led all players on both teams with a plus/minus rating of +13.

UP NEXT
• BGSU returns home to face Ohio University on Saturday (Feb. 6) with tipoff scheduled for 12:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center.
• Following the Ohio game, the Falcons are slated to play four of five games on the road over the remainder of the month of February. BGSU travels to Kent State (Feb. 10) and Eastern Michigan (Feb. 13), faces Central Michigan at the Stroh (Feb. 17), then returns to the road to meet Ohio (Feb. 24) and Akron (Feb. 27).
• Check BGSUFalcons.com for all of the latest news and updates re: the 2020-21 Falcons.

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