Falcons Fly Past Furman, 82-61

Friday, March 18

Lexington, KY

12:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

16-15,10-10MAC

Furman

19-13,10-4SoCon

Furman

Bowling Green

Photo by: Mallory Hiser, BGSU Athletics

March 18, 2022 | Women's Basketball

Box Score BGSU-Furman Stats

BGSU scorches the nets for a school record-tying 16 triples

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Morgan Sharps scored a season-high 22 points and the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team tied the school single-game record for three-pointers made on Friday afternoon (March 18), as the Falcons downed Furman University, 82-61. The game, part of first-round action in the Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI), was held at the Clive M. Beck Center.

BGSU will face Saint Mary's (Calif.), a 77-69 winner over Austin Peay in the day's second game.

Sharps hit six triples as the Falcons (16-15) went 16-of-33 from long distance on the day. The redshirt sophomore paced four players in double figures, as Madisen Parker scored 12 points and Kadie Hempfling and Amy Velasco added 11 apiece.

Ten Falcons – every player who attempted a shot – made at least one field goal in the game. BGSU spotted the Paladins the game's first eight points, then came roaring back.

BGSU ended the first quarter on a run that gave the Falcons the lead for good, and with Furman still hanging around early in the fourth period, a 17-0 BG scoring blitz ended all doubt about the game's outcome. The Falcons led by 30 before a late rally by the Paladins produced the final 21-point margin.

Tate Walters scored 14 points, while Tierra Hodges, the Southern Conference Player of the Year, had 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for Furman (19-13).

BGSU had a whopping 52-18 advantage in bench scoring in the win.

NOTE OF THE DAY
• BGSU, as mentioned, tied the school record for three-point field goals made in a game. Friday marked the eighth time the Falcons had connected on 16 long-distance shots in school history.

QUOTING COACH FRALICK
"This was a great team win today. Our team did a great job of guarding as a unit and finding the best shot for the team on each possession."

FRIDAY'S WBI RESULTS
Bowling Green 81, Furman 62
Saint Mary's 77, Austin Peay 69
Nevada 76, Davidson 63
Cleveland State 73, Northeastern 60
(Saturday's schedule is below)

FIRST QUARTER
• Furman got off to a quick start, scoring the game's first eight points. Tierra Hodges scored four points during that time, while Niveya Henley had a pair of steals and capped the game-opening run with two free throws.
• Kadie Hempfling got the Falcons on the board with a three-pointer 2:16 into the game, but the only scoring over the next two minutes was a Tate Walters triple that gave the Paladins an 11-3 lead.
• But, over the final 5:50 of the period, the Falcons enjoyed a 16-3 scoring advantage. Sophie Dziekan 's hook shot was answered by another Hodges bucket, but Madisen Parker hit back-to-back three-pointers, then fed Jocelyn Tate for a three-point play that gave the Falcons the lead. Hempfling's floater gave BG 11-straight points and a 16-13 lead.
• After the Paladins ended that streak with a free throw, Morgan Sharps knocked down a triple try to give the Orange and Brown a 19-14 advantage after 10 minutes.

SECOND QUARTER
• Parker continued her hot start, with two more long-distance calls that gave the Falcons a 25-14 lead with just 40 seconds elapsed in the quarter.
• Furman answered with six-straight points, including four by Grace van Rij, before Sharps hit a driving layup for a 27-20 advantage. Then, the redshirt soph knocked down a three-pointer, and after Walters answered with a trey, BGSU proceeded to go on an 11-0 run to end the half.
• The Paladins went scoreless over the remaining 4:42 of the period. Meanwhile, Nyla Hampton fed Hempfling for a fast-break layup, and Tate knocked down a pair of charity tosses. Hampton hit from long range, and an Amy Velasco steal resulted in an Olivia Hill layup. Velasco again fed Hill for a hoop that gave the Falcons a 41-23 lead.
• BGSU outscored the Paladins, 22-9, in the second quarter, allowing Furman to go just 2-for-12 from the floor while turning the ball over seven times in the period.

THIRD QUARTER
• The Paladins scored the first six points of the period, and after Hampton fed Velasco for a trey, a Walters three-point play cut BG's lead to 12, at 44-32. Elissa Brett answered with a jumper, and moments later, five quick points from Sharps gave BG a 52-36 lead midway through the period.
• FU responded with five points in a row, including a Henley triple, and the teams traded points over the remainder of the period, with BGSU getting a Velasco trifecta and a Tate driving layup.
• BGSU took a 57-43 lead after 30 minutes of play.

FOURTH QUARTER
• After a Hodges free throw cut the Falcons' lead to 13, it was all BGSU. The Falcons scored 17-straight points to take a 74-44 lead midway through the quarter and remove all doubt about the outcome.
• Hempfling hit a second-chance layup at the 9:22 mark, and Velasco then connected from the arc. Brett's driving layup gave BG a 20-point advantage as the Paladins took time, but the Falcons were far from finished.
• Brett found Velasco for a driving layup, and Velasco played it forward, spotting Sharps for a three-ball. Sharps connected again from the arc – this time from one of Kenzie Lewis's team-leading six assists – and a pair of Hempfling free throws gave BGSU a 74-44 lead with 6:10 to go.
• The Paladins would get no closer than 21 points over the remainder of the afternoon, as Tate, Molly Dever, Dziekan and Sharps all added to the Falcons' point total. A Sharps trey with 1:13 to go was BG's 16th three-pointer of the game, tying the school single-game record.
• BGSU shot a blistering 64.3% from the field in the fourth quarter, going 9-of-14.

STATS, NOTES & NUMBERS
• The Falcons shot 48.4 percent for the game, and BG was 16-of-33 (48.5%) from the arc and 6-of-7 (.85.7%) from the free-throw line. Furman shot 38.9% from both the floor (21-of-54) and the three-point line (7-for-18), and the Paladins were 12-of-19 (63.2%) from the stripe.
• BGSU had a 35-33 rebounding advantage, and the Falcons also had leads in points in the paint (28-20), points off of turnovers (20-12) and fast-break points (23-15). As mentioned, BG had a whopping 52 points off of the bench, compared to 18 for Furman.
• The Falcons had 20 assists on 30 baskets. Lewis had six assists to lead BG, while Velasco and Hampton had four apiece, Brett three and Parker two.
• Hampton had four steals to tie for game honors, with Velasco coming up with three and Sharps two. The Falcons had 11 steals as a team.
• Velasco led all players with a +22 plus/minus rating, while Hampton was +19 and Hempfling, Parker and Sharps all were +16 on the day.

UP NEXT
• BGSU will face Saint Mary's (Calif.), a 77-69 win over Austin Peay in Friday's second game. The BGSU-SMC contest will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday (March 19).
• The Falcons will face either Nevada or defending WBI champion Cleveland State, on Sunday (March 20). BG's game that evening will begin at either 5:00 or 7:30 p.m.
• Log on to BGSUFalcons.com for all of the latest news and updates re: the 2021-22 Falcons.

SATURDAY'S WBI SCHEDULE
Furman vs. Austin Peay, 12:00 p.m.
Bowling Green vs. Saint Mary's (Calif.), 2:30 p.m.
Davidson vs. Northeastern, 5:00 p.m.
Nevada vs. Cleveland State, 7:30 p.m.

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