Have. A. Day! Allison Shines in 88-76 Win over Toledo

Wednesday, January 18

Bowling Green, Ohio

7:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

15-2,4-1MAC

Toledo

12-4,3-2MAC

Toledo

Bowling Green

Allison Day (21) had a career-high 31 points, while Lexi Fleming hit 2 big 3-pointers early in the second half

Photo by: Mallory Hiser, BGSU Athletics

January 18, 2023 | Women's Basketball, The Battle Of I-75

Box Score BGSU-UT Stats Photo Gallery

BGSU captures this season's first "Battle of I-75"

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Allison Day exploded for a career-high 31 points as the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team downed the University of Toledo, 88-76, Wednesday evening (Jan. 18). The Mid-American Conference matchup was held at the Stroh Center.

In her first-ever "Battle of I-75," Day went 13-for-21 from the field and tied for game honors with seven rebounds. She paced five players in double figures in the scoring column for the Falcons (15-2, 4-1 MAC).

Jocelyn Tate had 13 points for the hosts, adding six rebounds, four assists and a game-high four steals. Nyla Hampton and Lexi Fleming each had 11 points, with Fleming tying for game honors with six assists, and Amy Velasco scored 10 points in the win.

Quinesha Lockett had 27 points for the Rockets (12-4, 3-2 MAC).

The Falcons used an 8-0 run late in the first half to take the lead for good, with Day scoring six of those eight points. BGSU led, 38-35, at the intermission, then scored the first seven points of the second half, with back-to-back Fleming three-pointers giving the hosts a 45-35 lead.

A 6-0 UT run late in the third quarter got the Rockets back within five points, but Velasco hit a layup, then found Elissa Brett for a three-pointer and a 59-49 lead after 30 minutes.

The visitors crept within six points in the final minute of the game, but the Falcons made nine-straight free throws to end the contest and keep the Midnight Blue and Gold at bay.

The Falcons shot 50.9 percent from the field, and BG went 25-of-32 (78.1%) at the stripe in the win over the preseason MAC favorites.

NOTE OF THE NIGHT
• Allison Day's total of 31 points was a career high. It was also the first game of 30 or more points by a Falcon in nearly three years, since Caterrion Thompson had 32 points in an overtime contest vs. Kent State at the Stroh center on Feb. 29, 2020.
• The last time a BGSU player had reached the 30-point plateau in regulation came on Nov. 30, 2019, when Angela Perry had 36 points in a 98-60 win over California Baptist, in the Victoria Invitational in Victoria, BC, Canada.
• Day's big night was the first 30-point game by a BGSU player in a "Battle of I-75" contest in nearly 14 years, since Tracy Pontius had 32 points in a 79-66 win over Toledo. The prolific performance by Pontius came in a MAC Tournament semifinal game in downtown Cleveland.

QUOTING COACH ROBYN FRALICK
"Tonight's game was a great example of what high-level women's basketball looks like. It was a great environment with two good teams, and we're really grateful to come out on the victorious side. It was a battle all night. Our kids did a great job of being ready and stepping up, even through some adversity, and we made enough plays to win."

FIRST QUARTER
• The Falcons jumped on top early, with Allison Day heavily involved in the game-opening run. Day found Elissa Brett for a layup on the game's first possession, then hit a jumper in the paint. Quinesha Lockett got her team on the scoreboard, but Day's three-point play gave the hosts a 7-2 lead.
• Slowly but surely, however, the Rockets battled back. After four-straight UT points, Lexi Fleming found Jocelyn Tate for a layup, but five consecutive points by Nan Garcia gave the visitors an 11-9 lead, and a pair of Justina King free throws doubled the UT advantage.
• Tate answered with a driving layup, and Day's jumper tied the game. Sophia Wiard hit a layup, but Fleming found Day for a baby hook in the final minute of the period, tying the game at 15-15.

SECOND QUARTER
• The Rockets forged ahead once again, taking a four-point lead early in the second period. Tate blocked a UT shot, grabbed the rebound and found Day for a transition layup, but Sammi Mikonowicz answered with a layup to give UT a 21-17 lead.
• A Nyla Hampton free throw began a 7-0 run for the Falcons, as BG then got two offensive rebounds on a possession that ended with yet another bucket by Day. Tate found a cutting Brett for a layup, then a Nyla Hampton steal resulted in some nifty passing on a 2-on-1 break, with Tate taking a return pass from Hampton for a layup and a 24-21 advantage.
• Khera Goss answered with a three-point play that stopped BGSU's run and tied the game, and after Tate drove the baseline for a layup, Jayda Jansen's corner three gave the Rockets a 27-26 lead with 4:33 left in the half.
• Tate, however, hit a baby hook, then lost her defender with several dizzying moves en route to an open layup and a 30-27 lead. Again, the Rockets rallied, taking a 32-30 advantage on a Garcia triple, but Day's hook shot tied the contest and began an 8-0 run.
• Day scored six points in that eight-point surge. After Hampton's steal and layup, Day hit a reverse layup, then knocked down a jumper. Another Garcia three, though, cut BG's six-point lead in half, and the Orange and Brown took that 38-35 lead into the locker room.
• Day (19) and Tate (12) combined for 31 of BGSU's 38 points in that first half.

THIRD QUARTER
• The Falcons opened the second half on a 7-0 run, capped by a pair of Fleming three-pointers. BG had gone 0-for-4 from the arc in the first half, but Day kicked the ball out to Fleming for a deep three from the right win just over a minute into the third period. Tate stole a UT pass, drove downcourt and found Fleming in front of the BG bench for another triple that gave the Falcons a 45-35 lead and prompted a Rocket timeout.
• A Day three-point play stopped a brief 4-0 run by the visitors, and Amy Velasco's three-pointer just over midway through the period gave BG a 53-43 advantage.
• UT scored six consecutive points, including a three-ball by Mikonowicz, to whittle the BG lead to five, but Velasco drove and banked a shot off glass, then found Brett for a three-pointer that restored BG's 10-point lead in the final minute of the period. The Falcons led, 59-49, after 30 minutes.

FOURTH QUARTER
• Day's steal on the opening possession of the quarter led to a successful possession for the Falcons, as Fleming spotted Kadie Hempfling for a corner three in front of the BG bench. That shot gave BG a 13-point lead, the largest of the game to that point.
• Lockett scored five of the game's next six points, and a Mikonowicz layup cut UT's deficit to just seven, at 63-56. The teams traded free throws before Fleming's entry pass resulted in a Day layup, and Day scored again on BG's next possession, for a 68-57 lead with 6:40 to go.
• Midway through the period, Fleming assisted Brett on a layup, and when Fleming was fouled away from the ball after the shot, the junior hit a pair of free throws. BG's next trip down the floor saw Fleming fouled again, and her tosses gave the Orange and Brown a 74-58 lead with 4:21 remaining.
• A Day layup with 2:34 to go restored BG's 16-point advantage. UT scored on the next two possessions, with Lockett's layup cutting the margin to 11, and after Day split a pair of shots at the line, Lockett's triple made it a nine-point game with 1:04 to go.
• Hampton made two charity tosses, but Garcia was fouled outside the arc and hit all three of her resulting shots. The BG lead was eight, 79-71. UT would get as close as six points in the final minute, on a three-point play by Lockett, but Hampton made two more shots at the line, and Velasco then knocked down four-straight free-throw tries to ice the game.
• Lockett scored 15 of her team's points in the fourth quarter, but Day capped her night with nine fourth-quarter points.

Gallery: (1-18-2023) WBK v Toledo 011823 - hiser

STATS, NOTES & NUMBERS
• BGSU shot 50.9% from the floor, while UT had a 46.8% success rate from the floor.
• The Rockets went 8-of-21 (38.1%) from three-point range, while the Falcons were 5-of-15 (33.3%) from the arc.
• BG went 25-of-32 (78.1%) at the free-throw line, including 18-for-22 (81.8%) effort in the fourth quarter. UT was 24-of-29 (82.8%) at the stripe on the night, and the Rockets had a narrow 29-26 rebounding advantage.
• The Falcons committed 13 turnovers, but forced the Rockets into 22. BGSU had a 25-12 advantage in points off turnovers. And, led by Day's career night, BG had a 46-24 lead in points in the paint.
• Wednesday marked the 17th time in as many games this season that BG had fewer turnovers than the opponent.
• Day was 13-of-21 from the field en route to her 31 points, and she had seven rebounds, two assists, a steal and a blocked shot.
• Tate had 13 points, six boards, four assists, four steals and a block.
• Fleming had a career-high six assists to go along with 11 points. Her +15 plus/minus rating trailed only Tate's +16.
• Hampton also scored 11 points, going 9-of-10 at the free-throw line, while Velasco had 10 points and Brett nine.
• Lockett, as mentioned, scored 27 points to lead the Rockets. She had 21 of those points in the second half. Garcia scored 15 and Mikonowicz 13 in the game.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons are home again on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 21). BGSU will face Kent State in a 1:00 p.m. start on Superhero Day at the Stroh Center.

• Then, the Orange and Brown will hit the road for games at Buffalo (Wed., Jan. 25) and Northern Illinois (Sat., Jan. 28).

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