Falcons Host Troy in Saturday's Play4Kay/Pink Game

Saturday, February 10

Bowling Green, Ohio

12 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

Troy

Tickets

Photo by: Daniel Carlson

February 09, 2024 | Women's Basketball

BGSU Notes (PDF)Troy Notes (PDF)BGSU-Troy Rosters (PDF)Help the Falcons fight cancer!Support BGSU Women's Basketball

Tipoff is at 12:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

BGSU vs. TROY
Saturday, February 10, 2024 • 12:00 p.m.
Stroh Center • Bowling Green, Ohio
MAC/Sun Belt Challenge
TV/Video: ESPN+ • Audio: Falcon Media Sports Network
Live Stats: BGSUFalcons.com • Twitter: @BGSUwbb

JUMP BALL
• The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team steps outside of Mid-American Conference play for the final time during the 2023-24 regular season. The Falcons, under the direction of first-year head coach Fred Chmiel, host Troy University in the MAC/Sun Belt Challenge on Saturday (Feb. 10), with tipoff set for 12:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• There are multiple ways to keep up with the Falcons in 2023-24...

• TV/VIDEO: Saturday's Troy game will be streamed via ESPN+.
• RADIO/AUDIO: All of BGSU's 2023-24 games are scheduled to have an audio stream thanks to the Falcon Media Sports Network.
• LIVE STATS: Live stats for all games in '23-24 are available.
• TWITTER (X): In-game updates, along with key graphics and information, can be found on the BGSU women's basketball Twitter/X account, @BGSUWBB.

• For all of the pertinent links to any and all ways to follow the Falcons, go to BGSUFalcons.com and navigate your way to the "women's basketball schedule" page on game day.

FALCONS' PLAY4KAY/PINK GAME SET FOR SATURDAY
• Saturday's game vs. Troy will be the Falcons' annual Play4Kay/Pink Game. The Falcons are inviting Survivors, Thrivers and those standing in the gap for a loved one who is battling or has battled cancer to come to the Stroh Center.

• Former North Carolina State head women's basketball coach Kay Yow was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987, and passed away on January 24, 2009, after facing her third bout with the disease. The vision of Play4Kay came directly from Coach Yow. Through Play4Kay, she saw a way to bring communities together and honor cancer warriors in the fight against ALL cancers affecting women.

• All fans are encouraged to wear pink to Saturday's game. To contribute to the cause and help the Falcons fight cancer, CLICK HERE.

AMY ACCUMULATES ASSISTS
• Junior Amy Velasco reached a career milestone on Wednesday night, dishing out the 300th assist of her career in the Falcons' 69-52 win over Ohio. Velasco ended the evening with a total of 302 assists, good for 11th place on that school list.

• Velasco is just two assists away from moving into the top 10 on the BG career chart. Judit Lendvay (1989-93) currently holds down the 10th-place spot, having dished out 304 assists in her Falcon career.

• Velasco ranks eighth in BGSU history in assists per game, with 3.32. The complete lists of both career assists and assists per game can be found on page 7 of these notes.

LAST TIME OUT: STRONG SECOND QUARTER FUELS FALCON WIN OVER OHIO
• For the second-straight home game, BGSU played lights-out defense in a momentum-changing second quarter, and the Falcons went on to a 69-52 win over Ohio on Wednesday night (Feb. 7) at the Stroh Center.

• Erika Porter had a double-double for the Falcons (12-9, 6-5 MAC), with a team-leading 19 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Amy Velasco scored 14 points and led all players with seven assists, while Morgan Sharps had 12 points and nine rebounds.

• Bailey Tabeling had a game-high 22 points for the Bobcats (7-14, 4-7 MAC), with Laylay Fantroy adding 11.

• On National Girls & Women in Sports Day, the game was tied after the opening quarter, but the BGSU defense allowed Ohio to make just one field goal in the entire second quarter. After Tabeling's steal and layup late in the first period, the Falcons proceeded to go on a 20-0 run.

• Olivia Hill and Paige Kohler each hit three-pointers to cap the first-quarter scoring, and BGSU then scored the first 14 points of the second period. Porter had seven of those 14 points, with Hill (four) and Velasco (three) chipping in as well.

• Ohio went nearly nine minutes – 8:51, to be exact – without a point, before a Kennedi Watkins free throw snapped the Falcons' epic run with 2:35 left in the half. The Bobcats' lone field goal of the quarter came with just 51 seconds left before the intermission, as Jaya McClure's layup ended her team's stretch without a bucket at 10:35.

• BGSU took a 38-24 lead into the locker room, and that lead never fell below 10 points in the second half.

• The Falcons shot over 54 percent from the field in the win, while holding Ohio to just a 32.3% success rate. Led by Porter's 7-of-8 performance at the free-throw line, the Falcons shot 90% (9-for-10) from the stripe. And, again led by Porter, BGSU had a 39-27 rebounding advantage in the win.

• And, BGSU had 23 assists on 26 baskets.

KENNEDY'S SECRETARY WAS NAMED LINCOLN. LINCOLN'S SECRETARY WAS ...
(also titled, COINCIDENCES BETWEEN THE NIU AND OHIO GAMES)
• The Falcons, as mentioned, allowed just one second-quarter field goal in Wednesday night's win over Ohio, as the Bobcats went just 1-for-13 from the field in the period. It was more than slightly reminiscent of a game at the Stroh Center just seven days earlier.

• The previous Wednesday (Jan. 31), BGSU also had used a lock-down defensive effort in the second period to pick up a win. The Falcons outscored Northern Illinois, 22-2 count in the second period, beginning that quarter on an 18-0 run and allowing the Huskies just one successful second-quarter field goal.

• In both the NIU and Ohio games, BGSU led by 14 points at the half. And, in both contests, the Falcons' lead was cut to 10 points, but no lower, in the second half. Coincidence? You be the judge.

RUNNING WITH THE FALCONS
• BGSU put together an 18-0 run in the win over Northern Illinois, and the Falcons then had a 20-0 run vs. Ohio. Prior to enjoying two such streaks just seven days apart, the Falcons had not had such a prolonged point streak in over a year, since a 26-0 run against Detroit Mercy on Nov. 28, 2022.

DEFENSE NEVER GOES OUT OF STYLE
• The Falcons have played 11 MAC games this season to date. In three of those games, BGSU has put together a prolific defensive performance to seize momentum.

• In the conference opener at Central Michigan, the Falcons held the Chippewas without a field goal for the game's final 8:20. BG won by one point, 65-64.

• Against Northern Illinois, the Falcons held the Huskies scoreless for a span of 8:51 in the first half, scoring 18-straight points in the process.

• Then, on Wednesday, BGSU held Ohio without a point for a span of 8:51, as part of a stretch of 10:35 without a field goal during the first half. The Falcons had a 20-0 run to take control of that contest.

PORTER'S PERCENTAGE PACES THE MAC
• Erika Porter continued a stretch of torrid shooting by going 6-for-8 from the floor against Ohio. Porter leads the MAC in field-goal percentage in conference games, having made 66.3% of her shots vs. league foes.

• Over the last eight games, Porter has gone 46-of-64 (71.9%) from the floor.

• Overall, Porter is shooting 63.3% in 2023-24, having made 93 of her 147 shots. That percentage would rank her fourth in the nation, but she falls just shy of the NCAA's minimum requirements (NCAA minimum is 5.00 field goals made per game, and Porter currently has 4.43 FGM/game).

THE FALCONS – A QUICK OVERVIEW
• The Falcons enter the Troy game with an overall record of 12-9 on the season, and BGSU is 6-5 in MAC play. Three of the Falcons' losses this season have come to nationally-ranked teams.

• BGSU is 7-2 at home, 3-7 on the road and 2-0 in neutral-site games. In MAC play, the Falcons are 5-1 at the Stroh and 1-4 in front of hostile gatherings.

• The Falcons rallied to beat Cleveland State in the season opener at the Stroh, and after a loss at Texas State, BG bounced back with four-straight wins, downing Xavier, Mercer, Lehigh and Duquesne. The latter game saw the Falcons win, 68-66, on Amy Velasco's buzzer-beater at the Stroh.

• BGSU went 1-3 in December, with all three losses coming to nationally-ranked teams (#4/4 Iowa, #1/1 South Carolina and #16/15 Indiana).

• The Falcons went 3-0 to begin the MAC schedule, sweeping the league's three Michigan members. BGSU lost for the first time in conference play on Jan. 13, falling at Ball State by a 76-61 count. The Falcons bounced back with a 70-59 home win over Akron (Jan. 17), and BG snapped a three-game losing streak with a 72-54 win over Northern Illinois (Jan. 31), before falling at Toledo on Saturday (Feb. 3).

• Most recently, the Orange and Brown topped Ohio, 69-52, at the Stroh Wednesday night (Feb. 7).

• A total of 13 Falcons have seen action this season, but only nine of the 14 players who began the season on the roster suited up for the Ohio game. Nine different players have started at least one game so far in 2023-24.

• Velasco, a junior, leads the team with 34.3 minutes per game, while freshman Paige Kohler has played 33.1 mpg.

• Fourth-year Falcon Lexi Fleming, one of the injured Falcons, averaged 31.4 mpg over the first 10 contests of the season, before leaving the Indiana game (Dec. 22). Fleming also has averages of 15.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game, and led the Falcons in all three categories at the time of her injury. She was averaging 16.7 ppg prior to that IU game, in which she played just 1:10.

• Morgan Sharps and Velasco have scored 13.8 and 13.5 ppg, respectively. Kohler, who scored a game-high 22 points at Toledo, has 11.0 points per contest, while Erika Porter has 10.9 ppg to date. Kohler, Porter and Sharps (three apiece) and Velasco (two) each have had multiple games with 20 or more points this season (as has Fleming [three]), and Porter has three double-doubles including a 19-point, 13-board effort against Ohio.

• Velasco paces BG with 4.8 assists per game, followed by Kohler (3.4 apg).

• Velasco has gone 31-of-75 (41.3%) from the arc to lead the Falcons in three-point accuracy, while Sharps, despite missing the first four games of the season, leads the team in triples made, having made 44-of-115 shots (38.3%) from long distance.

• Olivia Hill and Sophie Dziekan have 4.9 and 3.8 ppg, respectively, this season. Dziekan made her first collegiate start at Wright State (Dec. 12) and responded with her first career double-double, as she had 12 points and a career-high 10 rebounds in the win. She has made five starts this season, including a pair of MAC matchups.

• Hill has averaged 7.5 ppg and 7.0 rpg over the last two games, vs. Toledo and Ohio. She started the first 14 games this winter before missing a pair of contests due to injury. After going 0-for-1 from three-point land in her first 59 games as a Falcon, she made not one, but two, long-range shots at Xavier. Hill is now 13-for-35 from the arc this season to date.

• BGSU's scoring in MAC games could not be any more balanced, as Porter has 14.2 ppg, followed by Velasco (14.0 ppg), Sharps and Kohler (both 13.5 ppg). Porter has a team-high 7.6 rebounds per game in MAC action, and now has three double-doubles in conference play.

• Velasco leads the Falcons in assists (5.7 apg; good for first in the MAC) and steals (1.6 spg) in MAC games, while Porter is shooting a team- and MAC-best 66.3% (61-of-92) from the floor.

• Last year, the Falcons went 31-7 overall, and 14-4 in MAC play. BGSU tied Ball State for second in the conference, earned the number-two seed for the MAC Tournament and advanced to the championship game. Then, the Orange and Brown won four games in the WNIT to advance all the way to the semifinal round of that tourney. A total of nine student-athletes returned from that team in 2023-24.

A QUICK LOOK AT THE TROJANS
• Troy is 12-10 on the season, and the Trojans are 9-3 in the Sun Belt. Troy began the season with an 0-6 record, then won 12 of the next 14 contests. That was capped by a 9-1 stretch in which the only loss came in overtime. However, after winning eight-straight games, the Trojans have lost the last two contests, on the road against Southern Miss and Old Dominion.

• The Trojans are 5-4 at home, 5-6 on the road and 2-0 in neutral-site games this season to date. In SBC play, Troy is 4-1 at home and 5-2 on the road.

• Individually, Makayla Hallmon and Tai'Sheka Porchia have 16.0 and 15.1 ppg, respectively. Porchia has 7.8 rpg, while Ja'Mia Hollings has 13.2 ppg and a team-leading 8.5 rpg.

• Head coach Chanda Rigby, in her 12th season at Troy, welcomed back eight letterwinners, including all five starters, from a 2022-23 team that finished 17-13 overall and 12-6 in conference action.

THE SERIES
• BGSU and Troy are meeting for the first time in women's basketball. The Falcons have a record of 14-5 against the current members of the Sun Belt Conference, with 15 of those 19 games coming against former MAC member Marshall.

DOWN THE ROAD
• Following the Troy tilt, the Falcons will face arch-rival Toledo for the second time in three Saturdays. BGSU will battle the Rockets next Saturday (Feb. 17), with tipoff set for 6:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center.

• Then, the Orange and Brown will hit the road for the next two games, facing Akron on Wednesday, Feb. 21, and Northern Illinois less than 72 hours later (Feb. 24).

FOR MORE INFORMATION...
For more information on BGSU women's hoops, be sure to follow the Falcons on Facebook (@BGWBB), Twitter/X (@BGSU_Athletics and @BGSUWBB) and Instagram (@bgsuwbb), as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.