#CANSCOREO! Carly's 30-Point Performance Lifts Falcons Past EKU, 77-60

Friday, November 10

Bowling Green, OH

5:30 PM ET

Bowling Green State University

1-0

Eastern Kentucky

0-1

Eastern Kentucky

Bowling Green

Carly Santoro - Nov 10 2017 v EKU - Larry Clapper photo

Carly Santoro drives to the basket for 2 of her game-high 30 points in Friday's win (Larry Clapper photo)

Photo by: Larry Clapper

#CANSCOREO! Carly's 30-Point Performance Lifts Falcons Past EKU, 77-60

November 10, 2017 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Junior scores 17 of her points in the second quarter alone

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

Junior Carly Santoro exploded for 30 points and sparked a second-quarter uprising as the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team downed Eastern Kentucky University, 77-60, on Friday evening (Nov. 10). The non-conference game, the regular-season opener for both teams, was held at the Stroh Center.

Santoro scored 17 of her 30 points in the second quarter alone, as the Falcons scored 33 points in that 10-minute span to take a 43-35 halftime lead.

After EKU had scored the final six points of the first half, the Brown and Orange scored eight-straight points to begin the third quarter, and the margin remained in double digits for the remainder of the contest.

Santoro had a double-double, with a game-high 10 rebounds, while senior Haley Puk scored 11 points to join Santoro in double figures in that category.

A'Queen Hayes had 13 points to pace three double-digit scorers for the Colonels.

LINKS
BGSU-EKU STATISTICS: PDF
POSTGAME AUDIO: Santoro | Coach Roos
POSTGAME VIDEO: Santoro | Coach Roos | Highlights
PHOTO GALLERY: Photos by Bianca Garza
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NOTE OF THE NIGHT

The Falcons averaged 16.3 turnovers per game, the second-highest average in the Mid-American Conference, last season. But, on Friday, BGSU turned the ball over just five times.
The Orange and Brown went nearly 19 minutes before committing a turnover. BG then turned the ball over three times in the final 1:22 of the first half, leading to the aforementioned 6-0 EKU run to end the period.
But, the Falcons then proceeded to turn the ball over just twice in the second half. After coughing it up on back-to-back possessions early in the third period, BG had zero turnovers over the game's final 16:32.
BGSU forced EKU into 18 turnovers on the night, and the Falcons had a 30-6 advantage in points off turnovers.

#CanScoreO

Friday's game marked the second 30-point outing of junior Carly Santoro's career. She scored a career-high 32 points against Kent State last season. Santoro had her sixth career double-double, with the previous five all coming in 2016-17.
Santoro has had two of those double-doubles against Eastern Kentucky. She had a 20-point, 12-rebound effort in last year's opener in Richmond, Ky., and now is averaging 25.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per game vs. the Colonels.
It was Santoro's fifth game of 20 or more points at BG, and pushed her over the 500-point mark for her career. The Bellevue, Ohio, native now has 520 career points in 60 games as a Falcon.

FIRST-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

Senior Haley Puk hit a layup on the Falcons' first offensive possession of the game, and sophomore Jane Uecker took a pass from junior Carly Santoro and scored to give the Falcons a 4-2 lead with just over two minutes gone.
But, after hitting 2-of-3 shots to begin the game, the Falcons went just 1-for-12 over the remainder of the quarter. The Colonels took a 7-4 lead after a J'Lyn Martin three-pointer and a transition layup by A'Queen Hayes.
Junior Sydney Lambert alertly stole the ball from EKU's Madison Pierce deep in the Colonels' defensive end of the court, and the BG point guard laid the ball up and in. But, a Shay Solomon layup began a mini-run that gave the visitors an 11-6 lead.
That lead grew to seven points as Madison Wood scored inside with under two minutes left in the period. Falcon freshman Sierra Thompson rebounded her own miss, drew a foul and hit both free throws with 53.0 seconds left in the period to get the hosts within five points, 15-10, after 10 minutes.

SECOND-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

After scoring the final two points of the first quarter, BG scored the first nine of the second. Santoro had six of those nine points, with four coming at the free-throw line.
Freshman Kennedy Williams hit a three-point try from the top of the arc with 8:55 left before the half, tying the score at 15-all, and after a Santoro steal, the junior hit her third and fourth charity tosses, respectively, during that sequence.
Then, Puk stole the ball and fed Santoro for a transition layup and a 19-15 lead as the Colonels used a timeout with 8:17 left in the period.
Out of that timeout, however, the visitors scored five quick points, with Abby Wright's three-pointer giving EKU a 20-19 lead. The Colonels still led by a point when Santoro knocked down a triple try, giving the Falcons the lead for good.
Santoro made it back-to-back threes, taking a Lambert pass and hitting a triple for a 26-22 lead. Wood answered with a bucket in the paint, but Puk and sophomore Andrea Cecil knocked down long-distance shots, and after Wright answered with a trey, the Falcons went on a quick 8-0 run.
That run saw Santoro hit two free throws after a pair of offensive boards by the Falcons, and the junior then scored a fast-break layup after a Uecker steal. Lambert threw in a runner, then blew past her would-be defender for a layup and a 40-27 BG lead.
A Uecker layup and a Puk free throw made it a 43-29 game, but the Colonels scored six points in the final minute of the period, capped by Emely Rosario's layup at the buzzer.

THIRD-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

Just after the Falcons inbounded the ball to begin the second half, the whistle blew and the Colonels were assessed a technical foul for an illegal substitution. Lambert split the ensuing free throws, and moments later, Santoro grabbed an offensive rebound and was fouled as she put the ball back up and through the hoop. After an offensive foul on the Colonels, another layup gave BG a 49-35 lead with just over a minute gone in the period.
Uecker's putback increased the margin to 16 points, before the visitors when on a 5-0 run. But, Santoro answered a Martin jumper with a trey.
The lead fluctuated between 11 and 13 points for most of the remainder of the period, before a Pierce layup cut BG's lead to 10 in the final minute of the quarter.
Santoro got to the line, drawing Pierce's fourth foul of the night and hitting both tosses, before Hayes split a pair of shots from the stripe to cut BG's lead to 63-52 after 30 minutes.

FOURTH-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

The opening possession of the final quarter saw Santoro steal the ball from EKU's Bria Bass and hit a quick layup. Moments later, she split a pair of free throws after grabbing an offensive rebound. That free throw began a 7-0 run that upped the BG lead to 18 points.
Puk scored five-straight points, converting a driving layup, then coming up with a steal to begin a possession that ended with a three-pointer by the Waterloo, Iowa, native. BG's lead was 71-54 with 7:21 to go, and after two scoreless minutes, Sierra Thompson's layup gave the Falcons an 18-point advantage.
The visitors crept as close as 14 points with just over a minute to go, before Cecil capped the night's scoring with a three-pointer off of a pass from senior Rachel Myers.

STATISTICS

The Falcons shot 42.1 percent from the field, going 24-of-57 on the night. EKU had a 41.8% success rate, making 23-of-55 shots.
BGSU hit eight three-pointers to the Colonels five, and shot 40% from long range to the visitors' 33%.
The home team went 5-for-7, both inside and outside of the three-point line, in the second period. BG shot 71.4% and outscored the visitors, 33-20, in that quarter.
Carly Santoro, as mentioned, had 30 points and 10 rebounds to lead all players in both categories by a wide margin. Haley Puk joined Santoro in double figures with 11 points for the hosts.
A'Queen Hayes scored 13 points, while Madison Wood added 12 and Abby Wright 11 for the visitors.
EKU held a 37-32 rebounding advantage, with Wood and Wright pulling down six boards apiece.
BG turned the ball over just five times, while forcing EKU into 18 turnovers. The Falcons enjoyed a 30-6 advantage in points off turnovers.
Puk and junior Sydney Lambert each had three steals as the Falcons had 12 as a team. Santoro and sophomore Jane Uecker added two apiece.

THE QUARTERLY REPORT

The 2017-18 season marks the third year in which NCAA women's basketball has utilized a four-quarter format. And, the Falcons 33 points in the second period on Friday night tied a school record for points in a quarter during that time.
BG also scored 33 points in a quarter against Akron last season, amassing that total in the third period of an 86-50 win over the Zips at the Stroh Center.

A FEW MORE FALCON NOTES

BGSU's starters on Friday were senior Haley Puk, juniors Sydney Lambert and Carly Santoro and sophomores Andrea Cecil and Jane Uecker.
The two sophomores, Cecil and Uecker, were making the first start of their respective collegiate careers.
Santoro went 8-of-13 from the floor, including 3-for-6 from three-point range, and 11-of-14 from the free-throw line. Six of her 10 rebounds came at the offensive end of the floor.
Puk had 11 points and three steals, tying for game honors in the latter category.
Lambert scored nine points and had three assists and three steals.
In her collegiate debut, Sierra Thompson scored eight points and pulled down eight rebounds in 27 minutes of action.
Another freshman, Kennedy Williams, had three points in four minutes in her BG debut. Williams hit the first shot attempt of her career, drilling a three-point try with 8:55 to go in the second quarter.
Freshmen Madisen Parker and Terri Battle each saw action as well. Parker pulled down a rebound in eight minutes of action, while Battle had a steal in four minutes of work.
The Falcons scored 77 points on Friday night, nearly 15 points more than last season's average. The Brown and Orange surpassed the 77-point mark on just three occasions last year.
BG averaged 62.6 points per game a year ago. On Friday, the Falcons had 63 points after just three quarters.
The Falcons shot 70% from the free-throw line. BGSU's total of 21 free throws made was more than double EKU's total of 10 free throws attempted.

UP NEXT

The Falcons continue a busy stretch of four games in a 10-day span, heading to the Motor City for a Monday morning matchup (Nov. 13) with Detroit Mercy. That game will begin at 11:00 a.m. at Calihan Hall.
Then, the Orange and Brown will travel to Western Pennsylvania to face Robert Morris on Thursday morning (Nov. 16). That contest is set for a 10:00 a.m. start.
BGSU's next home game is on Sunday, Nov. 19, when the Falcons host Canisius on Moana Day at the Stroh Center.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS

For more information on all things BGSU women's basketball, follow the Falcons on Twitter (@BGAthletics and @BGSUwbb), Instagram (@bgsuwbasketball) and Snapchat (BGSU Falcons) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.

BGSU-EKU HIGHLIGHTS

CARLY SANTORO POSTGAME INTERVIEW

JENNIFER ROOS POSTGAME INTERVIEW

TWEET OF THE NIGHT

Santoro hits a 3, giving her 25 points (!!), and the Falcons hold a 54-43 lead midway through the third quarter. Carly's 25 points have come on 9 (!!) shots (7-9 FG, 3-4 3's, 8-10 FT). #Wowza #CanScoreO #IsItWorthUsingTheGifAgain? #Yes pic.twitter.com/15afWfygij
— BGSU WBB (@BGSUwbb) November 10, 2017