Falcons Head to Boca for the Holiday Weekend

Friday, November 24

Boca Raton, FL

2:30 PM ET

Bowling Green State University

Norfolk State

Photo by: Larry Clapper

November 22, 2017 | Women's Basketball

BGSU plays two games in the FAU Thanksgiving Tournament

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

BGSU vs. NORFOLK STATE
Friday, November 24, 2017 • 2:30 p.m.
FAU Arena (2,500) • Boca Raton, Fla.

TELEVISION / VIDEO: None
RADIO / AUDIO: None
LIVE STATS: www.FAUSports.com
TWITTER: @BGSUwbb

all available audio, stats & video links can be found at BGSUFalcons.com on game day

UP NEXT FOR THE FALCONS...
The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team, coming off of a loss for the first time this season, heads to Florida for the Thanksgiving holiday. Head coach Jennifer Roos and the Falcons travel to Boca Raton to play two games in the FAU Thanksgiving Tournament. BGSU will face Norfolk State University in first-round action on Friday (Nov. 24), with tipoff time scheduled for approximately 2:30 p.m. at the FAU Arena. The game is the second of the day in the tourney.

Then, the Brown and Orange will meet either St. Francis Brooklyn or host FAU on Saturday (Nov. 25). BGSU's game will begin at either 12:00 p.m. or 2:30 p.m., depending upon Friday's results.

BGSU WOMEN'S BASKETBALL LINKS
Game Notes (PDF): BGSU | Norfolk State | FAU | St. Francis Brooklyn
BGSU Notes from all 2017-18 games (& previous seasons)
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FALCON NEWS: Santoro Named MAC, CSM Player of Week | Falcons Top Titans in Monday-Morning Thriller | #CanScoreO! Carly's 30-Point Performance Lifts Falcons Past EKU | Roos , Falcons Sign Three | Santoro Named to Preseason All-MAC Team | Veteran Quartet to Captain Falcons
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ABOUT THE FALCONS
BGSU is off to a 3-1 start to the season. The Falcons picked up wins over Eastern Kentucky, Detroit and Robert Morris, with the latter two victories coming in front of loud School Day crowds on the road. Most recently, however, the Brown and Orange suffered a loss to Canisius at the Stroh Center.

Head coach Jennifer Roos and her staff – which is comprised of assistant coaches Jacey Brooks, Nick Moore and Jessie Ivey, director of operations Monique Rosati and video coordinator Amanda Cutcher – welcomed back a total of nine returning players, including three starters, from a year ago. The list of returnees includes two seniors, three juniors and four second-year Falcons.

Rachel Myers and Haley Puk make up the senior class, while Maddie Cole, Sydney Lambert and Carly Santoro enter their junior year. Sophomores Andrea Cecil, Caterrion Thompson and Jane Uecker also return, as does Clare Glowniak, who is a redshirt freshman in terms of eligibility after missing the bulk of last season due to injury.

The nine returnees are joined by five freshmen, including Terri Battle, Madisen Parker, Angela Perry, Sierra Thompson and Kennedy Williams. The frosh combined for 34 points in the Falcons' exhibition win over Seton Hill.

BGSU's starters in all four games to date have been Cecil, Lambert, Puk, Santoro and Uecker. The two sophomores, Cecil and Uecker, made the first start of their respective collegiate careers in the season opener.

Santoro was named to the Preseason All-MAC Team. She led the Falcons in scoring a year ago, averaging 12.0 points per game. Santoro is the Falcons' top returning rebounder as well, having pulled down 7.4 boards per contest last winter.

This year, through four games, four Falcons are scoring in double digits. Santoro leads the way with 14.5 ppg, and is averaging a double-double, with a team-leading 10.3 rpg. Puk (12.5 ppg), Lambert (12.0) and Cecil (10.3) also are averaging over 10 points per outing.

Lambert has team-best totals of 4.3 assists and 2.0 steals per game, while Uecker is shooting a team-high 48.3% from the field and has blocked two shots.

Uecker is averaging 8.0 points, while Sierra Thompson has 6.5 ppg. Both players, as well as Cecil, are averaging at least 5.0 rebounds per contest, while Lambert has 4.8 rpg to date.

TRY TO MAKE MORE THAN THEY TAKE
A hallmark of BGSU's successful teams over the years has been the ability to get to the free-throw line more often than the opponent. Through four games this season, BGSU has made a total of 70 shots from the stripe, 10 more than the foes have attempted. BG is shooting 70.7 percent (70-for-99) at the line, while the opponents have shot 70% (42-for-60).

At Robert Morris, the Falcons made more than twice as many shots from the stripe as the Colonials attempted. BG was 23-of-34 (67.6%) from the line, while the hosts went 8-of-11 (72.7%).

The Falcons are averaging 17.5 free throws made and 24.8 attempted this season to date, compared to just over 12 FTM and 17.8 FTA per game a year ago.

20-20(-20) VISION
Senior Haley Puk shattered her career scoring high with 26 points at Robert Morris. She became the third different Falcon in as many games to score 20 or more points, joining junior Carly Santoro and sophomore Andrea Cecil. Santoro scored 30 points in the season-opening win over Eastern Kentucky, while Cecil went for 20 points in the victory at Detroit.

With three different players reaching the 20-point mark, the Falcons have already matched the total for all of last season. Last winter, Santoro had four games of 20 points or more, while classmate Sydney Lambert had two and Ashley Tunstall one.

THREE-MARKABLE
Through the years, BGSU rosters typically have been stocked with players who can score from three-point range. No fewer than 12 different players made at least one three-point field goal two years ago, and all 12 Falcons who saw action last year knocked down at least one trey. This year, a total of nine different players have made one or more long-distance shots.

THREE-MENDOUS
The Falcons made 10 or more three-point field goals in four MAC games last season, including a season-high 15 treys against Akron at the Stroh Center. Overall, BG made at least eight triples in 14 of last year's 31 games, and the Falcons have hit eight or more treys in two of this season's first four contests.

THREE-LIGHTFUL
Two years ago, the Falcons made at least five three-point field goals in 24 of 28 games, and BG hit at least four triples in all 28 contests. Last year, BGSU connected at least four times in 27 of the 31 games, and that trend has continued in each of this year's first four games.

THREE-GION OF BOOM
In fact, BG has knocked down four or more three-pointers in 91 of the last 96 games, dating to late in the 2013-14 season.

THREE- ... UMMM, SOME OTHER PHRASE THAT STARTS WITH 'THREE'
BGSU will be looking to extend a mucho-impressive streak in the Norfolk State game. The Falcons have hit at least one three-pointer in each of the last 404 games. BG has not been held without a triple in over 12 years – since Feb. 12, 2005, at Akron, when the Falcons won, 61-52, despite going 0-of-13 from long distance.

A TRADITION OF SUCCESS
Bowling Green has won 14 MAC regular-season championships and 11 league tournament titles, the highest totals among all conference teams. Prior to the injury-plagued season of 2014-15, the Falcons had won at least 20 games in a MAC-record 11 consecutive years. BG won at least 24 games in nine-straight seasons during that span, losing just 18 total games in MAC regular-season play during those nine years.

The Falcons made 10 consecutive national postseason trips from 2005-14, with five NCAA Championships appearances and five trips to the WNIT during that time. The 2006-07 team was the most successful in MAC history, winning a league-record 31 games en route to an NCAA 'Sweet Sixteen' appearance.

Overall, BGSU has won 20 or more games 19 times, the highest total among all Mid-American Conference women's basketball-playing institutions.

TAKIN' CARE OF BUSINESS, AND WORKING OVERTIME
After Thursday's win at RMU, the Falcons are now 26-21 in overtime games in program history. Interestingly, the Falcons are just 5-12 at home and 21-9 away from home (18-7 away, 3-2 neutral-site) in OT contests.

#CanScoreO
Carly Santoro's 30-point performance against EKU was the second such game of her Falcon career. She becomes just the 11th player in school history to post multiple 30-point games in a career.
BGSU RECORD BOOK – MOST 30-PLUS POINT GAMES, CAREER
6 Jackie Motycka, Lauren Prochaska
5  Jacki Raterman
4  Michelle Shade
3  Lori Albers, Angie Bonner
2  Charlotta Jones, Francine Miller, Tracy Pontius, Sara Puthoff, Carly Santoro
1  11 players (Kate Achter, Stephanie Coe, Kim Griech, Linda Hardy, Carin Horne,
Deanne Knoblauch, Casey McDowell, Alexis Rogers, Talita Scott, Joelyn Shoup,
   Stefanie Wenzel)

DOUBLE(-DOUBLE) TROUBLE
Junior Carly Santoro posted three-straight double-doubles to begin the 2017-18 season. She exploded for 30 points in the win against Eastern Kentucky, and added a game-high 10 rebounds. At Detroit, Santoro had 11 points and again led all players in boards, with 13. Then, against RMU, she had 10 points and a (stop us if you've heard this before) game-high 10 rebounds. Santoro now has eight double-doubles in her Falcon career.

PUK PRODUCES POINTS
Entering the Robert Morris game, senior Haley Puk's career-high scoring effort was 14 points. The native of Waterloo, Iowa, nearly doubled that output in the win over the Colonials, and she had set a new career standard by halftime.

Puk scored 26 points in the win, going 6-of-11 from the field and hitting a pair of three-pointers. Puk did much of her damage at the free-throw line. She was 12-for-14 from the stripe, topping the totals for the entire Robert Morris team in both free throws made and attempted.

Puk had 11 of her points in the first quarter, going 5-for-5 at the free-throw line over a 37-second span, then hitting two triples just over a minute apart. With a jumper early in the second quarter, two more free throws with four minutes left in the half and another short jumper with 1:38 to go, Puk had 17 points by halftime, surpassing her previous single-game best.

FALCONS LIGHT UP THE SCOREBOARD
BGSU scored 77 or more points in a game only three times last season, but the Falcons have done so twice already this year. BG had 85 or more points just once last year – an 86-50 win over Akron at the Stroh Center – a feat the 2017-18 Falcons matched in the win at Detroit.

The Falcons' total of 85 points was the team's highest in a road game in over five years, since a 91-48 win at Kent State in the final regular-season game of the 2011-12 season (Feb. 28, 2012).

BG averaged 62.6 points per game a year ago. This season, the Falcons are averaging 70.7 ppg. Twice in four 2017-18 games, BGSU has scored at least 60 points through three quarters of play.

SCOUTING NSU
Norfolk State is 1-2 on the season. The Spartans opened the year with a 66-52 win at VCU, but have dropped contests to Navy and Loyola (Md.). The latter game, NSU's home opener, was a narrow 61-58 decision on Tuesday. Alexys Long has 14.0 points per game to pace three double-digit scorers, while Kayla Roberts is averaging a double-double, with 11.3 ppg and a team-leading 10.0 rebounds per game for head coach Larry Vickers. Roberts was named to the Preseason All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Team, and was named the MEAC's Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday. Last year, in Vickers' first full season at the helm, the Spartans finished with an overall record of 15-15 (after going 3-24 the previous year) and a 9-7 MEAC mark. Vickers welcomed back five letterwinners, including two starters, from that team.

A LOOK AT ST. FRANCIS BROOKLYN
St. Francis Brooklyn is 1-2 on the year, heading into Friday's game vs. FAU. The Terriers lost road matches against St. John's and Manhattan, but defeated Army by 21 points at home. Jade Johnson has 11.7 points per game, while Maria Palarino is averaging an even 10.0 ppg. The Terriers were picked to finish sixth in the Northeast Conference in the league's preseason poll. A year ago, head coach John Thurston's team finished 8-22 overall and 6-12 in the NEC. Thurston welcomed back nine letterwinners, including a pair of starters, from that team.

A GLANCE AT FAU
FAU has a 1-2 mark this year to date. The Owls bounced back from losses to Mercer and Colorado with a road win over Indiana State, 66-58, on Monday night. Sasha Cedeno is averaging 17.7 points and 7.7 rebounds per game to lead FAU in both categories, while Danneal Ford has 14.0 ppg and a team-leading 4.7 assists per outing. Jim Jabir, in his first season at the FAU helm, inherited eight players from the 2016-17 squad. Jabir has over 450 wins in a 29-year head-coaching career at Buffalo State, Siena, Marquette, Providence and Dayton. The Owls went 4-25 overall and 0-18 in Conference USA action a year ago.

THE SERIES
The Falcons lead FAU, 1-0, in the all-time series between the teams. BGSU topped the Owls, 77-62, in opening-round action at FAU's Radisson Suites Roundball Classic on Dec. 6, 2002. Francine Miller scored 11 points in that victory, while Pam Brown, Megan Jerome and Karen Stocz had 10 points apiece.

BGSU has never met Norfolk State or St. Francis Brooklyn in women's basketball.

UP NEXT
Following the FAU tourney, the Falcons will return home for the next two games. BGSU will face Valparaiso on Tuesday (Nov. 28) at 7:00 p.m., on Fan Appreciation Night at the Stroh Center. Then, the Brown and Orange will host Xavier in a School Day game on Wednesday, Dec. 6, with tipoff at 11:00 a.m.