Cardinals Come to Town for Saturday Showdown

Saturday, January 6

Bowling Green, OH

2:00 PM ET

Bowling Green State University

Ball State

Tickets

Carly Santoro Sydney Lambert Dec 6 2017 v Xavier

Photo by: Brad Phalin, BGSU Marketing and Communications

January 05, 2018 | Women's Basketball

BGSU battles 12-1 Ball State at the Stroh

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

BGSU vs. BALL STATE
Saturday, January 6, 2018 • 2:00 p.m.
Stroh Center (4,347) • Bowling Green, Ohio

TELEVISION / VIDEO: ESPN3.com
RADIO / AUDIO: WBGU-FM 88.1 / BGRSO
LIVE STATS: www.BGSUFalcons.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 wraps up a brief, two-game homestand this weekend. Head coach Jennifer Roos and the Falcons host Ball State University on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 6), with tipoff set for shortly after 2:00 p.m. at the Stroh Center.

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FOLLOW THE FALCONS
>> If you can't make it to the arena on game day, fear not – you can still follow the Falcons via your radio- or computer-like devices. Saturday's BSU game will feature free video and audio streams, as well as live stats and Twitter updates. All links will be available via BGSUFalcons.com.

>> All of BGSU's home games and many road contests will have audio broadcasts, courtesy of the Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization (BGRSO). And, every BGSU home game this season will have a free live stream, with all but one home contest in 2017-18 aired via ESPN3.com.

>> Live stats will also be available for all games, and in-game Twitter updates for every BGSU game can be found at @BGSUwbb.

>> To follow the Falcons, simply log on to BGSUFalcons.com and click the 'calendar' link on the day of the game, or navigate your way to the women's basketball page. Any and all available links to ticket info. and game coverage will be available there.

DOUBLE(-DOUBLE) TROUBLE
If it's a game day for the women's basketball Falcons, there's a good chance junior Carly Santoro just might record a double-double. On Wednesday night (Jan. 3) vs. Eastern Michigan, Santoro had 12 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, marking her ninth double-double in 13 games this year.

As of Thursday morning (Jan. 4), Santoro led the MAC and was tied for seventh in the nation in double-doubles. She now has 14 double-doubles in her career.

Santoro posted three-straight double-doubles to begin the year, and then put together another three-game streak, with a double-double in each of BG's two wins at the FAU Thanksgiving Tournament and another vs. Valparaiso. And, she has posted a double-double in each of the last three games, at Cincinnati, WMU and EMU.

CARLY SPENDS THE WINTER IN DOUBLE-DOUBLE LAND (we hear it's nice there)
Junior Carly Santoro led the Falcons with five double-doubles a year ago, but had topped that total less than one-third of the way through 2017-18. Now, she has nearly doubled it, with nine through 13 games this season to date.

The last Falcon to have as many as nine double-doubles in a season was Alexis Rogers, who had 10 in the 2011-12 campaign.

LAST TIME OUT: LAST-SECOND TIP-IN LIFTS EAGLES TO 54-52 VICTORY
Emoni Jackson's bucket with just 0.4 seconds left lifted Eastern Michigan to a 54-52 win over the Falcons Wednesday night (Jan. 3) at the Stroh Center.

Jackson's putback lifted the Eagles (5-8, 1-1 MAC) to victory after BGSU senior Haley Puk had tied the game. Puk hit a long three-point field goal with 27.5 seconds to go, but Jackson's winner capped a frenzied sequence which saw the Eagles throw three shots at the hoop from close range over the final few seconds.

Sophomore Caterrion Thompson led the Falcons (8-5, 0-2 MAC) with 18 points, while junior Carly Santoro had a double-double, with 12 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Sophomore Andrea Cecil rounded out BG's double-figure scorers with 11 points.

For the Eagles, Danielle Minott had a game-high 19 points, while Sasha Dailey added 15.

Led by Thompson, the Falcons had a 21-2 lead in bench scoring. And, BGSU held a 41-34 rebounding advantage, but Eastern had an 11-3 advantage in second-chance points. Eastern forced BG into 25 turnovers, while the Eagles turned the ball over 17 times. But, the Falcons had a 20-14 lead in points off turnovers.

ABOUT THE FALCONS
BGSU is off to an 8-5 start to the season, and the Falcons are 0-2 in Mid-American Conference play. BG is 4-2 at the Stroh Center, 3-3 in true road games and 1-0 in neutral-site contests.

The Falcons opened the season with seven games in a 19-day span. BGSU went 6-1 during that time, then began December by downing Xavier before a large School Day crowd at the Stroh. But, BG has dropped four of the last five games.

The Falcons fell to RV/RV South Dakota State before taking a break for fall semester exams, but got back in the win column with an 82-73 win over Ferris State. Then, however, BG suffered a loss at Cincinnati prior to the holiday break, and the Brown and Orange dropped a 67-58 decision at Western Michigan in Saturday's (Dec. 30) MAC opener. On Wednesday (Jan. 3), a tip-in at the buzzer gave visiting Eastern Michigan a 54-52 victory at the Stroh.

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 each are in 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. Perry made her collegiate debut in the MAC opener at WMU, after missing the entire non-conference portion of the schedule due to injury.

BGSU's starters in all 13 games to date have been Cecil, Lambert, Puk, Santoro and Uecker. The two sophomores, Cecil and Uecker, each 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 13 games, two Falcons are scoring in double digits, with two others just shy of that mark. Santoro leads the way with 14.5 ppg, and is averaging a double-double, with a team-leading 10.6 rpg. Cecil has 11.8 ppg, while Lambert and Puk each are averaging 9.5 ppg. Uecker (5.6), Caterrion Thompson (4.9) and Sierra Thompson (4.1) each are scoring between four and six points per contest.

Lambert leads the team in assists and is second in steals, with 2.5 apg and 1.5 spg. Santoro has a team-leading 1.8 spg, and ranks second in assists, with 2.2 per game. Lambert has knocked down 24 three-point field goals this year, while Puk has hit 22.

Through two MAC games, Santoro and Caterrion Thompson are tied for the team scoring lead, with 13.0 ppg apiece. Santoso is averaging a double-double in conference play, with 12.0 rpg, and Thompson is shooting 50 percent from the floor (8-for-16) and 62.5% (5-of-8) from three-point range.

FALCONS VS. THE MAC
The Falcons continue to own the best record in MAC history. Entering Saturday's Ball State game, BGSU has an all-time record of 402-197 (.671) in MAC regular-season contests, for the most wins and highest winning percentage of all league institutions.

And, BG leads the series with all 11 MAC foes, making the Falcons the only team in the league, obviously, with a winning series record against every other school. BG also has the most overall victories and highest overall winning pct. of any league institution.

SCOUTING BSU
Ball State is 12-1 on the season, and the Cardinals are 1-1 in MAC play. BSU went 11-0 in non-conference play, including road wins over Vanderbilt and Purdue, but the Cards dropped the MAC opener to visiting Central Michigan, 69-65, on Saturday. Ball bounced back with an 86-61 triumph over Miami on Wednesday. BSU is 8-1 at home and a perfect 4-0 on the road this season. All five starters are scoring in double digits, led by Moriah Monaco. Monaco has 17.2 points per game, while Destiny Washington and Carmen Grande have 13.0 and 12.4 ppg, respectively. Grande leads the MAC and ranks second in the nation with 9.5 assists per contest. Last year, the Cardinals finished with a 21-11 overall record and a 14-4 MAC ledger. Head coach Brady Sallee welcomed back six letterwinners, including two starters, from that club.

THE SERIES
The Falcons lead Ball State, 44-20, in the all-time series between the teams, but the Cardinals have won the last six meetings. BSU captured both of last season's matchups, including a 75-53 count at the Stroh Center (Jan. 21, 2017) and a 91-70 verdict in Muncie (Feb. 8, 2017). Prior to BSU's current six-game streak, the Falcons had won five-straight games vs. the Cardinals. BG's last victory over BSU was a 72-61 decision on the road in January of 2014. BGSU is 24-5 in home games (1-3 in the Stroh Center), 18-12 on the road and 2-3 in neutral-site meetings with the Cardinals over the years.

UP NEXT
Following the BSU game, the Falcons will hit the road for back-to-back games, facing Central Michigan on Wednesday (Jan. 10) and Akron next weekend (Jan. 13). The CMU game will begin at 7:00 p.m. in Mount Pleasant, Mich., while the UA contest is slated for a 4:30 p.m. start. The latter game is the second half of a doubleheader which sees the BGSU men's basketball team in town to face the Zips as well.