Ball State Bests BG, 77-70

Wednesday, January 9

Muncie, IN

11:00 AM

Bowling Green State University

7-6, 0-2

Ball State

6-8, 1-1

Bowling Green

Ball St.

Photo by: Larry Clapper

January 09, 2019 | Women's Basketball

Box Score BGSU-BSU Box Score BGSU-BSU Photo Gallery (Larry Clapper)

Cecil leads Falcons with 24 points, 5 assists

By: MUNCIE, Ind. (BGSU Athletic Communications)

Junior Andrea Cecil scored a game-high 24 points and dished out a career-high five assists, but the Bowling Green State University women's basketball team fell, 77-70, to Ball State University on Wednesday (Jan. 9). The Mid-American Conference game was held at BSU's Worthen Arena.

Cecil hit a game-high four three-point field goals for the Falcons (7-6, 0-2 MAC). Senior Sydney Lambert and sophomore Angela Perry joined Cecil in double figures with 14 and 13 points, respectively. Perry was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field.

For the Cardinals (6-8, 1-1), Thelma Dis Agustsdottir and Oshlynn Brown combined for 45 points. Dis Agustsdottir had 23 points, shooting 8-of-10 from the floor including a perfect 3-for-3 from the arc. Brown went 9-for-10 from the field en route to 22 points.

QUOTING COACH FRALICK
"It was a tough loss today. I thought we did some good things, especially early, but we've got to get back to work, get better, and get ready for Saturday."

HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Falcons surged to an early lead, using a 10-0 run to go ahead by a 22-7 count. But, Ball State scored 10-straight points to end the opening period.

• Dis Agustsdottir, who had scored eight of those 10 points, then began the second period with a bucket. Perry scored to snap Ball State's 12-0 run, but the Cards proceeded to score the game's next seven points to take a 26-24 lead.

• Freshman Morgan McMillen knocked down a triple try at the 6:15 mark to give the Falcons a one-point lead, and the remainder of the quarter saw the teams battle back and forth, with the Cards taking a 34-31 advantage into the break.

• Lambert's three-ball with 6:13 left in the third period tied the game at 40-all, and after the Cards split a pair of free throws, Cecil's bucket gave BG a 42-41 lead. But, Brown answered with a three-point play that began a seven-point run for the hosts. Dis Augutsdottir's bucket capped that run and gave Ball a 48-42 lead.

• The Cardinals led by as many as nine points in the fourth period, but BG battled back. Freshman Kadie Hempfling scored with 3:21 left to cut the Falcons' deficit to just two points, at 68-66. But, Brown answered with a hoop of her own, and the Cardinals held BG off the scoreboard for the next few possessions.

• The Falcons pressed and got a steal that led to a Lambert bucket in the final minute, and after BSU hit 1-of-2 free throws, another Lambert hoop cut the margin to three points with 16.8 seconds to go, but BG could draw no closer.

FIRST-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
• The Falcons took an early 7-2 lead. Cecil opened the scoring by hitting a contested driving banker, and after the Cards answered, Lambert hit a second-chance jumper, and McMillen drove and kicked the ball to Cecil for a corner three.
• Brown scored her second bucket of the day to cut BG's lead to 7-4, but she then picked up an offensive foul – her second foul of the game – just over three minutes into the contest.
• Cecil found McMillen for a three-pointer, and Perry took a pass from sophomore Madisen Parker and hit a layup in traffic for a 12-4 lead.
• Moments later, Perry was fouled and split a pair of free-throw tries. Hempfling rebounded the miss, however, and Lambert spotted Parker in the corner for a triple and a 16-7 lead.
• The Falcons stole the ball, and Cecil fired a long pass ahead to a wide-open Lambert for a layup, forcing the Cardinals to burn a timeout. BG got a stop after the break, however, and Parker rebounded a teammate's miss and found Cecil for a three-pointer and a 22-7 BG lead.
• But, Dis Agustsdottir knocked down a three-pointer of her own, then hit a jumper. The Cards' run reached 10-0 after Aliyah Walker scored and Dis Agustsdottir hit another three, and the Falcons' lead was down to five points as the quarter came to an end.

SECOND-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
• Dis Agustsdottir scored in the paint, but Perry's putback snapped BSU's 12-0 run. The Cards, however, scored the next seven points, with Dis Agustsdottir's three-ball giving her team the lead.
• Parker found McMillen for a right-wing three and a 27-26 lead, and Cecil answered a BSU bucket with a pull-up jumper at the 3:30 mark.
• The Cards scored the next four points, including a coast-to-coast drive by Jasmin Samz, but Cecil blew past her would-be defender for a layup. The Cards got the next hoop to take a 34-31 lead after 20 minutes.

THIRD-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
• Hempfling hit a pair of free throws on BG's first possession, but a turnover led to an easy layup for Brown. Perry hit a putback in traffic, then scored after receiving an entry pass from McMillen moments later.
• BG tied the game on Lambert's three-pointer, and Cecil, who had assisted Lambert on that bucket, scored off glass to give the Brown and Orange a 42-41 lead.
• But, Brown's three-point play gave the Cards a lead they would not relinquish, and began a 7-0 run for the hosts.
• BG fell behind by seven before Cecil got a tough bank shot to drop. Then, Hempfling found senior Maddie Cole for a layup that cut the BSU lead to four, at 51-47.
• The Cards scored the next four points, but Lambert knocked down a corner three with a minute to go in the period. A Maliah Howard-Bass charity toss gave BSU a 56-50 lead after three quarters.

FOURTH-QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS
• BSU quickly took a nine-point lead, the Cards' largest of the game, but Cecil threw it in to Perry for a banker, then knocked down a three-pointer after McMillen's cross-court pass. BG was back to within four, at 59-55.
• The Falcons were getting into some foul trouble, however. Perry was called for a foul with 7:56 to go, joining redshirt sophomore Clare Glowniak with four fouls.
• Samz hit a shot from the top of the arc, and after Cecil knocked down a pair of shots from the stripe, the hosts got a pair of transition hoops to restore that nine-point lead.
• Hempfling drove and delivered a bounce pass to Cole for a layup, and moments later, McMillen found Cecil for a right-wing three. When Perry spotted Hempfling inside, the freshman's layup cut the margin to four points with just over four minutes to go. Then, Hempfling hit a short-corner jumper, and BG trailed, 68-66.
• But, Brown scored after a nifty spin move, and after several scoreless possessions for both teams, the Cardinals hit two free throws to take a 72-66 lead with 52.4 seconds to go.
• BG could not score on the next possession, but the Falcons double-teamed the Ball State ballhandler just over midcourt, and Hempfling deflected a pass, leading to an easy Lambert layup with 31.2 seconds remaining.
• The Falcons fouled Dis Agustsdottir with 26. 4 ticks on the clock, and she made one of her two tries from the line. Lambert banked a shot off glass and in, cutting the deficit to three points, 73-70, with 16.8 seconds left.
• BG fouled quickly, but Samz hit both shots, and the Falcons' next possession saw a corner three bounce off the rim. Ball State got the rebound, and two more free throws provided the final margin.

STATISTICS
• Ball State shot 46.4 percent from the field, going 26-for-56 on the morning/afternoon. The Falcons (27-of-64) shot 42.2% from the floor.
• After making a double-digit total of three-pointers in a school-record five consecutive games, the Falcons made 'only' nine on Wednesday. BG was 9-of-32 (28.1%) from the arc. The Cardinals went 6-for-24 (25.0%) from long distance.
• BSU was 19-of-25 at the stripe (76.0%), including 10-for-12 in the fourth quarter. BG went 7-for-10 at the line.
• Both teams had 36 rebounds. Hempfling led the way with 12 boards, while Brown paced BSU with 10.
• The Falcons had 18 assists on 27 baskets, with five different players dishing out at least two. Cecil had five and McMillen four, while Hempfling and Lambert each recorded three and Parker two. Abi Haynes had a game-high nine of her team's 17 assists.
• BG had slim leads of 23-20 in points off turnovers and 20-17 in bench scoring, and the Falcons had a 12-4 advantage in second-chance points.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons will return to the road for a Saturday (Jan. 12) contest vs. the University of Akron. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. at Rhodes Arena.
• Then, the Brown and Orange will face Northern Illinois University at the Stroh Center next Wednesday, Jan. 16, in a 7:00 p.m. start.

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.