17-11, 10-7MAC
Bowling Green
9-19, 2-15MAC
Perseverance Propels UB Women's Basketball Team Past Bowling Green, 55-47
3/4/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
BOWLING GREEN, OH – The University at Buffalo, State University of New York women's basketball team edged Mid-American Conference host Bowling Green 55-47 Wednesday evening at the Stroh Center.
The Bulls (17-11, 10-7 MAC) snapped a 22-22 halftime tie, outscoring the Falcons (9-19, 2-15 MAC) 33-25 in the second en route to its second straight victory. UB, who secured its first back-to-back winning seasons since going 18-11 in 1999-00 and 19-9 in 2000-01, matched its 2013-14 win total with the victory.
"The shots aren't always going to fall," said third-year head coach Felisha Legette-Jack. "Our defense was aggressive. We played with passion. We flew around the court, our defense carried us, and eventually the shots fell."
UB opened the game with six straight, holding the Falcons silent for almost five minutes. BGSU tied the game at 11, the first of four deadlocks in the opening half. The Bulls twice trailed by four at 4:01 and 2:46, until a Joanna Smith three that brought the game to 22-22 entering intermission.
The second half featured eight points each from sophomore Alexus Malone and junior Mackenzie Loesing after the duo was held silent in the first. The advantage bounced back-and-forth early, before the contest was tied for the sixth and final time at 13:05. Four scoreless minutes ensued with Smith hitting two of her game-high six free throws to give UB an infinite lead.
UB surged ahead, 45-38, but the Falcons hit a three and snuck within two on a layup at 3:05. The following possession Malone grabbed an offensive board and went up for the put-back. Loesing snagged a defensive rebound that led to her banking in a baseline jumper good for a 49-43 gap at 1:50. The Bulls maintained their two-possession margin down the stretch to sneak out with a win.
After setting a career-high with 20 points on Saturday, Smith added a game-best 17 against the Falcons to go with seven rebounds and three steals. Malone crashed the boards pulling down a Bull-best 12. Senior captains Christa Baccas and Kristen Sharkey tallied 10 and nine points, respectively, while also adding six boards apiece. Baccas had four blocks on the night and freshman Stephanie Reid dished out four assists.
Miriam Justinger led the Falcons with 13 points, while Deborah Hoekstra posted a double-double of 12 points and 13 rebounds.
UB shot 33.3 percent from the floor to BG's 31.4 percent showing. The Falcons outboarded the Bulls, 40-38, but committed 14 turnovers to UB's season-low eight.
Bowling Green dominates the series, 25-6, winning 20 straight from 2003-04 through 2013-14. UB has now won two straight, snapping the skid with a 66-45 victory on Feb. 7 at Alumni Arena.
The Bulls will play their final regular-season contest on Saturday at Kent State at 2 pm. They remain in the hunt for a first-round MAC Tournament bye.
