BOWLING GREEN — Bowling Green State University’s women’s basketball team stormed out of the gate with a 30-10 first quarter lead over Liberty on Thursday.

The Falcons had to weather a bumpy ride and red-hot shooting from the Flames in the final three frames to survive in a thriller.

BGSU came up with several big defensive plays in the final minute and made just enough free throws to notch an 87-80 victory in the first round of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament at the Stroh Center.

“They went on a couple runs throughout the game, but our main thing is when that happens, we have to hit back,” BGSU sophomore Jocelyn Tate said. “We need to just figure out a way to just stop their streak and hit back and get our lead back up, and that’s what we did every single time.”

BGSU improved to 28-6 and will meet Green Bay (28-5) in a second-round game 8 p.m. Monday at Green Bay. The Phoenix knocked off Niagara 84-52 in a first-round game Thursday night.

Liberty finished its season at 24-9.

Elissa Brett poured in a game-high 27 points with six rebounds for BGSU. Tate added 15 points, five steals, and four assists, while Allison Day totaled 13 points and five boards.

Lexi Fleming (12 points) and Nyla Hampton (11 points, four steals) also reach double figures as all five BGSU starters eclipsed 10 points.

Mya Berkman (6-foot-3) had 16 points and 13 rebounds for a tall and lengthy Liberty team. Emma Hess (5-11) and Pien Steenbergen (6-1) combined to hit seven 3-pointers in scoring 15 and 14 points, respectively, while 6-6 sophomore Bella Smuda had 11 points and three blocks off the bench.

The Falcons’ defensive pressure all over the court overwhelmed the Flames in the first quarter. BGSU went on a 14-0 run to take a 14-2 lead less than four minutes in, then had a 12-0 run to make it 28-6 with 1:30 left.

“I thought our pressure was really good, and we knew in this game it was important to dictate the pace of play because their size is a real factor,” BGSU coach Robyn Fralick said. “They have size at every spot and they have a lot of size they bring off the bench too, so we needed to find ways to minimize that.”

Slowly but surely, though, Liberty got back in the game.

BGSU had leads of 45-31 at halftime, 65-54 after three quarters, and 78-73 with 2:33 left when Jordan Hodges hit a 3-pointer to pull the Flames within two possessions. BGSU led by just five, 80-75, with 43.4 seconds left after Steenbergen sank two free throws.

The Falcons, though, made 7 of 10 free throws to maintain the lead. Hampton’s deflection led to an Amy Velasco steal that resulted in a free throw to make it 82-75; Tate’s block on Dee Brown’s 3-point attempt on Liberty’s next possession led to a pair of Brett free throws, and Tate’s steal led to two more Brett free throws as BGSU took an 11-point lead with 19 seconds left.

Brett finished 8 of 15 from the floor and 8 of 10 from the free-throw line. The game became significantly more physical each quarter, and Brett took several hard shots, including banging heads with a Liberty player that had both competitors shaken up for a minute.

“It’s definitely tough playing in March. Everyone wants to be playing in March, our bodies are sore. But that’s what we’re here for,” Brett said.

Added Fralick: “Elissa Brett, I just thought tonight, every time we needed a timely basket, she really stepped up and delivered.”

BGSU shot 44.4 percent (28 of 63) from the floor, including 50 percent (5 of 10) from 3-point range, and 68.4 percent (26 of 38) from the free-throw line. Liberty finished 50 percent (29 of 58) from the floor, 44.4 percent (12 of 27) from beyond the arc, and 90.9 percent (10 of 11) from the line.

BGSU had a 27-8 advantage in points off turnovers and a 44-30 edge in points in the paint. Liberty won the rebounding battle 40-31 but had 25 turnovers to BGSU’s nine.

“I thought our start was outstanding. We also know Liberty’s a really good team, so we knew they’d make a run back,” Fralick said. “I thought we withstood, they made a lot of 3s, they made a lot of 3s in a row. But I felt like we just kept having a timely score, a timely stop.

“So proud of our team, love coaching this team, and excited we get to keep playing more games.”

First Published March 17, 2023, 12:14 a.m.