BOWLING GREEN — Bowling Green State University’s women’s basketball team built a 15-point lead midway through the fourth quarter and held on to edge Southern Mississippi for a season-opening 71-67 win on Monday at the Stroh Center.
The Falcons built a 59-44 lead with 6:20 left when Lauren Gerken’s 3-pointer took a soft bounce and went in, but the Golden Eagles pulled within 69-67 with 4.7 seconds left after a pair of free throws from Nyla Jean.
Taya Ellis, a 46.7 percent free-throw shooter last season, sank a pair at the line with 3.2 seconds left to give the Falcons a four-point lead.
Ellis, a sophomore, stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points, nine rebounds, four blocks, two assists, and one steal. Classmate Paige Kohler scored a team-high 19 points, while Gerken, a freshman, chipped in 14 points and eight rebounds off the bench.
Amy Velasco (11 points) also reached double figures for the Falcons.
Melyia Grayson’s 24 points led Southern Mississippi. Jean (12 points) and Bre Sutton (10) also reached double figures.
BGSU used a 17-9 advantage in the third quarter to take a 52-40 lead into the fourth. The Falcons forced 20 turnovers, but had 24 of their own.
STATS TO KNOW
Southern Mississippi made just 1 of 16 shots from beyond the arc and just 16 of 28 free throws. BGSU was 7 of 20 from 3-point range and 18 of 30 from the line.
QUOTABLE
“I think when we got fatigued, that’s when we started really turning the ball over and giving it up, and it’s hard to win when you turn the ball over 24 times. But we fought through it and did a fantastic job. Some great contributions from Paige and Taya, and Lauren Gerken off the bench was tremendous.” – BGSU coach Fred Chmiel.
UP NEXT
BGSU will be back in action at 7 p.m. Friday at Detroit Mercy.
First Published November 5, 2024, 2:49 a.m.