Last season was a banner year for the Mid-American Conference in women’s basketball. In the end, two MAC teams shined in the NCAA tournament.
Central Michigan, the MAC tournament champion, earned a No. 11 seed and upset sixth-seeded LSU in the first round, then followed with a convincing win against No. 3 seed Ohio State.
Buffalo, an at-large qualifier, also got a No. 11 seed and also upset a No. 6 seed in South Florida and a No. 3 seed in Florida State.
With conference play starting Saturday, could more of the same be in store for the MAC this season?
Here are some storylines to watch:
Is this a two-bid league and who can challenge CMU and Buffalo? Right now, five MAC teams rank in the RPI top 100: Central Michigan (45), Ohio (57), Buffalo (63), Toledo (77), and Northern Illinois (98).
The Chippewas, led by returning stars Presley Hudson and Reyna Frost, are 9-3 and recently beat No. 24 Miami (Fla.). Buffalo is 8-3 after its nonconference schedule with two of its losses coming to Pac-12 powers Oregon and Stanford.
Ohio is the surprise of the season, as the Bobcats have raced out to an 11-0 start with a marquee win at home against Purdue. How Ohio performs in conference play will go a long way toward determining if the MAC is a multiple-bid league again this season. The Bobcats look like the biggest threat to Buffalo in the East Division
Toledo is 8-3 after a challenging nonconference schedule and could emerge as a challenger to the Chippewas in the West as could Northern Illinois, which is 7-4 so far.
Can Robyn Fralick turn around Bowling Green this season? Bowling Green, once a consistent conference power, is off to a good start under first-year coach Robyn Fralick at 7-4, including a perfect 5-0 mark at the Stroh Center.
After losing three consecutive games in late November/early December, the Falcons rebounded nicely and will take a four-game win streak into conference play.
So far, so good for Fralick in her first year. BG will look to improve on its 3-15 MAC record last season under former coach Jennifer Roos.
MAC player superlatives heading into conference play
Best scorer
Cierra Dillard, Buffalo: Dillard has become one of the top pure scorers in the country. She averages 25.4 points per game, second-best in the country behind only Megan Gustafson of Iowa, who scores 26.5 points per game.
Honorable mention: Hudson; Mikayla Voigt, NIU.
Best passer
Hudson: She averages 5.6 assists per game and her decision making has improved, leading to a better assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.2 this season compared to 1.4 last season.
Honorable mention: Lauren Dickerson, Miami; Cierra Hooks, Ohio.
Best rebounder
Frost: Frost has been dominant on the glass since last season. when she averaged 11.9 rebounds per game despite playing alongside another good rebounding forward in Tinara Moore. Frost has picked up where she left off, averaging 11.2 rebounds per game.
Honorable mention: Kaayla McIntyre, Toledo; Kadie Hempfling, BG.
Best shooter
Voigt: Voigt is second in the conference in 3-point field-goal percentage at 44.8 percent, trailing only Dominique Doseck of Ohio. But she leads the conference in 3-pointers made per game with almost four (3.9).
Honorable mention: Morgan McMillen, BG; Dominique Doseck, Ohio.
Best defender
Hooks: Hooks led the MAC last season in steals at 3.3 per game and is back to pestering opposing guards with 4.1 steals per game this season.
Honorable mention: Deja Wimby, WMU; McIntyre.
First Published January 1, 2019, 2:37 a.m.
