Offense struggles in Falcon women’s loss to Ball State

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With season-ending injuries to one-fourth of its roster Bowling Green’s women’s basketball team knew it
might face some problems this season.
But the real problems are lying within the offense.
The Falcons struggled from the field and committed 19 turnovers in a 62-50 Mid-American
Conference-opening loss to Ball State Saturday afternoon in the Stroh Center.
Miriam Justinger posted a lone bright spot with her first career double-double totaling 16 points and 10
rebounds. It was her five points in the first 53 seconds of the second half that helped continue an 11-2
Bowling Green run at the end of the first half.
Justinger’s 3-pointer and a mid-range jumper were split by a Renee Bennett bucket inside. Falcons guard
Rachel Konieczki followed Justinger’s second basket with a pair of free throws to cut Bowling Green’s
once 15-point deficit to 34-33 with 18:54 to play.
It was only a tease.
The Falcons (7-5, 0-1), who finished 17-for-52 (33 percent) from the field, surrendered a 13-2 run to
Ball State (5-7, 1-0) to fall behind 47-35. The Cardinals pushed the lead to as many as 18 points on two
occasions in the second half.
Bowling Green was just 4-for-22 from 3.
“When we give the ball away that much and don’t shoot what we can from the arc and from the field, it’s a
bad combination. That came in to play a lot,” Falcons coach Jennifer Roos said.
Ball State’s offensive issues were non-existent. The Cardinals finished 46 percent from the floor and had
three players in double figures, led by the 6-foot-5 Bennett’s 14 points.
Bowling Green’s 19 turnovers led to 23 points for Ball State. Nathalie Fontaine and Jill Morrison each
added 12 points for the Cardinals.
“It all needs to start on the defensive end,” said Justinger. “We had a lot of letdowns. We definitely
need to take more pride in our defense and that will carry over on the offensive end.
“The shots will fall,” she added. “We’re getting good looks, but the defense was just absolutely pitiful
tonight. … We let their post players beat us down the floor. We had absolutely no communication. That
was disappointing.”
The transition hurt, but Bennett’s play inside proved tough for a thin Bowling Green unit. Abby Siefker,
the Falcons’ tallest player at 6-2, struggled to contain Bennett. Sarah Baer and Justinger also saw time
on the block for Bowling Green.
The Cardinals held a 36-20 advantage in the paint, although they were out-rebounded 36-34.
“Bennett did a very good job of pushing our defenders off the lane line, and she’s great at asking for
the lob,” Roos said. “When she gets her momentum going to the hoop she’s much more of an effective
scorer.”
NOTES: Senior Jasmine Matthews did not play. She has seen just one minute of action since Bowling Green’s
game against Cincinnati on Dec. 7. Matthews will see her family her family physician in Chicago on
Sunday … Ball State was 7-for-18 from 3 … Bowling Green travels to Akron on Jan. 7.

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