OXFORD — After a slow start, Bowling Green State University’s women’s basketball team played well over
the final 30 minutes of the game on the way to a 73-56 win over Miami Wednesday afternoon.
The Falcons improved to 26-3 overall and 16-1 in the Mid-American Conference. The win clinched the
outright MAC East title for the Falcons. BG is also one of the top two seeds for the MAC tournament.
Bowling Green missed its first seven shots from the field and turned the ball over three times before
making its first basket with 14:20 left in the first half.
The Falcons did not reach double digits until Jasmine Matthews made two free throws with 8:15 left in the
half to cut Miami’s lead to 16-10.
BG’s Rachel Konieczki hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 22 with 2:48 remaining. Jessica Rupright scored
to put Miami ahead 24-22, but then Alexis Rogers converted a three-point play and the Falcons never
trailed again.
‘‘I told our team at the half, it was probably our poorest half of the season,’’ BG head coach Jennifer
Roos said. ‘‘Yet with that said, we go into the locker room up six (30-24).’’
In the first half, the Falcons were 9-of-32 from the field (28.1 percent), including 5-of-21 on
3-pointers (23.8 percent).
‘‘We were not being the smarter team in the first half,’’ Roos said. ‘‘We were forcing some stuff at the
offensive end, and putting a lot of pressure on ourselves to make an unbelievable play. If we didn’t,
then we were trying to make an unbelievable defensive play right after that.
‘‘It just turned into quicksand in the first 10 to 12 minutes.’’
Miami used an extended 2-3 for part of the first half, and that frustrated the Falcons.
Sparked by Jillian Halfhill, the Falcons used the momentum gained at the end of the first half to build a
45-34 lead seven minutes into the second half. Halfhill scored 15 points in the second half.
Miami cut BG’s lead to seven points two times, but two free throws from Rogers with 9:01 left in the game
put BG’s lead into double figures to stay.
The Falcons’ shooting improved in the second half, although BG did attempt 37 3-pointers for the game.’’

‘‘Their defensive pressure was giving us all kinds of fits, so I just told them they had to take the open
shot,’’ Roos said. ‘‘We talked about (at halftime) just staying confident and taking the open shot.
‘‘This is a tough place to play … It’s hard to get a flow going,’’ Roos added.
Rogers led the Falcons with 21 points and six steals. Deborah Hoekstra scored 15 points off the bench,
and Halfhill had six assists to go with her 15 points.
NOTES: Miami fell to 7-21 overall and 3-14 in the MAC … The game started with a men’s ball rather than
the smaller women’s ball … Former BG standout Amber Flynn spoke to the Falcons after the game …
Rogers is 20th on the career-list list with 1,173 points … The Falcons were 21-of-24 (87.5 percent)
from the free-throw line …. BG also had 14 assists on 21 made baskets … BG scored 24 points off
Miami’s 17 turnovers … BG’s Miriam Justinger did not play for the second straight game … BG closes
out the regular season Saturday at Akron with tipoff at 2 p.m.