Bowling Green Women Collect Second Consecutive MAC Championship
March 11, 2006
CLEVELAND (AP) - Carin Horne scored 16 points and No. 24 Bowling Green held Kent State to a season-low point total in a 64-39 victory Saturday, giving the Falcons their second straight Mid-American Conference tournament title.
Bowling Green (28-2) never trailed in rolling to its 19th straight victory. The Falcons shut down MAC player of the year Lindsay Shearer early and dominated the boards 41-23.
Bowling Green held Kent State (21-9) to a season-low 13 points in the first half and took Shearer out of the offense.
The senior forward, who led the MAC with a 20.9 point average, attempted just two shots in the first half and got to the foul line once for four points.
Shearer finished with 18 points, most coming after the game was out of reach.
Ali Mann, chosen tournament MVP, and Liz Honegger scored 14 points each. Kate Achter had nine points and seven assists.
Freshman Jasmine McCall dribbled out the final seconds at half court while Achter and her teammates jumped up and down on the sideline.
The Falcons, in the AP Top 25 poll for the first time since 1994, haven't lost since falling to Kentucky in overtime Jan. 2. They are the fifth team to go unbeaten in MAC conference play and have won 25 straight games against league schools.
Bowling Green jumped on Kent State to open the second half, led by Honegger, whose 3-pointer made it 38-17 with 16:55 left.
Kent State ripped off a 12-0 run fueled by Shearer and Sarah Burgess, who made a 3-point play after missing her first nine shots, to pull within 38-29.
But Horne widened the lead, scoring seven of the Falcons' next nine points.
Malika Willoughby then picked up her fourth foul with 8:32 left and threw her mouth guard to the floor in frustration. She was called for a technical foul and left with eight points.
The Golden Flashes shot 32 percent from the field and were 1-for-7 from 3-point range.
They struggled to get the ball inside to Shearer, who set a MAC tournament record with 44 points in last season's title game. She didn't attempt her first field goal until the 8:35 mark in the first half.
The Golden Flashes, who were seeking their first MAC tourney title since 2002, are now 3-8 in MAC tourney championship games. They lost to Bowling Green 81-75 in last year's final.
QUOTABLES
FINAL GAME
BOWLING GREEN (East #1) vs. KENT STATE (West #2)
Bowling Green Head Coach Curt Miller: "It was an unbelievable season. I couldn't be prouder of a group of young women. Today's story was about our defense. Please remember it was our defense that won the game and give the credit to our defensive play today."
(On guard Carin Horne): "I thought she would get the MVP. Today she showed how valuable she is. She'd be the top scorer on any team. Maybe if I actually ran more plays for her she'd be our top scorer but she never complains. She's so selfless and she just continues to play her game and not worry about it but that's the way our team is. We never worry about individual stats."
Junior forward Carin Horne (on stepping up her play): "We all want to win and we came out focused. We have a team with great players. I get the scrap plays and I'm content with that."
Junior forward Liz Honegger (on Lindsay Shearer of Kent State): "She's always a tough assignment. We knew we had to limit her shots and take her out of it and we did that today for the most part. We managed to hold her to under 20 points."
Junior forward Ali Mann (on Coach Miller): "He's a great coach, he knows the game. He has faith in us no matter what."
Ali Mann (on her MVP): "I was definitely surprised. Every person played big today for us. Anyone on our team could have won that award."
Kent State Head Coach Bob Lindsay: "Without stating the obvious, I think we were beaten by a team that completely outplayed us in every aspect of the game tonight. I don't think there was any aspect of that game that Bowling Green did not outplay us in. [The reporters] can write whatever you want but the bottom line is we were outplayed in every aspect of the game."
Bob Lindsay (on postseason play possibility): "I think we are under consideration for the NIT. I am not sure, I will not know until Monday night whether we get in or not. It is probably a 50-50 shot."
Senior forward Lindsay Shearer (on taking no shots until the 8:30 mark in the first half): "Obviously [Bowling Green] was going to try to shut me down early. I think they did a good job. Also, we as a team missed a lot of opportunities inside."
NOTABLES
- The Falcons' 28 victories on the year sets a MAC single-season record. BGSU has won 34 of its last 37 games dating back to last season.
- The Falcons become first team to win back-to-back MAC Tournament championships since 1997.
- Bowling Green won its 19th straight and improved to 19-0 against MAC teams this season. It has also won 25 straight games vs. MAC opponents dating back to Feb. 19, 2005.
- BGSU has won its last six MAC Tournament games and nine of its last 10.
- The Falcons have won the last four meetings with Kent State, including three this season.
- Bowling Green leads the postseason series 6-2 and the all-time series, 35-27. The Falcons have also defeated the Flashes in all three championship game meetings.
- The Falcons now own the most tournament titles with eight. They were previously tied with Toledo at seven. BGSU improved to 8-1 in MAC championship games.
- Ali Mann has scored 51 points and pulled down 28 rebounds in her last three games vs. Kent State.
- In her three tournament games, Mann totaled 40 points and 31 rebounds. Her 31 rebounds in the tournament ranks seventh in tournament history.
- All three tournament victories by the Falcons were by double-digit margins.
- BGSU improved to 72-20 over the last three seasons under Head Coach Curt Miller.
- Bowling Green improved to 30-14 in MAC Tournament history.
- The top seed has won the MAC Tournament in 18 of its 25 years.
- The Falcons snapped the Flashes' four-game win streak and handed KSU just its second loss in its last 10 games.
- The Falcons entered the tournament ranked No. 22 in the nation, the highest by a MAC team since 1994.
- Kent State's 13 first-half points were the fewest scored all season. Its previous low was 21.
- Lindsay Shearer moved into seventh place on KSU's all-time field goals made list and ninth place for field goals made in a season. Shearer was held to under 20 points in a game for the first time in 10 games. With 18 points, Shearer finishes her MAC career with 1,799 career points.
- Malorie Griffith recorded her 300th career rebound.
- KSU fell to 28-13 in MAC Tournament play under head coach Bob Lindsay.
All-Tournament Team
Ali Mann, Bowling Green, Jr, F, Chelsea, Mich.- Most Valuable Player
Liz Honegegr, Bowling Green, Jr., F, Lafayette, Ind.
Kate Achter, Bowling Green, So., G, Oregon City, Ohio
Lindsay Shearer, Kent State, Sr., F, Minerva, Ohio
Ryan Coleman, Eastern Michigan, Sr., G, Detroit, Mich.
