Mid-American Conference

Toledo 65, Nevada 56
Boxscore
NEW ORLEANS, LA – Toledo claimed a hard-fought 65-56 victory over Nevada on Friday in the first round of the New Orleans Shootout in the Convocation Center on the campus of Xavier University of Louisiana. With the win, the Rockets improve to 5-4 on the season.

Senior Inma Zanoguera paced UT with a game-high 23 points, a contest-best six assists and a game-high four steals. Zanoguera shot an efficient 8-of-12 from the field and 7-of-8 from the free throw line to tally at least 20 points for the fourth time this season.

Sophomore Sophie Reecher added 13 points off the bench, while sophomore Janice Monakana and junior Brenae Harris contributed nine and eight points, respectively, to help the Midnight Blue & Gold improve to 55-47 all-time in pre-conference tourney action. Reecher was a perfect 4-of-4 from the floor and 5-of-6 from the charity stripe to score in double digits for the second time this year.

As a team, the Rockets shot a respectable 42.3 percent (22-of-52) from the field, including 23.1 percent (3-of-13) from three-point range, and 75.0 percent (13-of-18) from the charity stripe. UT also did a good job taking care of the basketball and finished with 14 assists and only nine turnovers, its second-lowest total of the season. 

The Wolf Pack (4-6) was led by Mimi Mungedi with 19 points and three rejections, followed by Aja Johnson and Anna Cameron with 11 points each. Mungedi and Cameron also pulled down a contest-tying best 15 boards each to tally double-doubles.

Nevada started fast and raced out to a 19-7 lead at the 11:48 mark. The Wolf Pack hit eight of their first 15 shots from the field to help them build an early double-digit cushion. The trio of Iman Lathan, Johnson and Mungedi combined to score 14 of the 19 points in the early stages.

The Rockets settled down following a timeout and responded with an 11-0 run to close the gap to 19-18 at the 6:08 mark. Zanoguera started and capped the burst with a pair of charity tosses, while the visitors also received a triple by freshman Michaela Rasmussen, a layup from Harris and one of two free throws by Monakana to make it a one-possession affair.

Nevada stopped the bleeding momentarily with a basket by Ashlee Jones only to have Rockets end the half on a mini 9-4 run to take a 27-26 lead into the locker room. Zanoguera once again sparked the burst with five points, while freshman Nancy Kessler and Reecher also contributed baskets in the late stages.

The teams traded baskets for the first 12-plus minutes of the second half, with Toledo holding no more than a three-point cushion. 

UT then gave itself some breathing room on the strength of back-to-back field goals from Zanoguera and Kessler to make the score 47-41 with 6:23 left in regulation.

Nevada fought back, though, and pulled within a single point on two occasions over the next four-plus minutes, before the Rockets put the game away on a trey by Harris with 53 seconds remaining. The reigning Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week had some struggles from the field this evening, but she calmly drilled a triple from the wing to take the wind out of Nevada’s sails.

Toledo’s Reecher then put the final nail in the coffin by draining four free throws in the waning moments to make the final difference 65-56.    

The Rockets will have little time to savor this victory as they play Southern Illinois tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. (CT). The game against the Salukis will be broadcast on 1230 AM (WCWA) with Jim Heller.

Buffalo 68, Manhattan 58
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RIVERDALE, NY – The University at Buffalo, State University of New York women's basketball team picked up its fourth straight win defeating host Manhattan, 68-58, Friday night at Draddy Gymnasium.

The Bulls (6-3) handed the Jaspers (1-9) their eight straight loss and improved to 2-0 all-time against Manhattan. UB matched a season-best 10-point lead at intermission, 27-17, and maintained a steady cushion throughout the second, despite Manhattan bettering its shooting by nearly 40 percent in the latter half.

"It was exciting to get our fourth straight win together," said head coach Felisha Legette-Jack. "We are learning how to win even when we're in tough situations. Defensively, we are creating opportunities."

The Bulls led for 37 minutes and the game was deadlocked for 2:34. Manhattan's lone lead came at 14:33 of the first and lasted for just 25 seconds.

It was a one-possession game for the first 10 minutes of play. UB inched ahead to lead 17-11 at 4:53, but Manhattan twice made it a two-point game at the foul line. The Bulls closed out the half on an 8-0 run, while holding the Jaspers without a field goal over the final 7:21.

The Bulls used a 12-2 second-half streak to secure its largest lead of the season, 53-34, at the eight-minute mark. Manhattan, who shot a cold 8.3 percent from the three in the first, drained five straight treys as they pieced together a 17-7 run making it 57-48 at 4:29. But that's as close as the Jaspers would get. The Blue & White went on to outlast the host squad, 68-58. The 10-point win was UB's largest margin of victory this season.

"Every time we go out there, someone steps up. Tonight Joanna Smith was the x-factor for us," praised Legette-Jack.

Smith nearly doubled her previous career-high of 10, putting up 18 on 6-for-12 shooting. She added a career-best four steals, while four of her teammates chipped in two or more. The Bulls swiped a season-high 17 and tallied 17 points off of Manhattan turnovers.

Mirroring its season statistics, UB had five with nine or more points. Sophomore Alexus Malone had 13 and a game-high 11 rebounds for her sixth double-double this season. Junior Mackenzie Loesing also recorded 13 on 5-for-11 shooting. Senior Christa Baccas and redshirt-sophomore Rachael Gregory each scored nine. Smith and Malone both dished out a trio of assists.

Manhattan's Nyasha Irizarry, who shot 4-for-8 from three-point land, scored a team-high 16 points and added five assists. Kayla Grimme flirted with a double-double scoring 10 points to go with nine boards. Manhattan was perfect from the line, 12-for-12, on the night.

The Jaspers edged UB, 38-37, in rebounding, though led the turnover count, 23-17. UB shot 41.7 percent from the floor for the game to the Jaspers' 33.9 percent.

Having played just one home game in its last six outings, UB remains in NYC to take on LIU-Brooklyn Sunday at 1 pm. The Bulls will conclude non-conference play Monday, Dec. 29 at cross-town Big 4 rival Canisius.

Bowling Green 58, Illinois State 54
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The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team withstood several comeback attempts by host Illinois State University, posting a 58-54 win on Friday night (Dec. 19). The non-conference game was held at Redbird Arena.

With the win, the Falcons improve to 6-2 on the season, while dropping the Redbirds to 0-9 on the year.

Redshirt junior Erica Donovan led the way for the Brown and Orange, with game-high totals of 20 points and 15 rebounds. Sophomore Rachel Konieczki scored nine points for the Falcons, while fellow soph Abby Siefker and redshirt freshman Kennedy Kirkpatrick had eight points apiece.

Siefker had 12 rebounds of her own, and led all players with five assists in the win.

Donovan and Siefker combined for 14 offensive rebounds among their 27 total boards. Donovan had eight rebounds and Siefker six at the offensive end. On the night, the Falcons had a 44-37 advantage on the glass.

Freshman Rachel Myers had six points on a pair of three-point field goals, including a key triple late in the game that gave the Falcons a six-point lead.

Octavia Crump led three double-digit scorers for the Redbirds, with 17 points. Stekara Hall added 14 points and Katy Winge 11 for the hosts.

The Falcons remain on the road, preparing for a Sunday (Dec. 21) game against Bradley University. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. locally (3:00 p.m. Eastern) in Peoria, Ill.

Ohio 74, LaSalle 63
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