Mid-American Conference

Ball State 75, Oakland 50
Memphis 62, Central Michigan 61
Oral Roberts 63, Eastern Michigan 62
Evansville 51, Miami 41
East Carolina 76, Ohio 68
Green Bay 70, Western Michigan 55

Courtesy of MAC Athletic Communications Departments
Ball State 75, Oakland 50
MUNCIE, Ind. – Behind a season-high 29-point performance from junior Nathalie Fontaine, the Ball State women’s basketball team defeated Oakland 75-50 Saturday in Worthen Arena.

"It was a really good win for us, I think from watching Oakland on film they had my attention with some of the things they do and they've got some players that again you watch them on film and they can really make you look a little silly," Ball State head women's basketball coach Brady Sallee said. "I thought we were really good defensivley which is evident from their shooting percentage.  In the second half clearly we had a little bit more resolve to come out and be the bigger, tougher and stronger basketball team."

With the win the Cardinals evened their overall record to 3-3, while the Golden Grizzlies fell to 3-4 on the season.

In a game the Cardinals never trailed, Ball State’s defense limited Oakland to .275 percent shooting from the field, including a 21 percent mark from three-point range.

Ball state scored the first basket of the game 47 seconds into the contest on a Fontaine basket and led for the remaining 39:03 of the contest.

Oakland managed an 8-0 run to cut Ball State’s lead to two (15-13) with 7:05 on the clock in the first half, but Ball State put together its own run to go back up by nine (25-16) after Moriah Monaco nailed her second three pointer of the half.  The Golden Grizzlies made it a two-point ball game at 25-23 with just over a minute remaining in the half, but a layup from freshman Brionna Simond gave Ball State the 27-23 advantage over Oakland at intermission.

Fontaine opened the second half with a quick basket which sparked a 16-5 scoring spree to put the Cardinals up by 15 (43-28) with just over 14 minutes left to play in the ball game.    Oakland would come to within eight (46-38) at the 11:08 mark but that was as close as the Golden Grizzlies would get the remainder of the way.

Fontaine led all scorers in the game with 29 points plus tallied a game-high 13 rebounds and a team-best five assists.  Monaco and Jill Morrison added 13 points apiece.

The Ball State women's basketball team will continue non-conference action when it travels to Butler Saturday for a 7 p.m. tipoff in Hinkle Fieldhouse.


Memphis 62, Central Michigan 61
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The shorthanded Central Michigan women's basketball team put up a valiant fight on the road Saturday, only to come up short in a non-league game at Memphis.
The Chippewas, playing without starters Crystal Bradford and Jewel Cotton, trailed by 21 points early in the second half, took a brief one-point lead with under three minutes to play, before succumbing, 62-61.
The loss dropped CMU to 3-2. It's other loss came by three points to Kentucky, which was ranked ninth at the time.
"I thought if we had made layups and free throws we might have won the game," said CMU coach Sue Guevara, whose team trailed by 14 at halftime and was down 43-22 with under 17 minutes remaining. "In the first half we had some wide-open looks. We had layups that did not go in and we turned the ball over.
"We claw our way back after we put ourselves in a hole. It's such a repetitive story I'm tired of repeating it."
Kerby Tamm hit six of her 14 three-point attempts en route to a game-high 18 points to lead the Chippewas, while Lorreal Jones and Jas'Mine Bracey added 10 points apiece.
Bracey hauled down 15 rebounds and Jones, despite spending most of the first half on the bench in foul trouble, added eight as the Chippewas outrebounded the Tigers, 43-36. Tamm also had four assists.
The Chippewas outscored Memphis, 39-26, after the break and seized their only second-half lead, 56-55, on a Bracey jumper with 2 minutes, 42 seconds remaining.
Memphis regained the advantage on a layup by Asianna Fuqua-Bey with 1:53 left.
A Jessica Green layup with 3 seconds to play cut Memphis' lead to 62-60. Memphis' Ariel Hearn missed a free throw with 2 seconds remaining and CMU's Da'Jourie Turner rebounded and was fouled by Hearn.
Turner went to the foul line for a one-and-one opportunity with under a second remaining. The junior guard, who was making her first start of the season, hit the first, but missed the second.
Hearn scored 17 points to lead Memphis (4-4) while Fuqua-Bey added 16. Brianna Wright grabbed 10 rebounds for the Tigers.
Tamm's six three-pointers tied her career high, and her 18 points were two shy of her career-best 20. Tamm kept the Chippewas within shouting distance in the first half as she made five of her triples before the break. She had 15 of CMU's 22 first-half points.
The double-double for Bracey was the 21st of her career and her first this season. Bracey also had three blocks and three steals, both team-highs.

CMU freshman Cassandra Breen, making her first start, finished with nine points and five rebounds.


Oral Roberts 63, Eastern Michigan 62
TULSA, Okla. (EMUEagles.com) — Eastern Michigan University's women's basketball team dropped a close battle with the Golden Eagles of Oral Roberts University, 63-62, in Tulsa, Okla.  Shannise Heady (Hazel Crest, Ill.-Hillcrest-Seton Hall) hit both her free throws with 1:36 to play to a deadlock the score at 60-all. ORU took the slight edge once more with a Vicky McIntyre layup and extended the lead to three with a free throw by Jordan Gilbert, but the Green and White kept fighting back and cut the deficit to one point with a short jumper by Phillis Webb (Brooklyn Park, Minn.-Osseo) with 13 seconds still showing.  Following a time out, Jamaica Bucknor (Brooklyn, N.Y.-Weaver-ASA College) stripped the ball with 11 seconds remaining. Unfortunately, Cha Sweeney's (Toledo, Ohio-Rogers) shot was off target as Oral Roberts escaped with the one-point victory.

With the setback, the Eagles fall to 5-3 on the season while ORU increases its record to 5-4.

Eastern was paced by Sweeney with 20 points and seven rebounds to go along with three steals and three assists.  Also scoring in double digits were Webb with 11 points to go along with a team-high eight rebounds and Heady with 10 points.  As a team, the Eagles struggled to find the hoop, hitting just 23-of-73 shots for a 31.5 percentage from the field, including not finding a three-pointer on eight attempts.  The Green and White managed to keep its turnovers low, committing just 13 miscues while forcing 22 from the Golden Eagles.  The team was also more effective in the paint, scoring 42 points down low compared to 30 points for ORU.

Oral Roberts was led by McIntyre, who notched a double-double of 16 points and 15 rebounds to go along with six blocks.  Bernadett Balla was also a threat on the boards, pulling down 10 rebounds.  Overall, the Golden Eagles outrebounded the Eagles 54-46.

ORU got on the board first with a McIntyre kiss off the glass before Morton would equalize the count with a pair of free throws.  The Eagles struggled to get rolling offensively, finding plenty of opportunities for shots but were ultimately unable to convert.  Meanwhile, the Golden Eagles strung together a brief run of four points before Sweeney knocked in a jumper and later found Rachel Kehoe (St. Clair, Mich.-St. Clair (St. Clair CC)) under the rim for an easy layup to knot the score at six apiece.

The Golden Eagles continued to attack the paint before dishing out to Jayden Oliver, who hit the first perimeter shot of the contest to give ORU a 13-6 advantage. Heady managed to quench the Eagles' scoring drought on a fastbreak layup off an ORU miscue with 11:33 to play, while the Green and White still trailed 15-8.

Mixing up their offense between paint presence and hot shooting from three-point range, ORU built up a 22-12 advantage.  Eastern was able to cut into the scoring gap a bit with a pair of free throws by Webb from the charity stripe immediately followed by a steal off the inbound play and layup by Sweeney.  The sophomore continued to pace the Eagles in offensive aggression, drawing the foul in the paint and hitting a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to four points, 22-18 with 5:51 to play in the half.

A foul by Bernadett Balla put Kehoe on the line, and she converted on one of her two chances, after which Webb executed a flawless reverse layup.  Down the court on defense on the next play, Webb came away with a steal to give to Sweeney, who found Jamaica Bucknor (Brooklyn, N.Y.-Weaver (ASA College)) for a fastbreak layup to give the Eagles their first lead of the game, 23-22.  A mid-range jumper by Sweeney extended the EMU lead to 25-22, keeping the Golden Eagles scoreless for over nearly three minutes.

ORU found a few points from Carolina Lopez in the paint, but Micah Robinson (Ann Arbor, Mich-Huron) came in and sparked the Eagle offense once more.  Robinson broke away down the court and tossed a teardrop into the hoop before drawing ORU's large post players and finding Kabria Walker (Toledo, Ohio-Rogers) open for a layup.  The Eagles held off the ORU for the rest of the half, keeping the Golden Eagles from claiming the final bucket of the half when Bucknor swiped the ball and tore down the court for a last-second layup, extending the lead to 34-29 at the half.

Sweeney paced the team at the half with 10 points to her credit, while also leading the team in rebounds, steals, and assists. As a team, the Eagles shot 33.3 percent from the field off 12-of-36 shooting, and went 10-of-13 from the free throw line.  The Eagles committed just four turnovers, while forcing 11 ORU miscues.

Oral Roberts mustered a slight edge in shooting percentage, draining 12-of-33 shots for 36.4 percent.  The Golden Eagles held a staunch edge on the boards, pulling down 30 rebounds compared to just 20 for the Green and White.  The presence from the post players also played a large factor, as McIntyre rejected the Eagles three times to pace her squad's five blocks. 

The two teams traded blows to open up the second half, with ORU turning back to the large frames of its forwards to pace the offense.  Sweeney provided superb leadership for the Eagles, scoring the team's first six points while forcing an additional 10-second half court violation with her relentless defense.

Despite leading by as many as seven points, the Eagles relinquished the lead with 12:16 to play, trailing 43-42 after a series of fouls on ORU helped the Golden Eagles sway the score in their favor.  With the lead no longer in the Eagles' possession, Head Coach Tory Verdi called an effective timeout that resulted in a pair of baskets from Heady and Webb to reclaim control of the scoreboard before another half court time violation from the EMU defensive press.

A pair of layups by McIntyre plus an extra point from a free throw from the center tied the score up at 48-48, while another layup from Atoe' Jackson gave the lead back to the Golden Eagles.  From there, ORU went on a 9-3 run to take a 59-51 advantage in the contest.  A pair of layups from Heady and Walker kept the Green and White in the game, trailing 60-55 with 3:35 remaining.

Bucknor hit a pair of free throws to bring the score within two points, after which Heady made a flying grab and dash downcourt to draw the foul.  After hitting both her free throws, Heady brought the game to a deadlock at 60-60.  ORU took the slight edge once more but the Green and White kept fighting back and cut the deficit to one point with a short jumper by Webb with 13 seconds remaining.  Unfortunately, the Eagles were unable to convert on their final play, as Oral Roberts escaped with the 63-62 victory.

Eastern Michigan will return to its home court Tuesday, Dec. 9, for a tilt with Madonna University.  The Eagles invite students to take a break from studying for finals to come out and support the Green and White as it takes on the Crusaders inside the Convocation Center at 7 p.m. Thanks to local businesses, students can enjoy free food, coffee, Insomnia Cookies, massages, and haircuts  at the Convocation Center as well as vouchers for free tanning when they come to cheer on the Green and White against the Crusaders. Local businesses in attendance include: Bigby Coffee, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dominoes, DNA Salon 120, Insomnia Cookies, Jimmy John's, and TanFastic. EMU students get into all home basketball games for free with a valid student ID.


Evansville 51, Miami 41
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Miami University women’s basketball team had a strong defensive effort, but a tough shooting night and too many turnovers led to a 51-41 defeat at Evansville Saturday evening. The RedHawks fall to 2-4 overall, while the Purple Aces improve to 3-4.

Miami held Evansville to 33.3 percent (19-for-57) for the contest. The 51 points scored by the Aces was 17 under their season average. However, the RedHawks were only able to shoot 28.6 percent (14-for-49) themselves and turned the ball over 24 times.

Both teams started off slowly offensively as a jumper from senior point guard Courtney Larson was Miami’s only basket in the first five minutes. The ‘Hawks only allowed one Evansville layup during that time period, keeping the score tied at two. A three-pointer from freshman guard Kayla Brown put the ‘Hawks ahead, while back-to-back layups from freshman guards Baleigh Reid and Ana Richter gave Miami a 9-4 lead with 12:55 remaining in the half.

The RedHawks were unable to score for the next 5:58 as the Purple Aces went on a 15-0 run to take a 19-9 lead. A jumper from Reid stopped the bleeding, while buckets from Brown and Larson were part of a 9-2 run that pulled Miami to within three with 21 seconds remaining. Evansville scored the final five points to take a 26-18 lead into the break.

After the Purple Aces opened the second half with a free throw, a 7-0 run by the Red and White made it 27-25 with 16:31 remaining. Reid had a pair of layups during that stretch, while junior forward Jessica Rupright drained a three-pointer. Evansville pushed the lead back to five, but a three-pointer by Brown made it 30-28 with 16:01 to go.

Another scoring drought for Miami allowed the Aces to go on a 15-4 run over the next eight minutes to build a 45-32 lead. A layup by Brown a three-pointer from Reid pulled the RedHawks to within seven at 45-38 with 4:46 to go, but Evansville closed on a 6-3 lead to take a 51-41 victory.

Reid led Miami with 11 points, while Brown finished with 10. Junior forward Hannah McCue brought in a team-high 16 rebounds. The RedHawks outrebounded the Purple Aces for the game, 46-33. Evansville was led by Mallory Ladd with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

Miami is off for the next week for final exams. The RedHawks return to action on Monday, Dec. 15 when they host UT Martin at 7 p.m. That is the first Dollar Days contest of the season, and admission is only $1 with select concession items only $2.


East Carolina 76, Ohio 68
ATHENS, Ohio - Ohio women's basketball (6-1) fell to East Carolina (7-2) 76-68 Saturday night at the Convocation Center.

How It Happened:
- Ohio began the game on an 11-0 run, not allowing the Pirates to score in the first 3:42 of the contest. The run was started with five points from Baldwin and then Lampkins added the next six on two field goals and a pair of free throws.
- East Carolina would answer though, going on a 9-0 run of its own and earning its first lead of the game at 21-20 with 6:24 remaining in the first half.
- The Pirates would take a 32-30 lead to the locker room at half, with Baldwin leading the way for the Bobcats with 10 first half points. East Carolina's Jasmine Phillips scored a game high 11 points in the opening 20 minutes.
- The first 10 minutes of the second half was highly contested, with neither team leading by more than four points. But three straight Ohio possessions ended in a turnover and ECU answered each turnover with a three by Shae Nelson, building a 57-49 lead with just over eight minutes remaining in the game.
- ECU got hot from behind the arc in the latter half of the game, hitting six of 10 shots from deep in the second stanza. The Pirates shot 9-of-15 (60 percent) from three for the game.
- The Bobcats had four players in double figures as Black (17), Baldwin (14), Yelle (14) and Lampkins (10) all made significant contributions offensively.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Lampkins reached tied a career-high with six assists.
- Yelle tied a career-high in points with 14, matching a mark previously set on the road against Akron last season.
- Baldwin scored in double figures for the fifth time this season and also recorded at least six rebounds for the sixth game of the 2014-15 campaign.
- Black reached double figures in points for the 36th time in her Ohio career.
- Ohio has scored at least 60 points in each of its seven games this season.

QUOTABLE
Head Coach Bob Boldon:
On ECU's size and athleticism:
"It's drastically different. We haven't seen anybody like that all year. (James Madison) will be similar, Central Michigan will be similar. Time will tell if they're athletic as ECU when we get to see them live. But they're long, athletic and they're a tough team to play."

Sophomore guard Quiera Lampkins:
"I just like to think of (this game) as a test. We didn't pass it, but we didn't fail. We're a totally different team than last year. Last year, that team would've given up when they went on that 12-point run."

COMING UP
The Bobcats complete their four-game homestand at the Convocation Center, finishing with James Madison on Monday, Dec. 15, at 7 p.m.


Green Bay 70, Western Michigan 55
GREEN BAY- The Western Michigan women’s basketball team fell to a quality Green Bay team Saturday on the road, 70-55. The Phoenix improved to 6-2 on the season, while Western Michigan slipped to 4-2.

The Broncos fell behind by 13 in the first half and the seasoned Green Bay squad squandered Western Michigan’s attempts at a comeback in the second half. The Phoenix have been one of the premier mid-major programs, winning 16-straight Horizon League regular season titles.

“We came into an environment that we hadn’t been tested in yet, that’s a legitimate top-25 team,” said WMU head coach Shane Clipfell. “They are really tough to defend and really tough to score against.

“It felt like we were with them every step of the way even though they opened up that lead a little bit on us. But that is a good sign, we didn’t cave in. In the first half if we would have taken away some of those turnovers we gave them that led to easy baskets and rebounded a little bit, it could have been a different story.”

Western Michigan junior forward Miracle Woods started for the first time this season and it was her presence on the floor that made a difference for the Broncos. WMU trailed 13-11 over the first eight minutes of the game, but the Phoenix were able to go on a big run after Woods went to the bench with two fouls. Green Bay outscored WMU by 11 points over the final 12 minutes of the period and led 34-21 at halftime. The Broncos scored five unanswered points at the end of the first half to help avoid a bigger deficit.

WMU continued to fight and cut Green Bay’s lead down to single digits, 46-37, midway through the second half following four straight free throws by Michelle O’Brien. Green Bay leading scorer and last year’s Horizon Freshman of the Year Mehryn Kraker shifted the momentum back to the Phoenix with a big 3-pointer and Green Bay went up by as many as 22 before closing out with a 15-point victory.

Woods led Western Michigan with a team-high 16 points, which also tied her season high. A.J. Johnson and Jazmine Windham each had eight points apiece. Johnson also had five rebounds, five assists and two steals, but also committed seven turnovers.

Allie LeClaire had a game-high 19 points for the Phoenix, followed by 16 points from Kraker. Green Bay outscored Western Michigan in the paint, 38-12.

The Broncos head to Ohio State next Sunday, Dec. 14 for another tough road test, facing the Buckeyes at 2 p.m.