Saturday, December 30
Muncie, Ind.
2:00 PM
Ball State University
11-1, 0-1MAC
65
vs
69
Central Michigan
9-3, 1-0MAC
1
2
3
4
F
Central Michigan
17
14
18
20
69
Ball State
9
15
13
28
65
WBB Loses First Game Of The Year In MAC Opener To CMU, 69-65
December 30, 2017 | Women's Basketball
MUNCIE, Ind. - The Ball State women's basketball team opened Mid-American Conference action with its first loss of the season after suffering a 69-65 setback to West division rival Central Michigan Saturday afternoon in Worthen Arena.
With the loss, Ball State falls to 11-1 on the season and 0-1 in league play while Central Michigan improves to 9-3 on the year and 1-0 in MAC action.
Senior forward Moriah Monaco led the Cardinals with 17 points. Senior guard Frannie Frazier collected her first double-double of her career after an 11 point, 10 rebound performance.
As a team, the Cardinals handled the ball fairly well as they only had 13 turnovers for the game while forcing Central Michigan to commit 26 miscues. Ball State had its worst shooting performance of the season shooting 32.1 percent from the field and was out-rebounded 55-to-44.
Both teams struggled offensively to start. Ball State led 7-5 at the 5:42 mark before Central Michigan used a late 9-2 run to close out the first quarter with a 17-9 lead over the Cardinals heading into the second frame. It was uncharacteristic offensively for Ball State as the Cardinals shot a season low 18 percent (4-of-22) from the field in the first stanza.
The Cardinals struggled to get their shots to fall in the second quarter as Central Michigan jumped out to a 13 point lead (29-16) with 3:53 remaining in the first half. Monaco made her first basket at the 2:27 mark which sparked a 5-0 run to bring Ball State within six (29-23) but Central Michigan's defense wouldn't allow the Cardinals to score many more and the Chippewas would take a 31-24 advantage into intermission.
Ball State enjoyed a strong start in the third quarter, opening with a 5-2 run to cut the Chippewas halftime lead down to four (33-29) at the 6:29 mark. A key 3-point basket from junior guard Jasmin Samz and a layup from Monaco helped the Cardinals to regroup from their first half shooting woes. The Chippewas then responded with a 5-0 run of their own to go back up by nine. Central Michigan continued to attack the rim and out-rebound Ball State to push its lead to 49-37 entering the fourth quarter.
After Monaco sparked a Ball State comeback at the start of the fourth quarter and junior guard Carmen Grande went coast-to-coast to tie the game 51-51 for the first time with 5:22 on the clock. Both teams then began to swap blows the remainder of the final frame as the game was tied six times. But Central Michigan went up 66-63 with just over a minute remaining and stayed atop the rest of the contest.
The Ball State women's basketball team continues Mid-American Conference action Wednesday at home when it hosts the Miami RedHawks at 7 p.m. in Worthen Arena.
To purchase tickets for the game, log on to www.ballstatesports.com, call 888.BSU.TICKET or visit the Stoops Buick GMC Ticket Center inside Worthen Arena.
With the loss, Ball State falls to 11-1 on the season and 0-1 in league play while Central Michigan improves to 9-3 on the year and 1-0 in MAC action.
Senior forward Moriah Monaco led the Cardinals with 17 points. Senior guard Frannie Frazier collected her first double-double of her career after an 11 point, 10 rebound performance.
As a team, the Cardinals handled the ball fairly well as they only had 13 turnovers for the game while forcing Central Michigan to commit 26 miscues. Ball State had its worst shooting performance of the season shooting 32.1 percent from the field and was out-rebounded 55-to-44.
Both teams struggled offensively to start. Ball State led 7-5 at the 5:42 mark before Central Michigan used a late 9-2 run to close out the first quarter with a 17-9 lead over the Cardinals heading into the second frame. It was uncharacteristic offensively for Ball State as the Cardinals shot a season low 18 percent (4-of-22) from the field in the first stanza.
The Cardinals struggled to get their shots to fall in the second quarter as Central Michigan jumped out to a 13 point lead (29-16) with 3:53 remaining in the first half. Monaco made her first basket at the 2:27 mark which sparked a 5-0 run to bring Ball State within six (29-23) but Central Michigan's defense wouldn't allow the Cardinals to score many more and the Chippewas would take a 31-24 advantage into intermission.
Ball State enjoyed a strong start in the third quarter, opening with a 5-2 run to cut the Chippewas halftime lead down to four (33-29) at the 6:29 mark. A key 3-point basket from junior guard Jasmin Samz and a layup from Monaco helped the Cardinals to regroup from their first half shooting woes. The Chippewas then responded with a 5-0 run of their own to go back up by nine. Central Michigan continued to attack the rim and out-rebound Ball State to push its lead to 49-37 entering the fourth quarter.
After Monaco sparked a Ball State comeback at the start of the fourth quarter and junior guard Carmen Grande went coast-to-coast to tie the game 51-51 for the first time with 5:22 on the clock. Both teams then began to swap blows the remainder of the final frame as the game was tied six times. But Central Michigan went up 66-63 with just over a minute remaining and stayed atop the rest of the contest.
The Ball State women's basketball team continues Mid-American Conference action Wednesday at home when it hosts the Miami RedHawks at 7 p.m. in Worthen Arena.
To purchase tickets for the game, log on to www.ballstatesports.com, call 888.BSU.TICKET or visit the Stoops Buick GMC Ticket Center inside Worthen Arena.
Team Stats
CMU
BALLST
FG%
.377
.321
3FG%
.200
.156
FT%
.895
.444
RB
55
44
TO
26
13
STL
3
9
Game Leaders
Pts
17
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
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