Ball State University
14-4, 6-1MAC
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Western Michigan
12-7, 4-3MAC
WBB Stays Atop Of the MAC West; Defeats WMU 77-53
January 23, 2016 | Women's Basketball
KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Ball State women's basketball team remained in sole possession of the Mid-American Conference West Division after earning a convincing 77-53 victory at Western Michigan Saturday afternoon in University Arena.
"Great win for us today over a really quality basketball team," Ball State head women's basketball coach Brady Sallee said. "I thought first and foremost we played with a lot of toughness on the defensive end the way we rebounded the ball. We let that carry over to a really hot shooting night. When we shoot the ball that well and then get the dominant post play that we got from Renee and Nathalie, it shows you our potential. I am really excited to see us play this well on the road in a tough environment and we will try to build from here."
With the win, the Cardinals improved to 14-4 overall and 6-1 in conference play while the Broncos dropped to 12-5 overall and 4-3 in league action.
The Cardinals had their best shooting performance of the conference season after shooting 50.0 percent from the field while holding the Broncos to a 33.3 percent. Ball State outrebounded Western Michigan by 12 (40-to-28), shot better from behind the arc (38.5-to-18.8) and won the battle in the paint (36-to-26).
Ball State had four players in double figures, with junior center Renee Bennett leading the charge with a career best 21 points while adding 10 rebounds for her first double-double of the year. Senior guard Nathalie Fontaine and junior guard Jill Morrison each had 15 points apiece and sophomore Moriah Monaco ended the night with 13.
In the third quarter, Western Michigan came to within nine (40-31) of the Cardinals at the 8:25 mark but that would be as close as the Broncos would get the remainder of the ball game. Ball State went on to outscore Western Michigan 39-27 in the second half which included a 22-13 third quarter, giving the Cardinals a commanding 60-39 cushion heading into the last 10 minutes of play.
The Cardinals had a two-point (15-13) advantage after the first quarter with Fontaine and Bennett scoring 12 of those points. Ball State broke its lead open with a big second quarter after outscoring Western Michigan 32-13 with 4:34 remaining in the first half. The Broncos then slowly began chipping away at the Cardinals' 19-point cushion after orchestrating a 13-4 run. Bennett then answered with a layup at the buzzer off of the assist from Fontaine to give Ball State the 38-26 lead at the break.
The Ball State women's basketball team returns home Saturday when it hosts MAC East Division leader Ohio at 4 p.m. in Worthen Arena.
