Ball State University
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Western Michigan University
Women's Basketball Heads to Western Michigan for MAC Play Saturday
January 06, 2023 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 7 | Kalamazoo, Mich. | University Arena | 2 pm ET
Opening Tip:
Ball State opened the Mid-American Conference season Wednesday night in Worthen Arena with an impressive 81-73 victory over Bowling Green. Redshirt senior Anna Clephane led the Cardinals with 22 points to help BSU move past BGSU. Ball State used gritty defense and an all-around team effort offensively, which included 31 points from BSU's bench.Â
Only one other team in the Mid-American Conference women's basketball standings other than Ball State has 11 overall wins this season and that is Bowling Green.
Western Michigan finished the 2022 non-conference season with a 5-6 overall record. The Broncos fell in their MAC opener at Toledo by a score of 53-71 Wednesday night in Savage Arena. WMU and BSU both faced Chicago State and Notre Dame in non-conference play. The Broncos defeated the Cougars, 101-73 and fell to Notre Dame, 57-85.Â
Saturday's game against Western Michigan will mark the 89th time in program history the two schools have met with Ball State leading the series record, 50-39. BSU won both its meetings against WMU last season, winning by a score of 73-67 at home (2/21/22) and then at Western Michigan by a score of 64-56 (2/23/22).
Ball State owns a 30-8 ledger over Western Michigan dating back to the 2004-05 season. Brady Sallee holds an 17-4 career mark against the Broncos.
The last time the Cardinals lost to the Broncos in the MAC regular season was in Kalamazoo, Mich. on March 2, 2019 by a score of 54-72. Since then, Ball State has won six-straight over Western Michigan.Â
Fast Facts:
- Redshirt senior Anna Clephane has 958 points for her career and only needs 42 points to become the 10th player under Brady Sallee to reach the 1,000 point milestone. Clephane is first on the team in scoring averaging 12.9 points per game.
 - Sophomore Marie Kiefer has proven to be a great defender for the Cardinals. She currently sits in 12th place all-time in blocked shots with 69 and so far has 21 total this season. Kiefer averages 1.4 blocks per contest.
- Graduate senior Thelma Dis Agustsdottir has found her rhythm behind the arc again as she currently leads the team with 39 three's so far this season. Agustsdottir has 257 total 3-pointers for her career and sits in fourth place all-time. She needs nine more to move up to third place which is currently being held by former Cardinal Jill Morrison (2013-17) with 266 3-pointers.
The Cardinals are Chirping:
- Ball State wrapped up non-conference action Friday, Dec. 30 with a 119-53 win over Chicago State to finish with a 10-3 mark. The Cardinals had one of the best offensive performances of the year against a Division I program versus the Cougars. Nationally, Ball State made 46 field goals which ranks first, dished out 33 assists which is good for second, scored 119 points which ranks third, shot 65 percent from the field for the 4th best and made 17 3-pointers which is the sixth most among their peers.
Ball State's Bench:
The Cardinals bench has stepped up their game this season as they have combined to score 349 points including a season high 59 points against Chicago State.Â
Scouting Western Michigan:
Shane Clipfell first year as the head coach of the Broncos was also Brady Sallee's first year at Ball State. Clipfell was familiar with the MAC as he was an assistant coach at Eastern Michigan for nine seasons. Prior to Western Michigan, Clipfell was an assistant coach at Michigan State. Clipfell's best season with the Broncos was in 2014-15, leading WMU to an overall record of 20-13 and an 11-7 MAC ledger.
The Broncos are led by Lauren Ross again this season who is averaging 21.9 points per contest. Behind Ross is Taylor Williams who scores 13.1 points per game and leads WMU defensively with 7.8 rebounds per contest.
Ball State senior Sydney Shafer transferred from Western Michigan to Ball State this season. At WMU, Shafer played three seasons for the Broncos (2019-2022). Shafer played the role as a starter and sixth man coming off the bench over her tenure with Western Michigan playing in 74 games with 26 starts. Her best season was in 2020-21 where she averaged 14.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per contest while also staring in 17 contests.
Next Game:
Ball State remains on the road when it travels to Toledo for midweek MACtion Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET in Savage Arena. Wednesday's contest at Toledo marks the 89th time in program history the two schools have met with Toledo leading the all-time series record, 59-30. Ball State has won five of the last seven meetings over the Rockets from 2019-present.
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