BOX SCORE
OXFORD, Ohio- The Western Michigan (9-14, 6-3 MAC) women's basketball team suffered a 73-61 loss on the road at Miami (OH) on Saturday, Feb. 9. Tiera DeLaHoussaye led three Broncos in double figures with 16 points.
Despite the loss, Western Michigan, a game ahead in the MAC West standings entering the game, will at least share a piece of the top spot in the division with six conference wins.
Miami (14-9, 6-3) built a quick 14-4 lead and extended the advantage to as many as 18 midway through the first half. Western Michigan got within six, but that was as close as they would come the rest of the afternoon. WMU trailed 37-29 at halftime.
Poor shooting plagued the Broncos in the first frame and throughout the day, as they connected on just 29 percent of their shots and were 0-for-6 from the behind the arc in the first half.
The shooting woes continued for WMU in the second half and Miami was able to hit back-to-back three's in an early run to put the Broncos back in a big hole. The RedHawks pushed the lead to as many as 21 in the second half.
The thorn in the side all day for Broncos' was Miami's ability to hit from behind the arc, where they would ultimately seal the game. Western Michigan continued to put up the good fight cutting the lead to 10 on a DeLaHoussaye jumper with 3:32 remaining, but back-to-back three's by Laura Markwood and Amanda Jackson would take the wind out of WMU's sails, eventually falling by a 73-61 final.
Sara Vest played a big part bringing the Broncos back to within striking distance in the first half, totaling 10 points and five rebounds. She finished with 12 points. DeLaHoussaye was the team's leading scorer, netting 16, 10 of which came in the second period. Vest and Cleary led WMU on the boards, each grabbing eight rebounds.
Western Michigan shot just 34 percent on the day and never found the stroke from long range, being held to 2-of-23 (15 percent) from three-point land.
Miami hit 39 percent of its shots, including going 11-for-25 from beyond the arc.
The Broncos' held the fourth leading scorer in the nation, Amanda Jackson to just nine points, 14 below her season average, but it was the supporting cast who took it to the Broncos. Jenna Schone hit four three's on her way to a game-high 20 points and Ashley Hawkins and Courtney Reed chipped in 12 and 11 apiece, respectively.
Western Michigan is back in action at home on Wednesday, Feb. 13. The Broncos will be recognizing wearing pink jerseys as part of "Think Pink" Cancer Awareness night. In partnership with the WBCA, women's basketball teams across the nation are helping to raise awareness about breast cancer during "Think Pink" week, Feb. 8-17.
