Women's Basketball | March 07, 2018

Box Score CLEVELAND- The No. 6 seeded Western Michigan women's basketball team defeated No. 3 seed Ball State, 65-54, in the Mid-American Conference Tournament quarterfinals Wednesday. It is the second-straight year WMU has upset a higher seed in the quarterfinals, also knocking off No. 1 seed Central Michigan last year.

The Broncos (18-14 record) advance to the semifinals on Friday and will face No. 2 seed Buffalo at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN3. The Bulls (26-4) downed Kent State in their quarterfinal matchup, 72-50.

Western Michigan's win over Ball State snapped a six-game losing streak to the Cardinals, dating back to 2015. Entering the game, WMU had just four wins against Ball State in the previous 20 meetings.

Wednesday's contest was all Western Michigan however, as the Broncos got off to a hot start and built a big lead that despite a late rally was too much for Ball State to overcome.

WMU put down eight first half three-pointers and shot a stifling 41.9 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes. The Brown & Gold defense held Ball State to just 21.4 shooting in the first half. Western Michigan led 37-18 at the break.

The two sides played even in the third quarter and Western Michigan fought off a late surge by Ball State in which the Cardinals outscored the Broncos 23-15 in the final 10 minutes. Each time BSU built momentum, the Broncos found a way to slow them down. Trailing by 16 with six minutes to go, Ball State went on an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to eight. WMU responded with a pair of huge inside buckets from junior Breanna Mobley. The Broncos also went 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the final two minutes.

Senior Najee Smith buried four three pointers and finished with a team-high 14 points. Mobley tallied 13 points and six rebounds. Junior point guard Deja Wimby recorded a point-assist double-double for the fourth straight game, racking up 12 points, 10 assists and three steals. Senior Marley Hill made two three-pointers and had 10 points and eight rebounds.

LaTondra Brooks and Meredith Miller each provided nice sparks off the bench, both contributing six points.

Western Michigan limited Ball State leading scorer Moriah Monaco to just six points. She entered the contest averaging over 17 per game. Carmen Grande led the Cardinals with a 16 points and Oshlynn Brown recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Ball State bows out of the MAC Tournament with a 24-6 overall record.

WMU ended the game shooting 39.6 percent from the floor and made a season-high 10 three-pointers. Ball State shot 36.4 percent for the night. Both teams had 13 turnovers and the Cardinals had one more rebound, 38-37.