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Western Michigan University Athletics

65
Winner Western Mich. Western Mich.
62
Ball St. Ball St.
Winner
Western Mich. Western Mich.
65
Final
62
Ball St. Ball St.
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Western Mich. Western Mich. 10 19 14 22 65
Ball St. Ball St. 13 20 21 8 62

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Fourth Quarter Comeback Leads to WMU Victory at Ball State

MUNCIE, Ind. - Down by 14 points with seven and a half minutes remaining at Ball State University, the Western Michigan women's basketball closed out the fourth quarter on a 21-4 run to claim a 65-62 Mid-American Conference road win on Saturday, Jan. 26, snapping a four-game losing skid. 

In the fourth quarter, Meredith Miller was a perfect 4-of-4 from three-point range, sparking the Bronco comeback. Not long after sinking her fifth three-pointer of the day to put WMU down by six, Miller gave the Brown & Gold its first lead of the second half at 61-60 with just over two minutes remaining in the game. She followed with another minutes later to give WMU a four-point advantage, a large enough cushion to seal the victory. 

"I remember during the timeout saying, 'we're not done, we're getting good looks,' and we just needed the ball to go through the bucket," said head coach Shane Clipfell. "It was a long seven days to have the Buffalo loss sitting in our guts. This was huge, it is tough to win on the road and we picked a good time to play the best seven minutes of basketball that we have played in a long time."

For the first time this season, WMU had two scorers with at least 20 points, as Miller and Deja Wimby led the way with 21 points each. Wimby notched her second double-double of the season with a season-high point total along with a team-high 12 rebounds to go with six assists and four steals. Miller had a career performance, shooting 7-of-15 from beyond the arc for a career-high 21 points. 

"Good for her," Clipfell commented on Miller's performance. "She's put herself in that position. We could talk about the threes but the thing that sticks out in my mind is a charge she took on a big possession."

"I don't think she gets enough credit for what she does defensively," Clipfell spoke about Wimby. "She does so much stuff that isn't in the stats that only those who watch the film after can appreciate and today was no different. That has been pretty constant throughout her career."

Western Michigan's three-point field goals were vital as Ball State out-rebounded the Broncos 42-35 and led 40-12 in points in the paint. WMU forced 18 Cardinal turnovers, converting those into 20 points and leading 12-6 in second chance points.

After a quiet start in which the Broncos opened the game shooting 1-of-8 from the field, back-to-back three-pointers from Miller ended a 9-0 run by the home team. BSU owned a 13-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.

WMU came within two points of the Cardinals several times before taking its first lead since early in the game with a Maddie Watters three-pointer, giving the Broncos a 25-24 advantage with two and a half minutes remaining in the first half. Ball State closed out the half on a 9-4 run to take a 33-29 lead into the intermission. 

BSU opened the second half on a 10-2 run, extending its lead to nine points about four minutes in. WMU twice came within five points of the Cardinals with free throws from Wimby, but Ball State outscored the Broncos 21-14 in the third stanza, closing out the quarter on an 8-0 run to claim a 54-43 lead heading into the final 10 minutes. WMU answered to outscore BSU 22-8 in the fourth.


 

Game Notes
  • WMU's 11 three-point field goals made ties a season-high, matching totals versus Florida A&M (Dec. 21) and Akron (Jan. 9)
  • Wimby played in a season-high 40 minutes while tallying a season-high 21 points. She also recorded her second double-double of the season and eighth of her career. Her nine free throws made were also a season-high. 
  • Miller's seven three-point field goals and 21 points are both career-highs
    • She is the eighth Bronco all-time to tally at least seven three-pointers in a game. 
  • Kamrin Reed matched a career/season-high with 40 minutes played. 
Up Next
Western Michigan, now 8-9 overall and 2-4 in the MAC, is set for another MAC road matchup at Northern Illinois University next Wednesday, Jan. 30. 

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