DETROIT, Mich – The Western Michigan women's basketball collected their sixth win of the season tonight over the Detroit Mercy Titans by a final score of 58-51. The win is the fifth consecutive for WMU, and third straight in enemy territory.

Western Michigan controlled the paint in Calihan Hall this evening, winning the battle of the boards handily. WMU nearly doubled up Detroit Mercy on the glass by a final margin of 43-24. Four Broncos finished with four or more rebounds in the contest, and three of the four grabbed seven or more misses off the rim.

Furthermore, Western Michigan outscored the Titans in terms of points in the painted area by a final count of 34-24, including 20 second chance points on 15 offensive rebounds for the game. The Broncos held a lead for the game's entirety, despite the Titans knotting things up halfway through the second quarter. The first and third quarters allowed WMU to create a slight cushion for themselves, winning the two periods by a combined score of 31-17.

Defensively, Western Michigan held UDM to 18-54 shooting from the field (33.3 percent), and forced the opposition into 18 turnovers. WMU also held the Titans to just 5-18 shooting (27.8 percent) from beyond the arc in the contest. Additionally, three Broncos totaled multiple steals, led by Taylor Williams with three takeaways.

Western Michigan finished with three players in double-figure scoring. Leading the way was sophomore guard Lauren Ross, who continued her hot streak with 23 points on 8-17 shooting (47.1 percent), a career-high nine rebounds, and three assists. Ross is the current MAC Player of the Week, but remains hungry as she continues to serve as a spark for the Broncos offensively.

Redshirt sophomore forward Taylor Williams recorded her third double-double of the season with 12 points on 5-11 from the field, and pulled down 12 boards, while also nabbing three steals. Redshirt senior forward Reilly Jacobson rounded out the double-digit scoring efforts with 11 points on 5-10 shooting, and added four rebounds and four assists.

As a unit, Western Michigan went 23-53 from the field (43.4 percent), including 17 points off of Detroit Mercy turnovers. The Bronco starters shouldered most of the scoring tonight, totaling 56 of the team's 58 points as all five starters also played 30 or more minutes this evening.

WMU also shared the wealth in the Motor City, dishing out a team total of 14 assists, led by Jacobson's four dimes. This marks the third consecutive game that the Broncos have recorded 11 or more assists as a team.

Western Michigan now looks ahead to its final non-conference matchup of the season, when they travel to Bloomington, IN to take on the Hoosiers of IU, who are currently ranked 10^th in the nation. Tip-off in Assembly Hall is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 19.

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