KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan University women's basketball team put together a monster second half to earn its first Mid-American Conference win of the season in an 83-65 victory over the Buffalo Bulls.

A 30% turnaround in shooting from the first to the second half helped lead the Broncos to their first MAC win of 2025-26. Senior guard Alli Carlson had a monster game for WMU, setting a new career high in scoring with 22 points, all scored in the second half. The Brown and Gold ended the afternoon with a season-high five players in double figures with Carlson leading the way. Also scoring double digits was sophomore guard Alli Harness (14), sophomore guard Kailey Starks (14), sophomore forward D'Myjah Bolds (13), and junior guard Nile Muguira Orbe (10).

"I think my teammates continuing to give me confidence and the coaches encouraging me to shoot helped me turn my game around," said Carlson following her career game. "I started out a little slow. But they just told me keep shooting, keep shooting. So that really helped having great teammates and coaches.

The Broncos got the game started with a bang as sophomore guard Alli Harness hit a three in the first 10 seconds. WMU's offense was quiet after the early three as Buffalo took its first lead at 6-3. It was another three from the Brown and Gold, this time from Muguira, tied the game back up. The teams quickly traded shots after until the Bulls closed out the quarter on a nine-point run to make it a 17-8 game.

Western Michigan took over on offense in the second quarter. The Broncos had a seven-point run in the first three minutes to get the game within a basket. It was then another two minutes of traded buckets before WMU had its final run of the half with four straight points. The Brown and Gold struggled in the final stretch of the first half, not making a field goal in the final four minutes. Starks did give Western Michigan two points at the line in the last minute for a 35-25 halftime score.

The Broncos began to cut into Buffalo's lead early in the second half as baskets were traded for the first three minutes. WMU got its deficit down to just a basket at the 5:45 mark thanks to threes from Harness and Carlson. It was less than a minute until the Brown and Gold took their first lead since the third minute of the first quarter. The Bulls made a three of their own to retake the lead, but it didn't last long as Western Michigan closed out the third on a 14-2 run. The Broncos headed into the final frame of the afternoon with their largest lead of the game at 57-47.

WMU grew its lead to 13 in the first minute and a half of the fourth quarter. But Buffalo was able to match the Brown and Gold's shots for two minutes. Western Michigan's defense turned on the pressure, allowing the offense to put together a seven-point run for a 17-point lead. The Bulls put together one more brief run before the end of the game to get within 13. The Broncos rose above the pressure, closing out the final four minutes on a 12-8 run for the 83-65 victory.

In the second half alone, WMU went 20-30 from the field for a season-high shooting percentage of 66.7%. The Brown and Gold also had a big second half at the line, going 11-15 from the charity stripe for 73.3%. Overall Western Michigan set a new season high in shooting percentage through 40 minutes at 51.7% (30-58). The Broncos also set season highs behind the arc at 41.7% (10-24) and in assists with 22 helpers.

WMU continues its two game homestand next week against the Akron Zips. Tip-off from University Arena on Wednesday, Jan. 7 is set for 7 p.m.