I hate my offense the way I like my women ... COVERED IN BEES!
This photo pretty much explains the Bowling Green defense against Georgia Tech in the first round of the NCAA Women's Basketall Tournament. Sasha Goodlett is a 6'5" center with some evident extra size (college athletics chivalrously don't include player weight for women's sports). Guarding her is Allison Papenfuss, a 6'0" forward whose outstretched arms really don't do much to disrupt the line of sight for someone that big.
This was what Tech did on offense — dish it to Goodlett, who kept muscling it in and trying again if failing. She had 19 points.
On the defensive side, the Yellow Jackets did what they always do — full court press the opposition to death. It's perhaps how Tennessee Tech only scored 11 points in a game. On every inbounds under the basket, GT was relentless on the pressure, and while most often BG was capable of breaking through, it did slow down the offense and create the occasional turnover and headache.
While defending the halfcourt offense, GT refused to let any of the guards or wing players shoot threes, and in fact the Falcons didn't sink one until well into the second half (they were 2-for-6 overall). Most of the buckets were tough, scrappy driving layups from Lauren Prochaska and Chrissy Steffen, who had 19 and 16 points respectively. They also took fouls but knocked down the freebies, going a combined 14-for-14. And it was a miracle that they were only down one point at halftime.
What BG has always lacked during this dynasty was size. The tallest player on the current roster was 6'2" Chelsea Albert, a reserve center. Even when they reached the Sweet 16 in 2007, center Liz Honegger was a stocky 5'11" centerpiece of that offense who could launch it from three. This team didn't really have that; they had some very talented senior guards
So not only was I wrong, but Obama was wrong too. And I'm cool with both of us going down together, because that's just how America rolls.
So the BGSU Falcons' womens basketball season ends with a 28-5 record and a first-round exit. That's pretty much all we get these days. Gone are six seniors, including four key ones: Prochaska (BGSU's all-time leading scorer), point guard Tracy Pontius and forwards Maggie Hennegan, Jen Uhl, Chelsea Albert and Kelly Zuercher. It's honestly a better season than anyone figured, especially with that opening loss at sub-par Evansville. All it means is another banner that'll go directly to the Stroh Center. We'll take it. Because there are no bees there.