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Feb. 2, 2003
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format
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MIAMI TAKES MOMENTUM INTO MONDAY NIGHT CLASH AT BALL STATE: With a three-game winning streak and the Mid-American Conference East Division lead in tow, Miami University's women's basketball team (10-8, 5-2 MAC) travels to Muncie, Ind., Monday night to face defending MAC West Division Champion Ball State University (12-5, 5-1 MAC) in another crucial league clash.
In a contest that has been promoted by Ball State as "Operation Sell-Out", an effort to break the MAC women's basketball attendance record by offering free admission, Miami faces an explosive Cardinal team that has won seven of its past eight games and ranks second in the league in scoring offense (78.9 ppg). Both teams are coming off narrow defeats of Eastern Michigan, with Miami edging the Eagles 83-79 in overtime last Tuesday and Ball State nipping the Eagles, 66-65, with a buzzer beater this past Saturday.
Mentored by second-year head coach Tracy Roller, return three starters from a 2001-02 squad that won the MAC West and qualified for the WNIT. Leading the way is senior forward and 2001 MAC Player of the Year Tamara Bowie, who is averaging a league-best 20.5 points and 8.6 rebounds per outing. Sophomore guard Kate Endress averages 15.0 ppg, while junior guard Johna Goff is pouring in 14.4 ppg and dishing a team-leading 3.8 assists per game. Junior center Jessica Reiter rounds out the Cardinal leaders, tallying 9.1 ppg and a team-best 8.9 rebounds an outing. Ball State is 4-0 at John E. Worthen Arena this season, including 3-0 in the MAC.
SERIES HISTORY: Monday night marks the 47th meeting between the Cardinals and RedHawks, with Miami currently protecting a 34-12 series advantage. Though Miami has historically dominated the series, Ball State has been closing the gap in recent years, winning three of the past five games, including a 70-59 win at Oxford a year ago. The RedHawks' only win in the past four meetings came in the form of an epic 91-88 overtime victory during the 2001 MAC Quarterfinals. Miami has not visited Muncie since suffering a 95-83 defeat to the Cardinals during the 2000-01 campaign. Miami holds a 13-9 series edge in Muncie.
THE LAST MEETING-Ball State 70, Miami 59 (Jan. 30, 2002): Ball State kicked Miami while it was down, handing the RedHawks their fourth consecutive league loss on their home court. After a slow start that included brief runs for each team, Ball State led 26-23 at the half. Miami, which hit 11 3-point field goals on the night, rallied from an eight-point deficit midway through the second half, staking a 54-53 advantage, but the Cardinals distanced themselves with a backbreaking 9-2 run and never looked back. Tamara Bowie led Ball State, which out-rebounded Miami 46-33 with 16 points. Heather Cusick totaled 18 points off 7-of-20 shooting for the RedHawks.
COMMON OPPONENTS: A quick look Miami and Ball State's common opponents this season could give the RedHawks a slight confidence boost heading into Monday night's clash. Versus six common foes (Valparaiso, Wright State, Buffalo, Ohio, Toledo and Eastern Michigan), Miami has posted a 5-1 record to the Cardinals' 4-2 mark. Both teams have suffered league losses to Toledo this season, while Ball State also lost to Valparaiso, which Miami defeated, 77-54, in its season opener. Both teams faced Valparaiso at neutral sites.
AN INDIANA THING: When Miami takes to the court in Muncie, Ind., Monday night, it marks the RedHawks' only foray into the Hoosier state this season. Crossing over the Indiana state line, which is less than 10 minutes from the Miami campus, will be a bit like coming home for the RedHawks, who have as many Indiana products on their roster as Ball State. In all, five Miami players hail from the Hoosier state, including Hillary Beck and Heather Cusick (Kokomo, Ind.), Cindi Merrill (Noblesville, Ind.), Beth Roederer (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Kim Smith (Gary, Ind.). Since the 1999-2000 campaign, Miami has a 3-1 record in games played in Indiana, with its only loss coming at Ball State.
EAST VERSUS WEST: In what is becoming the MAC's mini version of the Cold War, Miami attempts to strike a blow for a beleaguered East Division Monday night when it heads West to face defending MAC West Champion Ball State. The West Division has dominated the East this season, posting a 17-5 mark. In match-ups that have pitted the West Division's top three teams (Western Michigan, Toledo and Ball State) against the East Division leaders (Miami, Kent State, Buffalo), the West has compiled a flawless 6-0 mark. Miami, which is 1-2 versus the West this season, has lost to both WMU and Toledo.
A TALE OF TWO DIVISIONS: Entering her fifth MAC season, Maria Fantanarosa is working to build upon a 42-29 (.591) league record. Miami has risen to the occasion in divisional play over the past four years, posting a 33-10 (.767) record. Overall, Miami has turned away 21 of its last 22 MAC East opponents during the regular season, including a current nine-game winning streak.
Despite their success versus the East, Fantanarosa's RedHawks have not fared as well when heading West. Miami has gone just 9-19 (.321) versus MAC West opponents over the past five seasons and has lost 11 of its last 12 MAC West road games. The RedHawks ended a two-game drought versus the West last week when it defeated Eastern Michigan for the first time under Maria Fantanarosa. Aside from a road win last season at Central Michigan, Miami has not defeated a MAC West team on the road since the 1997-98 season.
ROADHAWKS: The road has become an increasingly friendly place for Miami in recent weeks. After a win at Michigan State during its opening weekend, the Red and White dropped five of its next six road games, including its worst losses of the season at TCU and Western Michigan earlier this month. More recently, however, Miami has reeled off consecutive road wins at Ohio, Marshall and Buffalo for its first three-game road winning streak since the 1996-97 season. The RedHawks have not won four straight on the road since 1995-96, when they won five straight. Miami, which plays 16 of its 27 games this season on the road, owns a 5-5 road record this season. Last season, Miami assembled an 8-7 record on the road-its first winning road mark since 1995-96.
LOOKING BACK-Miami 83, Eastern Michigan 79 (OT): In a story that has been written too many times, Miami wrote a different ending last Tuesday versus Eastern Michigan. Once again facing a large first-half deficit, the RedHawks rallied from 21 down with 1:09 remaining in the first half and nipped Eastern Michigan in overtime. Heather Cusick led the RedHawk rally, pouring in 21 points in the second-half alone, as Miami forced overtime with the game tied at 67-67. Sparked by a 24-foot Beth Roederer 3-point field goal in overtime, Miami pushed the game out of reach in the extra period and went on to win its third straight. Six RedHawks tallied in double figures in the win. For a complete recap of this an all Miami games, see pages 18-23.
QUITE THE COMEBACK: Last Tuesday's dramatic come-from-behind defeat of Eastern Michigan University marked the largest Miami comeback under head coach Maria Fantanarosa. Miami, which trailed 43-22 with 1:09 left in the first half, had not overcome a 20-point deficit since rallying from 20 down versus Ball State in the 2001 MAC Quarterfinals-Fantanarosa's previous largest deficit overcome in a Miami win. Trailing by 18 at the half, Miami had not overcome a double-digit halftime deficit since rallying from an 11-point hole in its 2001 MAC Quarterfinal win over the Cardinals. The 18-point halftime deficit was the largest overcome by a Fantanarosa-coached Miami team and marked the third time she has led a team back that trailed by double digits at the half.
NEXT UP: Miami returns home at 2 p.m. Saturday to face MAC-East rival Kent State University in a match-up that could once again define the course of the East Division race. Since the 1999-2000 season, Miami has been the only MAC East team to defeat Kent State in regular-season action, winning three straight in Millett Hall. The Golden Flashes, who have bumped Miami from the MAC Semifinals in each of the past two seasons, have not won in Oxford since Maria Fantanarosa's first season (1998-99). The RedHawks pay a return visit to Kent on Feb. 23 for a Fox Sports Ohio-televised contest.
ROUGH ROAD AHEAD: Bolstered by a 5-2 MAC record and a current three-game league winning streak, Miami is entering a pivotal part of its conference season. Over the next three games, the RedHawks, a 2002 MAC Semifinalist, clash with the other three 2002 MAC Semifinalists. Miami's tour begins Monday night at Ball State, which won the MAC West a year ago and advanced to the MAC Championship game. Saturday, the RedHawks play host to defending MAC East Titleholder Kent State, which won last season's MAC Championship and bumped the RedHawks along the way. From there, the Red and White travels to Northern Illinois, where the Huskies own a 6-2 home record.
ROLLING AGAIN: It had been a long time, but with consecutive wins over Marshall, Buffalo and Eastern Michigan, Miami's women's basketball team finds itself on a winning streak for the first time since November. After starting the season 3-0 with wins over Valparaiso, Michigan State and Arkansas State, the RedHawks endured two losing streaks of three and two games, respectively, but were unable to win back-to-back games until winning at Marshall and at Buffalo last week. Miami, which had three winning streaks of at leas four games a year ago, owns a 4-6 record in games that follow wins this season and is seeking its longest winning streak since it won seven in a row at the end of last season.
TAKING ON THE WORLD: Though Miami's 5-6 non-conference record marked Miami's first sub .500 out-of-league record in four seasons, head coach Maria Fantanarosa stuck with her theory of using the non-conference schedule to prepare the team for league play. Eight of Miami's non-conference opponents rate among the top 44 percent of all NCAA D-I women's basketball programs, according to the Feb. 2 RPI.com rankings, while the average RPI of Miami's 11 out-of-conference foes is a solid 118.7. The average RPI of the eight teams that have defeated the RedHawks this season is an even more impressive 72.4. Miami is ranked No. 139 in the RPI and No. 113 in the Sagarin ratings. Miami's strength of schedule ranks 111th in the Sagarin Ratings. A breakdown of Miami's opponents in the RPI and Sagarin ratings is in the right-hand column on this page.
OFFENSE WINS: When the offense is working, everything is working for Miami. Aside from a 108-102 overtime loss at Kentucky, Miami is 9-1 this season when scoring at least 70 points and 7-0 when outshooting the opposition from the field. Miami, which is 1-6 when scoring less than 70 points, had shot 46 percent from the field, 39 percent from 3-point range and averaged 81.6 points per outing in wins leading up to a Jan. 25 triumph at Buffalo in which it shot just 29 percent from the field and netted a season-low 50 points. Through eight defeats, however, the RedHawks have hit just 38 percent of their shots from the field and 28 percent from beyond the arc, while averaging 65.8 points per game.
"D" ON THE RISE: Miami, ranked 12th in the MAC in scoring defense (71.4 ppg) two weeks ago, has taken its "D" to the next level recently, holding Marshall and Buffalo to an average of just 49.0 points and restricting Eastern Michigan to just 24 second-half points and 40 percent shooting from the field. Over the last three games, Miami has allowed just 59.0 points per game while holding the opposition to .348 shooting from the field and .304 shooting from beyond the arc. Miami's defense, which is second in the MAC in forced turnovers this season (19.9 tpg), has also forced an average of 18.6 turnovers a game during its three-game winning streak.
POLISHING THE GLASS: Another important theme in RedHawk wins has been rebounding. Miami, which is averaging 39.4 rebounds per game, ranks third in the MAC in rebounding and fifth in rebounding margin (+0.4). The RedHawks are especially strong on the offensive glass, grabbing 15.2 offensive boards a contest and ranking second in the league. Miami, which is averaging 13.7 second chance points per game-nearly 20 percent of its overall scoring, owns a 7-2 record when out-rebounding the opposition and just a 3-6 mark when being out-rebounded.
LONG-RANGE DIVAS: With a deep arsenal of long-range threats on its roster, Miami has not been shy about launching 3-point field goals. Through 18 games, Miami has fired up a MAC-leading 357 treys (19.8) with six players burying at least 11 long-range attempts. Miami's current roster includes four of the top 12 career 3-point shooters in Miami history, including Heather Cusick (1st-211), Melanie Kozlowski (7th-97), Beth Roederer (9th-67) and Colleen Day (13th-42). Miami is 6-3 this season when attempting at least 20 treys and ranks third in the MAC, averaging 6.5 treys per game.
AS THE BALL TURNS: Miami's turnover statistics have had plenty of twists and turns this season. After committing just 93 turnovers or a respectable 15.5 turnovers per game through their first six outings, the RedHawks totaled a whopping 117 miscues or 23.4 per game through their next five contests. Miami has gotten off to a solid start in MAC play, averaging 13.6 turnovers per outing through seven games and ranking third in the league with a +6.4 turnover margin. Through 18 games, Miami maintains a +3.0 overall turnover margin, which ranks third in the MAC. The RedHawks, who are forcing 19.9 turnovers per game-second only to Eastern Michigan in the MAC-are scoring an average of 20.0 ppg off opponent miscues.
CUSICK ON THE MIAMI CHARTS: Already Miami's career leader for assists and 20-point games, Heather Cusick claimed another Miami record last Tuesday when she surpassed Jamie Stewart (1995-99) as Miami's all-time leader for 3-point field goals. The only player in Miami history to earn all-MAC recognition in each of her first three seasons, Cusick has 211 career 3-point field goals. Cusick also is just 41 points shy of tying Monica Niemann's (1991-95) scoring record, and 46 field goals short of tying Mary Ann Myers' (1978-82) career field goal record.
CUSICK AND THE MAC GREATS: Along with etching her name all over the Miami career record books, Heather Cusick also is starting to a place her name throughout the Mid-American Conference record book. The senior's 1,567 career points rank 21st in MAC history, while her 211 3-point field goals and 540 assists rank sixth and 11th, respectively. Miami's point guard also has reached the MAC's Top 12 for career steals with 271. Cusick could become the first player in MAC history to amass 1,500 points, 500 assists, 400 rebounds, 300 steals and 200 3-point field goals. She's only the second MAC Player, joining former Toledo standout Kelly Savage (1985-89), to reach both 500 career assists and 200 career 3-point field goals.
STEADY AS THEY COME: When opposing coaches are scouting Miami, they do not have to wonder whether or not point guard Heather Cusick will be on the floor. Cusick, who has played in all 105 games of her collegiate career, made her 102nd consecutive start last Tuesday versus Eastern Michigan. Opposing teams also can expect Cusick to show up on the stat sheet, where she has scored in double figures in 80 percent (84-of-105) of her career games and notched 30 outings of 20 points or more. Cusick also has dished an assist in 75 straight games and has only been held scoreless once in 105 contests. The senior has made a steal in 85 of the last 86 contests-a 78-game streak ended at TCU on Jan. 3.
A DAY ON THE GLASS: Over the past two seasons, junior forward Colleen Day has transformed herself into one of the most aggressive rebounders in the conference. Day's 6.8 rebounds per game currently lead the RedHawks and rank ninth in the MAC. The junior is even more impressive on the offensive glass, where she is clearing 2.83 offensive boards per game and ranks fifth in the league. With 472 career rebounds to date, Day is just nine boards shy of cracking Miami's Top 15 all-time rebounders and 28 rebounds short of becoming the 14th RedHawk to amass 500 career boards. Day has three double-digit rebounding outings this season, including a career-best 14 boards in Miami's Dec. 28 win at Butler.
CLOSING IN ON 1,000: After a slow start, Miami's Kim Lancaster has stepped up her offense, reaching double digits in eight of the past 11 games and closing to within 42 points of Miami's 1,000-point club. Lancaster, who is aiming to be the 14th inductee to the 1,000-point club, could become just the fourth player in Miami women's basketball history to clear 1,000 points during her junior season-joining teammate Heather Cusick, Monica Niemann (1991-95) and Mary Ann Myers (1978-82). Lancaster already ranks among Miami's career top three in terms of field goal percentage and is shooting an impressive 54 percent from the floor this season to rank second in the MAC. Over the past 11 games, Lancaster has averaged 10.1 ppg to rank second on the team.
POINTING THE WAY: Sophomore transfer Nicki Motto, who transferred to Miami from Indiana last year, and sophomore Hillary Beck have been providing Miami with valuable minutes at the point, where Heather Cusick had averaged more than 34 minutes per game over the previous three seasons. Motto, who's playing 13.4 minutes per game, has averaged 3.8 points, 1.5 assists and 1.1 3-point field goals per outing. She enjoyed a career day versus Wright State on Dec. 7 when she tallied 14 points, seven assists and four 3-pointers. Beck has emerged as a key contributor since the start of conference play, filling in at the point and off-guard positions and averaging 4.4 minutes in seven league outings. She provided Miami with a spark versus Western Michigan, tallying eight points in just six minutes.
MILLETT MAGIC: Miami, which has won 19 of its last 25 contests in Millett Hall ended a two-game home losing streak with its 84-56 defeat of Akron on Jan. 7. Last year, Miami finished at 10-3 in Millett Hall overall and 6-2 in league play, finishing the season with seven consecutive home wins. The RedHawks are 32-11 (.744) at home over the past four seasons and have won 12 consecutive home games versus MAC East opponents. The RedHawks are 3-3 at home this season and have won their last two home dates.
BOOK SMARTS: According to the first semester grade reports, Miami's women's basketball team has been getting things done in the classroom as well as on the court. The women's basketball team assembled a team GPA of 3.07 in the fall semester, ranking fifth among all athletic programs at Miami. Junior Melanie Kozlowski (Parma, Ohio/Holy Name), an exercise science major, led the way for the RedHawks, posting a perfect 4.0 GPA and earning a spot on the prestigious President's List. Four RedHawks-Heather Cusick, Colleen Day, Kozlowski and Beth Roederer-have been nominated for Verizon Academic All-American honors.
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