BG bounces back at home

BGSU's Alexis Rogers, who had 16 points, shoots in front of Buffalo's Nytor Longar (21). The Falcons improved to 21-4 overall, 11-1 in the MAC. THE BLADE/LORI KING Enlarge | Photo Reprints

BOWLING GREEN -- The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team suffered through a bit of a hangover following its loss Saturday at Toledo.

The Falcons wobbled for most of their home contest Wednesday against Buffalo and needed an 8-2 run over the game's final two minutes to claim a deceptive 62-52 win at the Stroh Center.

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"Last year we stepped back on the court after we lost to Toledo -- and we lost at Western Michigan," BG coach Curt Miller said. "We had a little bit of a hangover. This year we found a way to win, so we don't have to talk about a hangover. I'm not sure we played great, but we found a way to win."

The victory guaranteed that the Falcons (21-4, 11-1) will finish no lower than fourth in the final MAC standings, which means BG will have at worst a bye into the quarterfinals of the conference tournament.

"I wish I had an answer [for our struggles], I really do," said Jessica Slagle, who led all scorers with 19 points. "I think a little bit of it was the Toledo [loss], but that's not an excuse for a team like us.

"We expected a little more from ourselves, and it took a while to get going, but we'll take the W."

The Falcons backed Slagle's scoring with a pair of double-doubles as Alexis Rogers had 16 points and 12 rebounds while Chrissy Steffen added 13 points and 12 boards.

Brittney Hedderson scored 15 points and Teresa Semalulu had 12 for Buffalo, which played better than a team whose record is 7-19 overall, 2-10 in the MAC.

"This game had one purpose: It was a wake-up call for our young players to learn how hard it is the second around [through the East Division] in MAC play," Miller said. "It secured a top-four seed [in the MAC tournament], and that's a huge step.

Jessica Slagle, who led Bowling Green with 10 points, shoots over Buffalo's Rachel Bantelman in Wednesday night's game. THE BLADE/LORI KING Enlarge | Photo Reprints

"That's the first goal. You can't worry about the MAC East, you can't worry about overall championships and you can't worry about high seeds until you take care of not being in the 5-through-12 [part of the bracket]."

The Bulls took advantage of BG's offensive struggles in the first half to build a 16-7 lead with 12:33 to play, only to see Rogers score the next six points to tied the game with 9:11 left. From that point neither team led by more than five and Buffalo held a 29-28 lead at the half.

"Turnovers, hitting shots, just executing plays," Slagle said of BG's first-half offensive struggles. "I don't think we were doing [those things] to the best of our abilities.

"I think they caught us a little on our heels with their matchup zone. Once we figured it out and hit the gaps a little better, I think we started executing a little better."

In the second half the lead jockeyed back-and-forth until Allison Papenfuss made two free throws with 13:23 left to give the Falcons the lead for good. Buffalo was able to cut the lead to two points but never had a chance to tie.

The biggest difference in the BG offense from the first half to second half was free throws. The Falcons went to the line just four times in the first half but was 16-of-20 in the second. That helped offset 20 turnovers, some of them painful to watch.

"I wish our offense was crisper at this time of the year," Miller said. "If we do not start to play better offensively to help how we are playing defensively, it will be frustrating."

BG's turnovers, its 36.4 percent shooting from the field and its lethargic play forced Miller to be especially animated on the sidelines.

"I didn't see the spark in our eyes -- the fire in our eyes we need to compete with," Miller said. "I think they needed my fire."

NOTES: BG's Shanique Ogle, celebrating her 19th birthday, grabbed five rebounds in four first-half minutes in her first game since BG played at Buffalo on Jan. 15. … Rogers' double-double was her seventh this season. Steffen's got her her second. … The Falcons wore white uniforms with pink numerals and trim to support breast cancer awareness.

Contact John Wagner at: jwagner@theblade.com, 419-724-6481 or on Twitter @jwagnerblade.