March 10, 2004
Final Stats
CLEVELAND, Ohio-Powered by 23 points and 14 rebounds from senior forward Colleen Day, Miami University's top-seeded women's basketball team advanced to its fourth consecutive Mid-American Conference quarterfinal contest, avenging a 2003 MAC Semifinal loss with an 85-71 defeat of ninth-seeded Ball State University.
Both teams started fast, and, in a back-and-forth battle, the score was knotted at 16 with 12:44 to play. Ball State pushed ahead over the next three minutes, extending its advantage to five points and leading 25-20 with 8:36 remaining. A three-point play by Day narrowed the gap to two and, after exchanging buckets, senior guard Melanie Kozlowski buried a trey from the corner to put Miami up for good at 28-27.
The RedHawks finished the last seven minutes of the first half on a roll, with Kozlowski's 3-pointer sparking a 21-5 run that spotted Miami a 46-32 halftime advantage. Miami simmered at 55.9 percent from the floor, with Day contributing 13 points and eight rebounds and freshman Amanda Jackson contributing 12 points and three dishes in her first half of MAC Tournament play.
Miami's lead reached a game-high 17 twice in the second half, but, trailing 57-40 with 16:17 remaining, a veteran Cardinal squad made its move, reducing the edge to 11 with 15:01 remaining. A series of buckets by Day and Jackson temporarily stopped the run, as the Red and White rebuilt a 16-point edge with 13:40 to play, but Ball State was not finished.
Over the next four minutes, the Cardinals embarked on a 14-3 run, reducing Miami's edge to just five points with 9:49 left in the game. Junior forward Kim Smith single-handedly ended the run, converting a layup to halt the run, blocking a Ball State shot and then canning a 15-foot jumper in a key 30-second span. A Kim Lancaster bucket with 6:52 remaining pushed Miami's edge back into double digits, where it would remain for the rest of the game. The win avenged a 93-84 loss to the Cardinals in last year's semifinals.
Miami converted 51.5 percent of its efforts, marking the sixth time this season it has knocked down at least half of its shots from the field. The RedHawks tallied 80 or more points for the 13th time this season, improving to 13-0 when it reaches the barrier. With the win, Miami extended the MAC's longest active string of semifinal appearances to four while expanding the program record for consecutive semifinal appearances.
Leading the way was Day, who converted 9-of-16 shots on the way to 23 points, 14 rebounds and three assists. Jackson followed with 21 points and three assists, while Lancaster and Cindi Merrill each added 13 points. Defensively, Miami restricted Ball State's Kate Endress, the highest-scorer in the MAC Tournament, to just four points and 2-of-15 shooting from the field.
The RedHawks face the winner of Bowling Green State University and Western Michigan University Friday at Noon, attempting to reach the MAC Championship game for the first time since 1995. The game will be televised by FoxSports Ohio.
