Women’s basketball hosts conference-leader Ohio


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Taryn Wattles | Assistant Photo Editor

The Central Michigan University women’s basketball team will attempt to snap Ohio University’s six-game winning streak when the Bobcats come to McGuirk Arena at 1 p.m. on Saturday.

CMU lost by 20 points the last time it faced Ohio, but the Chippewas will not let the past affect how they approach the Bobcats this weekend.

“You can’t stay stuck in the fact that they beat us by 20,” Head Coach Sue Guevara said. “Our kids understand what happened when we played them down there. When I shook (Ohio Head Coach) Bob (Boldon’s) hand after the first game I said, “I’ll see you in two weeks.”

OU leads the Mid-American Conference in scoring margin, outscoring opponents by an average of 15 points per game. The Bobcats also feature a fair amount of depth. Five players have started every game for OU this year.

“It’s great for them because they have really good chemistry,” Guevara said. “They do a real nice job of reading off of each other.”

Bobcats sophomore Kiyanna Black is the top scoring threat for Ohio, averaging 15 points per game. She has a strong defensive presence as well. Black leads the team with 30 steals and averages four rebounds a game.

“I’m looking forward to guarding this Ohio offense,” said freshman Tinara Moore. “It’s going to be an exciting game to play in, but we are going to have to pick up our defense.”

CMU ranks last in the MAC in scoring defense, allowing 67.4 per game. The Chippewas need to take care of Ohio’s outside shooting threat in order to come out on top.

The Bobcats are shooting 42 percent from the floor and 36 percent from 3-point range.

Guevara’s squad will attack the paint in an attempt to score on one of the conference’s premier defensive schemes.

“We have to take advantage of our height,” Guevara said. “They do a really nice job of packing it in. What we have realize when the switch is there, we can get the ball down low.”

The Chippewas have had strong shooting performances from senior Kerby Tamm in recent games.

A good game from the outside shooters might be what CMU needs to open up the post.

“We did a lot of shooting this week,” Guevara said. “We got our kids to shoot off the dribble and make sure our 3-point shooters are shooting with confidence. If we can hit some outside shots, it will open it up for us down low.”

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