Women's basketball hosts Toledo, seeks sixth straight victory
Riding a five-game win streak, the Central Michigan women’s basketball team will head back to McGuirk Arena Saturday to take on Toledo at noon.
The Chippewas (19-6, 11-2 Mid-American Conference) are coming in off of their most recent win against the MAC East Division leaders Ohio by a final score of 70-64.
Junior guard Cassie Breen led the team in scoring with 26 points on 8-for-11 shooting from the field, after scoring 19 in the first half without missing a shot going 7-for-7 including five 3-pointers.
Breen said her perfect shooting performance in the first have bolsters her confidence to the level she feels she can play at more.
“It felt like I was finally playing up to the expectations that are put on me of being a good player,” she said. “Whether the shots are falling for me or not, I need to bring that kind of effort every game and just keep shooting because that’s what shooters do.”
Sue Guevara gained her 172nd win as the head coach of the Central Michigan women’s basketball program, passing Donita Davenport’s all-time wins record.
Guevara said she wasn't as much focused on that, as she is on getting a solid crowd out to the next couple of games against two good opponents.
““It would be great if we could have a lot of people fill up the arena for our next couple of home games that we have in a row,” Guevara said. “We're playing Toledo who beat us earlier this year and then a good team in Northern Illinois. It would be pretty awesome if we could get quite a few people in that arena for the next couple of games.”
Here’s what to look for in this matchup.
Recent meetings:
- While Toledo (17-7, 8-5) is in fourth place in the MAC West, they beat the Chippewas in the first meeting between the two teams this season by a final score of 74-72 on Jan. 28 at Savage Arena.
- Junior forward Tinara Moore had a season-high 33 points against Toledo, while Janice Monakana scored 18 points to lead the Rockets.
- Toledo has won the previous five games between the two squads. CMU is 30-48 all-time versus the Rockets.
Scouting Toledo:
- The Rockets have won three consecutive games and five of their last six. Toledo’s most recent win came against Akron on Wednesday by a final score of 61-57.
- Jay-Ann Bravo-Harriott and Janice Monakana lead Toledo in scoring at 12.4 points per game apiece. Mikaela Boyd averages 11.2 per game while leading the team in rebounding with 7.3 per game.
- Toledo allows an average of 60.8 points per game to lead the MAC. The Rockets rank fourth in the league in scoring (71.1). CMU is second in scoring (77.8) and ninth in points allowed (69.6).
- The Rockets only allow their opponents to shoot 26.9 percent from 3-point range to lead the MAC, while CMU shoots 35.8 percent from behind the arc which is good for second in the conference.
Looking at the Chippewas:
- Sophomore guard Presley Hudson continues to lead CMU in scoring, averaging 17.8 points per game, which ranks third in the MAC.
- The other three Chippewas that average double figures in scoring are Moore (15.4), Breen 13.3, and senior forward Jewel Cotton (11.6).
- Sophomore guard Reyna Frost averages 9.1 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. She is the MAC’s leading rebounder, and ranks ninth nationally.
- Hudson leads the MAC in free-throw percentage at 91.8 percent on the year. Cotton is second in the MAC in field goal percentage checking in at 59.2 percent.
