Ball State first-half shooting percentage: 30.8 percent
Ball State second-half shooting percentage: 45.2 percent
Ball State rebounds: 40
Buffalo rebounds: 31
Ball State free throws: 9-11
Buffalo free throws: 2-5
Ball State women’s basketball (16-5, 8-2 Mid-American Conference) came back to beat Buffalo (11-10, 3-7 MAC) 59-57 after trailing by as much as 14 earlier in the game.
The Cardinals were trailing 42-28 when sophomore forward Moriah Monaco hit a 3-point shot with 4:02 left in the third. This sparked a 21-4 run that would stretch into the fourth quarter.
Ball State led 49-46 after senior guard Nathalie Fontaine hit two free throws to cap the run with 6:11 left in the game, but Buffalo clawed back and led with 1:17 still on the clock, 55-54.
Freshman point guard Carmen Grande responded by sinking her third 3-point shot of the game to give the Cardinals the 57-55 lead.
Grande was 3-for-4 from beyond the arc after entering the game, making just 24.3 percent of her 3-point attempts.
Fontaine led the Cardinals with 18 points, but only scored two in the first half. She was subbed out with 9:51 left in the second quarter after committing her second foul and did not check back in until after the second half.
Ball State entered the game hitting 44.2 percent of its shots — the best rate in the MAC — but only hit 30.1 percent of its shots in the first half. In the second half, the Cardinals converted 45.2 percent of their shots.
Ball State out-rebounded the Bulls 40-31. Fontaine led the team off the glass with nine rebounds.
The Cardinals will play their next home game on Feb. 10 against Central Michigan (15-7, 9-2 MAC). The Chippewas are one-half game ahead of Ball State in the MAC West Division standings.
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