Central Michigan University Athletics
Long's Career Day Pushes Chippewas into Semifinals
3/9/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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MAC Tournament Central
CLEVELAND -- Senior Shonda Long broke the Central Michigan single game scoring record to push the Maroon and Gold past Buffalo and into the Mid-American Conference Tournament semifinals for the first time since 1992 with a 90-69 victory at Quicken Loans Arena on Wednesday.
Long also tied the MAC Tournament record for 3-pointers made in a game to help the Chippewas (20-9) register their fourth 20-win season in program history, while ending the Bulls' season at 16-15. The senior guard poured in 40 points, just the fourth 40-plus scoring effort in tournament history.
A slow start saw CMU down six early and second-team All-MAC selection Kaihla Szunko on the bench with foul trouble, but a 22-4 run, including 14 by the 2011 MAC Freshman of the Year Niki DiGuilio , helped Central Michigan take a 47-31 lead into the break.
Buffalo could only get as close as 11 just over three minutes into the second frame, but a 14-5 Central Michigan run immediately followed and a 3-pointer by Jalisa Olive at the 8:26 mark created the widest margin of the contest, 75-50.
After a slow start from the floor (1-for-5), Long hit 11 of her last 15 shots in the contest, 7-for-9 from the arc.
She led three Chippewas in double-figures, joined by DiGuilio (19 points) and Szunko (13). Szunko also led CMU with 11 boards for her 19th double-double of the season.
Sophomore Brandie Baker finished with six points, 10 boards and nine assists to augment the effort.
UB's Kourtney Brown, the 2011 MAC Player of the Year, finished with 24 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.
The Chippewas connected at 45 percent from the floor, 48 percent from the arc (12-for-25), while the Bulls shot 34 percent, including 32 percent from long range (7-for-22). UB was able to snag 21 offensive rebounds, but could only convert them into eight second chance points.
Central Michigan advances to face No. 2 seed Bowling Green in the semifinals on Friday at noon. The game will be broadcast live on SportsTime Ohio and Comcast Michigan (Ch. 900).
