Central Michigan University
Delaware State
Chippewas Surge in Second Half
12/16/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jared Porter, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - It was a tale of two halves for the Central Michigan women's basketball team in its victory over Delaware State Tuesday afternoon in McGuirk Arena.
The Chippewas were off to a sluggish start, getting outperformed by the Hornets in points (36-33), rebounds (20-14) and assists (14-7) in the first half.
But a 12-0 run by CMU to start the second half set the tone for the rest of the game. The tables turned in the final 20 minutes as the Chippewas outrebounded DSU, 25-13, and out-assisted them, 12-8.
The strong second-half performance from CMU granted it a decisive 91-63 win, improving their record to 4-3 on the season and snapping a two-game skid.
"I told my team before the game to not be fooled by (DSU's) 1-7 record," CMU coach Sue Guevara said. "I thought we played pretty foolish in the first half. We were undisciplined defensively. We didn't attack the glass well. We were attacking for our own self and not looking for other people.
"I know I'm supposed to be happy with the wins, and I am. We did have some good performances. But we played better against Dayton (on Saturday) and lost. Would you rather play ugly and win or play pretty and lose? I think we have to get to the point, with five seniors, to have the right mental preparation for every game we play.
"We started attacking the basket and made easy shots in the second half. We made shots in the paint and got to the free throw line. Defensively, we got steals, we got rebounds and we got going."
Contribution from the Chippewas bench was a key coming into the game for Guevara. The CMU reserves ended the day with 32 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists.
Freshman Amani Corley came off the bench and scored six points while adding three assists and two steals.
Senior Crystal Bradford played the unfamiliar role as a CMU reserve for the second straight game. She recorded her third double-double of the season, 47th of her career, with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
"I thought we got a better performance from them," Guevara said of her bench that struggled in CMU's loss to Dayton on Saturday. "I thought Amani Corley came in and did a really nice job for us, as well as (Bradford) who was a great spark off the bench.
"I stuck with this starting lineup because it was the lineup I started against Dayton, and it was good. It got us going. I'm trying to stay consistent. I didn't think I could start Bradford against Dayton after a one-game suspension (at Memphis), but we played really well. So I just decided I'm going to stay with it."
Outside of Bradford, two other Chippewas seniors totaled double-digits in scoring. Jas'Mine Bracey had 22 points while recording seven rebounds. Jessica Green recorded 17 points with a 7-of-7 mark from the free throw line.
Tierra Hawkins led the Hornets in points (22) and rebounds (8).
The Chippewas travel to Minneapolis, Minn. for the Subway Classic on Saturday and Sunday, where they will face top-ranked South Carolina (9-0) on Saturday and then Minnesota (9-1) on Sunday.
The Chippewas can ill-afford a slow start against either the Gamecocks or Gophers.
Were the Chippewas perhaps looking past Delaware State to the weekend?
"I think with this team, anything is possible," Guevara said. "But I think that's giving them an excuse. If we have that (performance) against South Carolina, we're not even going to get on the plane.
"It's constantly, constantly working on the mental part of the game, and specifically, with our seniors. It's been a four-year process. We're going to get it right."
