Wednesday, January 31
Oxford, Ohio / Millett Hall
7 p.m.
Central Michigan University
5-14,3-6MAC
64
at
59
Miami (OH)
4-15,2-7MAC
1
2
3
4
F
Central Mich.
18
14
12
20
64
Miami (OH)
9
21
12
17
59
Photo by: Julia Bice '22,M'24 - @jb.jpg10
Shorthanded Women’s Hoops holds off Miami on the road, 64-59
1/31/2024 11:15:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Gordon, Chippewas start hot with 14-0 run in first four minutes; Tesson doubles down on late-game heroics; CMU finishes victory with six active players
OXFORD, Ohio — Central Michigan Women's Basketball took out Miami (OH), 64-59, Wednesday night in Mid-American Conference play at Millett Hall.
The Chippewas (5-14, 3-6 MAC) found a repeat late-stage performance from junior Lisa Tesson (Montréal, Québec / Royal Crown) as she scored seven of her 12 points in the final quarter, coupled with a career-high seven assists and five rebounds. Tesson scored CMU's five straight points in the last 45 seconds to seal the 53-45 victory over Western Michigan just days prior.
"I just like her confidence," Head Coach Kristin Haynie said of her point guard. "It's just her getting in the gym, watching film. You can't help but love a player that makes a play, and clutch plays. Proud of her, for sure."
The contest opened with 14 unanswered points for the Chippewas, bolstered by a three-for-three start from three-point range by junior guard Karrington Gordon (Detroit / Lincoln Park)—who finished the game with a career-high five made threes en route to a team-high 19 points.
"Her shot was feeling good in the gym this week," Haynie said. "I was happy to see it pay off in a game."
There was speculation in pregame that Gordon may have been under the weather Wednesday. After her fast start, the performance was quickly likened to Michael Jordan's "flu game," game five of the 1997 NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz.
Haynie chuckled at the thought before offering, "She definitely has a head cold, she's been sick the past couple days. We told her to give it all she's got: it's just a 40-minute game, then we'll have a day off. She definitely sucked it up."
The RedHawks (4-15; 2-7 MAC) crawled back in. With less than a minute to go before halftime, the score had been tied for the first time since the opening tip, 30-30. Rochelle Norris (Stafford, Va. / New Hope) dropped in a layup soon after, then one of Gordon's three steals prevented Miami from tying the contest at the break.
The third quarter opened with an 8-0 run for the host, answered finally by Tesson's first basket of the night—her lone three-pointer—for a 38-35 deficit. The Redhawks, again, still had the game tied late in the third, 42-42, but another last-minute lay-in from Norris retained CMU's lead, 44-42, at the end of the period.
Central Michigan entered Wednesday's contest with seven active players. With 43 seconds left in the third, only six Chippewas remained as sophomore Taylor Anderson (South Lyon, Mich. / East) collected a ranging block but landed awkwardly on her right foot and was helped from the floor after an extended delay.
"In the timeout, we just told them to gut it out, just keep fighting. 'Tomorrow we can take a day off, give it all you got today.' It was just them believing and sticking together with the right language of staying positive with each other."
Miami looked to position itself and capitalize on the short CMU bench as the RedHawks snuck out to a 47-44 advantage on a three-point play with 8:14 to play.
The next trip down the floor, junior Tiana Timpe (Stockton, Ill. / Stockton) became the second Chippewa in double-digits as she tied the game with her second three-pointer of the night. A trip to the free throw line for Norris would mark the final lead change 90 seconds later, 50-49 CMU.
Gordon logged her final points on her fifth three-pointer with just over five minutes to play. Timpe answered back-to-back Miami field goals with her third long ball of the night. Norris dropped in one final free throw for eight points along with her team-high 12 rebounds.
The Chippewas once again dominated the glass, 47-29, with a 17-9 edge on the offensive end.
"Even though we were down at times, we still had 17 offensive rebounds. I'm proud of the effort on the floor that kept us in the game."
Then, it was time to call on Tesson to close the deal. All seven of her fourth quarter points came with 65 seconds left, going five-for-six from the free throw line along with driving the lane for a four-point lead, 60-56, with 35 seconds to go.
Tesson has logged back-to-back double-digit scoring games for the second time in her career, the other logged in mid-February MAC play in her freshman season, coming one point from her career-high in the category.
Gordon (5) and Timpe (4) pushed the Chippewas into 10 made three-pointers on the night, the first double-digit performance since Feb. 22, 2023 against Bowling Green. Coach Haynie attributed this to time spent in the gym.
"For the most part, we just had Tiana as the shooter, so it's great to see [Gordon] coming along. Lisa's been in the gym a lot too, so now she just needs to stay confident in games."
Central Michigan will stay on the road this week in preparation for a visit to Kent State Saturday at 1 p.m., the first of two matchups with the Golden Flashes in a 14-day window. The Chippewas return to McGuirk Arena Feb. 7 against Toledo for the first of three straight at home (Feb. 10 v. Louisiana; Feb. 17 v. Kent State).
The Chippewas (5-14, 3-6 MAC) found a repeat late-stage performance from junior Lisa Tesson (Montréal, Québec / Royal Crown) as she scored seven of her 12 points in the final quarter, coupled with a career-high seven assists and five rebounds. Tesson scored CMU's five straight points in the last 45 seconds to seal the 53-45 victory over Western Michigan just days prior.
"I just like her confidence," Head Coach Kristin Haynie said of her point guard. "It's just her getting in the gym, watching film. You can't help but love a player that makes a play, and clutch plays. Proud of her, for sure."
The contest opened with 14 unanswered points for the Chippewas, bolstered by a three-for-three start from three-point range by junior guard Karrington Gordon (Detroit / Lincoln Park)—who finished the game with a career-high five made threes en route to a team-high 19 points.
"Her shot was feeling good in the gym this week," Haynie said. "I was happy to see it pay off in a game."
There was speculation in pregame that Gordon may have been under the weather Wednesday. After her fast start, the performance was quickly likened to Michael Jordan's "flu game," game five of the 1997 NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz.
Haynie chuckled at the thought before offering, "She definitely has a head cold, she's been sick the past couple days. We told her to give it all she's got: it's just a 40-minute game, then we'll have a day off. She definitely sucked it up."
The RedHawks (4-15; 2-7 MAC) crawled back in. With less than a minute to go before halftime, the score had been tied for the first time since the opening tip, 30-30. Rochelle Norris (Stafford, Va. / New Hope) dropped in a layup soon after, then one of Gordon's three steals prevented Miami from tying the contest at the break.
The third quarter opened with an 8-0 run for the host, answered finally by Tesson's first basket of the night—her lone three-pointer—for a 38-35 deficit. The Redhawks, again, still had the game tied late in the third, 42-42, but another last-minute lay-in from Norris retained CMU's lead, 44-42, at the end of the period.
Central Michigan entered Wednesday's contest with seven active players. With 43 seconds left in the third, only six Chippewas remained as sophomore Taylor Anderson (South Lyon, Mich. / East) collected a ranging block but landed awkwardly on her right foot and was helped from the floor after an extended delay.
"In the timeout, we just told them to gut it out, just keep fighting. 'Tomorrow we can take a day off, give it all you got today.' It was just them believing and sticking together with the right language of staying positive with each other."
Miami looked to position itself and capitalize on the short CMU bench as the RedHawks snuck out to a 47-44 advantage on a three-point play with 8:14 to play.
The next trip down the floor, junior Tiana Timpe (Stockton, Ill. / Stockton) became the second Chippewa in double-digits as she tied the game with her second three-pointer of the night. A trip to the free throw line for Norris would mark the final lead change 90 seconds later, 50-49 CMU.
Gordon logged her final points on her fifth three-pointer with just over five minutes to play. Timpe answered back-to-back Miami field goals with her third long ball of the night. Norris dropped in one final free throw for eight points along with her team-high 12 rebounds.
The Chippewas once again dominated the glass, 47-29, with a 17-9 edge on the offensive end.
"Even though we were down at times, we still had 17 offensive rebounds. I'm proud of the effort on the floor that kept us in the game."
Then, it was time to call on Tesson to close the deal. All seven of her fourth quarter points came with 65 seconds left, going five-for-six from the free throw line along with driving the lane for a four-point lead, 60-56, with 35 seconds to go.
Tesson has logged back-to-back double-digit scoring games for the second time in her career, the other logged in mid-February MAC play in her freshman season, coming one point from her career-high in the category.
Gordon (5) and Timpe (4) pushed the Chippewas into 10 made three-pointers on the night, the first double-digit performance since Feb. 22, 2023 against Bowling Green. Coach Haynie attributed this to time spent in the gym.
"For the most part, we just had Tiana as the shooter, so it's great to see [Gordon] coming along. Lisa's been in the gym a lot too, so now she just needs to stay confident in games."
Central Michigan will stay on the road this week in preparation for a visit to Kent State Saturday at 1 p.m., the first of two matchups with the Golden Flashes in a 14-day window. The Chippewas return to McGuirk Arena Feb. 7 against Toledo for the first of three straight at home (Feb. 10 v. Louisiana; Feb. 17 v. Kent State).
Team Stats
CMU
Miami
FG%
.382
.393
3FG%
.455
.333
FT%
.632
.636
RB
47
29
TO
20
12
STL
6
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
5
FTM
2
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
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/ Women's BasketballC
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