CMU women's basketball finds spark in second half, gets first home win
Central Michigan freshman forward Ayanna-Sarai Darrington goes up for a layup against Concordia Ann Arbor freshman center Lauren Borsenik on Wednesday, Dec. 4, at McGuirk Arena. Darrington had 10 points and 14 rebounds, recording her first double-double of her career. (CM-Life | Mark Hoover)
After being down 13 at halftime to the Concordia Cardinals, Central Michigan women’s basketball came out of the tunnel and exploded for 26 third-quarter points, its highest-scoring quarter of the season.
With momentum and a five-point lead going into the fourth, the Chippewas extended their lead to 17. The second-half burst helped give CMU its first home win of the season 68-57 on Wednesday night.
“Just our urgency, grittiness, we didn’t have that in the first half,” head coach Kristin Haynie said. “At halftime, we talked about how it’s not about X’s and O’s, it’s their effort, and we had to get back to being gritty and tough. They did exactly that in the second half.”
Central Michigan got out to a slow start, going down 14-4 early. Struggling to make shots in the first half, only shooting 20% from the field, the Chippewas found themselves down 13 at halftime.
CMU came out of the locker room looking like a whole new team, using a 20-6 run to take the lead late in the third quarter. Three triples from freshman guard Jayda Mosley would give some breathing room going into the fourth.
“Jayda came in and she gave us a big spark,” Haynie said. “I’m very proud of Jayda for having short-term memory. She’s continued to stay confident given what her shooting percentage is, now here she is, 4-7 is a great percentage.”
The Chippewas came into the fourth quarter and continued to get buckets. After extending the lead to 17 late in the period, they secured the 68-57 victory.
The defense stepped up big time in the second half, holding the Cardinals to only 20 points.
“We were in the passing lanes a little more, we dictated more,” Haynie said. “That's all it is, defense is effort and we had the effort in the second half.”
Freshman guard Madi Morson led the team in points with 17, shooting 50% from the field, and 40% from three.
“Madi is a terrific talent,” Haynie said. “She’s a freshman, so she has learning curves, but Madi’s just done a really good job of staying consistent the past few games. So, hopefully, she continues to stay in the gym and stay consistent. She’s a special talent, she’s hard to guard, and it's good to see her make a couple threes as well.”
Freshman forward Ayanna-Sarai Darrington recorded a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds, she also had three steals.
“(Ayanna) had 13 offensive rebounds in a game,” Haynie said. “A few of those were her own missed layups, but just still staying relentless. You don’t teach that, that's just effort, and that's just heart."
The Chippewas travel to Ames, Iowa on Sunday to take on the 20th-ranked Iowa State Cyclones at 1 p.m.
“The players have tomorrow off to rest and recover, then we have an opportunity to go play a top 25 team in the nation,” Haynie said. “We’re just looking forward to that challenge.”
