Bowling Green State University Athletics
Men's Basketball Opens Season at DePaul
November 16, 2004 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 16, 2004
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Bowling Green (14-17 in 03-04) vs. DePaul (22-10 in 03-04)
Saturday, November 20 - 2 p.m. (EST)
Allstate Arena (17,500)
Series Record: DePaul leads 9-8
Television: Fox Sports Chicago
Last Meeting: at BGSU 89, DePaul 61 (3/2/68)
The Opening Tip
The Falcons will begin their eighth season under head coach Dan Dakich. Dakich is second all-time at BGSU in winning percentage (.563) and fifth all-time in wins with a 116-90 record in seven seasons.
This is the Falcons' first-ever game against an opponent from Conference USA.
The Falcons return eight lettermen and three starters from a team which finished 14-17 last year and placed fourth in the MAC West Division.
The Falcons did not play traditional exhibition games this season, but did participate in closed scrimmages at Ohio State and Duquesne.
The Falcons are 5-2 in season openers under Dakich.
Dakich, a native of Merrillville, Indiana, likes to play non-conference games close to his hometown. BGSU also has played contests at Northwestern and Illinois-Chicago during his tenure with the Brown and Orange. The Falcons will open their home season Wednesday, November 24 at 7 p.m. against another Chicagoland squad, the UIC Flames.
In his first three years of college basketball, BGSU senior John Reimold has scored 1,249 points, including 847 with the Falcons in two seasons. He was a consensus first-team All-MAC selection in the preseason after averaging 15.1 points last year. Last year, the Falcons were 0-5 when he missed games due to a deep thigh bruise early in the season.
Fifth-year senior Josh Almanson was the Falcons' most consistent player in the two preseason scrimmages and averaged more than 16 points in each of the two exhibition games. He averaged 8.0 points last season. The Falcons hope that junior forward Germain Fitch can remain healthy after undergoing reconstructive knee surgery three times in his career. With Fitch available for duty, BGSU is 33-16 since he came here as a freshman in 2001. Freshman point guard Perrick Robinson will start his collegiate career in his hometown. The Chicago Prosser product was a three-time All-Conference and All-City performer, averaging 21.9 points, 8.3 assists, 6.2 rebounds and 6.4 steals as a senior. Freshman center Scott Vandermeer averaged 16 points, 12 rebounds, six blocks and three assists as a senior at Lake Central High School nearby in northwest Indiana.
DePaul defeated St. Edwards, 79-56 and St. Xavier, 72-64 in two exhibition games earlier this month. Against MAC teams last year, the Blue Demons lost to Toledo, 93-81 at home, and won 63-60 at Ohio.The Blue Demons return three starters from a squad which tied for the regular season title in CUSA and finished second at the conference tournament. They lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to UConn. DePaul enters its third season under Coach Dave Leitao who has guided the Blue Demons to a 38-23 record in two seasons in Chicago.
The last time BGSU opened up the season against a team coming off an NCAA Tournament berth, they knocked off Ole Miss, 82-78, in overtime at the Top of the World Classic in Fairbanks, Alaska in November, 2001.
Series Notes
Lyndon Johnson was the President and Bill Fitch was the Falcons head coach the last time these two teams met. From 1956-1968, these teams played 12 straight seasons with DePaul holding a 7-5 edge, including two wins over BG teams that included NBA Hall of Famer Nate Thurmond.
BGSU is 2-6 against the Blue Demons in Chicago.
