Bowling Green State University Athletics
Men's Basketball Visits Toledo
February 08, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 8, 2005
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Bowling Green (13-6, 7-4) at Toledo (10-10, 6-5)
Wednesday, February 9 - 7 p.m.
Savage Hall (9,000)
Series Record: UT leads 78-73
Last Meeting: at BGSU 70, Toledo 69 (1/22/05)
THE RACE HEATS UP
BGSU (7-4) and Toledo (6-5) are ready for the 152nd meeting of their storied rivalry with both teams fighting with Western Michigan (8-4) and Ball State (7-4) for the lead in the MAC West.
The Falcons, who have won the last two meetings in the series, will be in search of its first win in Savage Hall since the 1998-99 season. Overall, five of the last six meetings have been decided by four points or less, including two overtime battles. In addition, three of the last four meetings in Savage Hall have been decided in the final minute.
The Falcons overcame a 17-point halftime deficit in defeating Toledo, 70-69, on January 22nd. Junior Germain Fitch had a career-high 12 points and eight rebounds and scored the game-winner with 28 seconds left.
The Falcons are in their eighth season under head coach Dan Dakich. Dakich is second all-time at BGSU in winning percentage (.573) and fifth all-time in wins with a 129-96 record. He and his family were honored by the Red Cross prior to the NIU game for raising $1,777 for victims of the recent tsunami disaster overseas.
With a 78-59 MAC record, he ranks 11th all-time in conference game winning percentage and is 11th in MAC history in overall winning percentage. He also is one of just 19 MAC coaches to ever win 125 games or more at his institution and his 78 league wins rank 12th all-time in MAC history.
The Falcons lead the MAC and are ranked 10th in the country shooting 50.1% from the field this season. BGSU also ranks 10th in the nation and leads the league in assists at 17.8 per game. BGSU also leads the league in free throw shooting at 76.5%. The Falcons are second in blocked shots at 3.8 per game. The Falcons have taken a league-low 332 free throw attempts (17.5 per game).
BGSU senior's Josh Almanson and John Reimold make up the top scoring duo in the MAC averaging 35.0 points per game combined.
Almanson is second in the MAC averaging 17.7 points on a league-best 62.3% (15th in the nation) shooting effort from the field. He also is seventh in the league in blocked shots (0.9). He had 16 points and made all seven of his field goal attempts against Ohio. He is the ninth most improved player in the country in scoring average adding 9.7 points per game to his total from a year ago. He has scored 973 points in his career and is looking to be the 34th player in BGSU history to score 1,000 points or more in a career.
Reimold is fourth in the MAC averaging 17.3 points and ranks second in the league in field goal percentage (56.0%) and in three-point field goal percentage (49.5%). He had 16 points against Ohio. His three-point field goal percentage was fourth nationally last week. He has scored 1,573 points as a collegian (1,171 at BGSU and 402 at Loyola-Maryland as a freshman).
WE'RE GLAD THIS KID CAME TO THE GAME
Monday night at Anderson Arena was Take a Kid To The Game Night and the biggest kid in the building, 6-11 freshman Scott Vandermeer, was the difference maker. Making his first collegiate start, he tied a school record with seven blocked shots (Skip Howard vs. Toledo in 1973) and also added six rebounds and six points. His presence in the middle cooled off an Ohio team which had shot 52.1% from the field in the last four games to a 41.2% effort from the floor against the Falcons. He and his teammates also held one of the league's top freshmen, Leon Williams, scoreless. Vandermeer is averaging 1.7 points and 1.3 boards.
