Bowling Green State University Athletics
Men's Basketball Hosts Wright State on Saturday
February 16, 2006 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 16, 2006
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Wright State (12-12) at Bowling Green (9-15)
Saturday, February 18, 3:30 p.m.
Anderson Arena (4,700)
Series Record: BG leads 5-4
Last Meeting: Wright State 76, at BGSU 67 (12/10/97)
Radio: BGSU Radio Network (Todd Walker and Kirk Cowan)
BRACKET BUSTER SATURDAY
BGSU and Wright State meet in a non-conference match up as part of the annual Bracket Buster Weekend. The two teams will also play next year in Dayton. BGSU (5-9 in the MAC) is currently tied for the ninth seed as it prepares for the MAC Tournament which begins March 6. The Raiders are third in the Horizon league with an 8-6 conference record. BGSU is coming off a 77-62 loss at Akron, while Wright State lost at home, 63-56 to Cleveland State. The Raiders are 0-5 against the MAC this season having lost at Toledo, Miami, Northern Illinois and Akron and also at home to Ball State.
AGAINST THE RAIDERS
This will be the 10th meeting between the two teams. The programs last faced each other on December 10, 1997 when Wright State won, 76-67, in Dan Dakich's first year with the Falcons.
12/10/97 WSU 76, at BGSU 67
12/11/96 BGSU 90, at WSU 63
12/3/91 at WSU 82, BGSU 76
1/15/91 at BGSU 87, WSU 74
12/6/89 BGSU 92 at WSU 85
12/21/88 at BGSU 73, WSU 56
12/12/87 at BGSU 66, WSU 65
12/2/81 WSU 81, BGSU 71
12/3/80 at WSU 81, BGSU 68
PLAYER NOTES
Junior Martin Samarco is the top scorer in the MAC (19th nationally) averaging 18.9 points per game and is ranked eighth in the country in three-point field goals made per game (3.43) and ninth overall in three-point field goal percentage (45.1%)... he also is third in the MAC in free throw percentage (84.6%) ... in league games only, he has made a MAC-best 90.0% (54 of 60) free throws and 49% of his three-pointers (50/102, 4th in the league)... he has led the team in scoring 15 times this season and had a career-high 35 points at Eastern Michigan, 30 against Buffalo and 28 versus Ohio... he also had 27 in back-to-back games earlier this year against Bradley and Florida State... his 79 three pointers is tied for third best in a single season at BGSU... senior Steven Wright suffered a broken foot in the preseason and missed the first six games of the season ... he may be the league's top sixth man averaging 15.4 points and 4.1 assists as opposed to 8.7 points per game as a starter... he had 15 second-half points at Akron... he tied his career-high with 23 points and nine assists against Ohio and had 17 against Eastern Michigan when he also made five of six field goals... he had 21 points against Akron and made a career-best five three-pointers in that game... he added 17 points, five rebounds and five assists against Eastern Michigan and 16 points, five rebounds and three assists against Ball State... in the last five games, junior John Floyd has averaged 18.2 points on 57.1% shooting from the field and 52.4% marksmanship from long distance... he had a team-high 19 points at Akron and had 17 points against Toledo ... he had 22 points and seven assists against Ohio after he had 21 points and set a career-high with three steals against Miami... he had 14 points, including 11 in the second half against Kent State... his three-pointer as the shot clock expired late in the game extended a Falcon lead from four to seven points... he had a career-high 23-point effort, making five of seven three-pointers against Western Michigan... he is 10th in the league in three-point field goal percentage at 39.5%... junior guard Patrick Phillips has made three starts this season... he had a career-high 10 points and six rebounds against Ohio in a career-high 19 minutes... he also provided a huge lift to the Falcons when he scored four second half points against Buffalo... he had a career-high seven points against Notre Dame and added two rebounds and a steal in seven minutes of action... ... senior Mawel Soler had his first career double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds against Kent State and made a career-high 13 free throws in 13 attempts... Soler also had 19 points on eight of nine shooting from the field against Buffalo... has made a team-high 62.9% of his shots from the field and is averaging 7.5 points and 5.0 rebounds... he is shooting 66.9% from the floor during his two seasons with the Falcons... he also is second on the team with 63 assists... freshman Erik Marschall is a contender for the All-Freshman team in the MAC averaging 6.7 points and 4.4 rebounds ...he has scored in double figures six times this season and is tied for the team lead in blocked shots with 14... he had a career-high three steals against Buffalo... junior Matt Lefeld (Business, 3.96 GPA) was named CoSIDA Academic All-District and is looking to become the school's first men's basketball Academic All-American since Steve Martenet earned third team honors in 1988... he had his ninth double digit scoring effort this season with 11 points against Toledo... he is shooting 50.0% from the field in MAC play... has now made 23 of his last 27 free throw attempts... is arguably the most improved player in the MAC... last year he scored just 14 points all season, but equaled that in his first game this year against Western Carolina... despite sore feet which limit his practice time, Lefeld is averaging 8.1 points and 3.7 rebounds ... sophomore guard Perrick Robinson is one of the Falcons top defenders... Robinson leads the team with 29 steals and is fourth in assists with 45... had five points at Akron, breaking a seven-game scoreless streak... he is the only Falcon to start the season opener in each of the last two seasons ... freshman Dusan Radivojevic did not play at Toledo or at Akron due to a sprained right knee... he is averaging 2.8 points and is shooting 36.7% from three-point range... freshman Brian Moten joined the team against Florida State and played a season-high 21 minutes against Kent State he is averaging 2.7 points... he had a season-high nine points against Central Michigan... freshman Darryl Clements scored his first career points in the MAC with three at Akron... he is averaging 2.3 points and 1.6 rebounds... he had seven points against Oakland... freshman walk-on Brian Guerin made two free throws at Akron... he missed a month earlier this season due to mono... sophomore walk-on Alvin Freeman is in his second year with BGSU and had three points against Urbana... he had his longest MAC playing stint when he logged four minutes at Miami.
TEAM TRENDS
BGSU has not played against a Horizon League foe this year, but won five straight against their conference during the last two seasons... Wright State is the third Bracket Buster foe for the Falcons in four seasons to come from the Horizon League (UIC-2003, YSU, 2004)... BGSU leads the MAC in three-point field goal percentage (38.8%) and is 19th in the country in that category... BGSU finished 4-4 against the MAC West this year... BGSU is 24-5 when it has had to play defense with a one possession lead in the final minute since the 2001-02 season... BGSU outrebounded Toledo, 30-28, winning the battle of the boards for the first time against a MAC opponent this year... the Falcons improved to 37-7 since 2000-01 when making half of its shots or better in a game... BGSU shot 23 of 46 from the field against EMU... the Falcons scored a season-high 90 points against Ohio (previous high was 85 against Urbana)... it marked the first time in 19 games under Dan Dakich that the Falcons lost a game when they scored 90 points or more... the last BGSU loss when it scored 90 points or more came in Jim Larranaga's last game with the Falcons, a 98-95 loss in the NIT to West Virginia... against Ohio, the Falcons also tied a season-high with 30 made field goals and attempts with 61... BGSU also racked up a season-high 22 assists... In the last four games, BGSU has shot 45.2% from three-point range (47/104) and made 101 of 133 free throws (75.9%)... the Ohio game was the first double-overtime game for Bowling Green since playing at Detroit on November 29, 1995... it marked the first back-to-back overtime home games since BGSU defeated Kent State (83-81) on February 2, 1977 and lost to Ohio (69-68) on February 5 of that season... it was the first home double-overtime tilt since February 1, 1969 when the Falcons lost to Western Michigan, 88-87... when BGSU fell to Akron last week, the Falcons lost a home overtime game for the first time since December 12, 1985 against Defiance when it fell 66-64... BGSU also has led in every MAC game this season... against Buffalo and Kent State, BGSU shot 50.0% from the field in back-to-back games for the first time this season... Kent State was held to a 29.4% effort from three-point range, the eighth team this season to shoot below 30% from beyond the arc against the Falcons this year... BGSU is 83-23 at home since the 1998-99 season... BGSU has played six one-point games in the last year and are 4-2 in those contests... BGSU is 28-3 since the 2001 season when holding an opponent under 60 points... against Virginia Tech, the Falcons won their road opener for the third time in Dakich's nine seasons (1999-00 at Hawaii; 2001-2002 at Duquesne)... four teams have shot below 30 percent from the field against BGSU including Urbana (25.5%), CMU (26.2%), Troy (27.8%) and Western Carolina (28.9%).
BACK TO THE EAST DIVISION
After spending three years in the MAC West Division, BGSU will return to the MAC East following the loss of Marshall to Conference USA. BGSU was in the East Division from 1997-2002.
