Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
WESTERN CAROLINA
Falcons Fall Just Short, 63-60, vs. Western Carolina
November 09, 2007 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 9, 2007
Final Stats | Notes
CINCINNATI, Ohio - Western Carolina University used a pair of back-to-back three-pointers in the game's late going to narrowly defeat the Bowling Green State University men's basketball team, 63-60, Friday night (Nov. 9). The game, the season opener for both teams, was held at Fifth Third Arena in Cincinnati.
The contest was the first game of the Peggy Cronin Classic, hosted by the University of Cincinnati. The game was also the BGSU regular-season head-coaching debut for Louis Orr, a native of the Queen City.
Redshirt freshman Chris Knight, also a Cincinnati native, led the Falcons with a double-double in his first collegiate game. Knight had 16 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Brown and Orange in both categories.
Knight was one of four double-digit scorers on the night, as junior Nate Miller had 13 points and senior Ryne Hamblet added 11 points along with a game-high seven assists.
Sophomore Otis Polk had a career-high 10 points on perfect 4-of-4 shooting from the field. Polk also had five rebounds and three blocked shots.
For the Catamounts, Nick Aldridge led the way with 17 points, while Brigham Waginger had 15 points and a team-leading eight rebounds.
The game featured nine ties and seven lead changes, with Hamblet nearly hitting what would have been a game-tying three-pointer at the final buzzer. Hamblet, with two defenders in his face, just missed connecting on a triple try from the corner, in front of the BGSU bench.
"When two teams shoot 36, 37 percent from the floor, the little things are going to make the difference," said Orr. "The scrapping, the hustle plays, the rebounding, the free-throw shooting; those things are going to make the difference.
"They beat us on the boards by 13, and they had 18 offensive rebounds. We broke down defensively a couple times late in the game and gave up two 3s. We have to learn how to stay disciplined and make plays at the end. I think that's something that you learn.
"But, we were down six with a few minutes left in the game and came back to tie it; that shows some fortitude. And, we had a chance to tie it at the end. But, we can't let our field-goal shooting dictate wins and losses. We've got to do the things like getting on the boards to give ourselves a chance to win."
The Catamounts took a narrow 29-28 lead into the half. Junior Darryl Clements got a steal on the game's first possession, leading to a pair of Hamblet free throws, and sophomore Marc Larson blocked a shot and grabbed the rebound on WCU's second possession. That led to a foul by the Catamounts' Eric Wilson, his second in the game's first 34 seconds.
Wilson would stay in the game and pick up his third foul at the 17:45 mark. A pair of Larson free throws and a Knight jumper tied the game at 6-6 heading into the first media timeout of the game.
Out of that timeout, Hamblet would take a pass from Knight and drain a left-elbow three-pointer for a 9-6 Falcon lead. When Knight hit a trey of his own, off of freshman Joe Jakubowski's first career assist, the Falcons held a 12-7 lead with 12:14 to play.
But, the Catmounts scored the next seven points as part of a 10-2 run, taking a 17-14 lead by the eight-minute media timeout. BG battled back, with a pair of Miller charity tosses tying the game at 22-22 with 4:29 left in the half.
Western Carolina would score four-straight points, before a layup by Ryan Sims stopped the mini-run. WCU's Brandon Giles hit a triple, before a tip-in by Polk and a jumper by Knight closed the first-half scoring.
The Falcons were whistled for four fouls in the first 1:07 of the second half, and five in the opening two minutes, but BG showed some spark at the offensive end.
Polk set a pick for Clements, then took a pass from the junior for a dunk on a left-side cut to the hoop. WCU split a pair of free throws, but Clements hit a driving layup in traffic, and Miller got a steal and took a pass from Hamblet for a layup at the other end. The Falcons led by a 34-32 count.
The Falcons opened up a five-point lead on a Knight jumper at the 12:58 mark, but the Catamounts slowly crept back, tying the game at 45-45 midway through the half. A dunk by Camden Miller off a steal gave WCU a two-point lead as the Falcons took time.
Two Waginger free throws, however, were followed by a layup from Aldridge, and the Catamounts' lead was six, 51-45. The lead was still six points several minutes later, before the Brown and Orange went on a 6-0 run to tie the score. Miller hit a layup, and Larson took a Knight pass and converted a reverse layup. Miller capped that run with two free throws.
Western retook the lead with a 6-2 run, with a Jake Robinson three-pointer giving the Catamounts a 61-57 advantage with 2:31 on the clock.
The Falcons missed a shot at the other end, but then forced an Aldridge turnover with 1:41 left. Hamblet's three-point try with 1:27 left, however, was in-and-out, and the Catamounts rebounded.
Again, the Falcons forced a stop, and Knight took a pass from Hamblet for a layup with 53 seconds left, cutting the BG deficit to 61-59.
Sims poked the ball away from Waginger, and Knight was fouled with 21.8 seconds left. He split his tosses to cut the deficit to one point. BG quickly fouled Arnold Gore, who made both ensuing free throws for a 63-60 Catamount lead with 19.1 seconds left.
The Falcons had two three-point tries during the frantic final possession, with the aforementioned Hamblet shot just missing as the final horn sounded.
The Falcons shot 37.5 percent from the field to the Catamounts' 36.2. BGSU was 16-of-21 from the free-throw line (76.2%) in the game, while WCU was 12-for-22 (54.5%). The Catamounts, however, had nine three-pointers to the Falcons' two, and also held a 45-32 rebounding advantage.
The Falcon and Orange will return to action on Saturday, taking on Belmont in day-two action at the Peggy Cronin Classic. Belmont beat Cincinnati, 86-75, in Friday's second game. The Falcons and Bruins will tip things off at 4:00 p.m. Saturday at Fifth Third Arena.
