Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Head to Athens for Tuesday Tilt with Bobcats
February 18, 2008 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 18, 2008
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSUFalcons.com) -
BGSU at OHIO
Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008 • 7:00 p.m.
Convocation Center (13,080) • Athens, Ohio
RECORDS: BGSU 11-13 (6-6 MAC) // Ohio 16-9 (7-5 MAC)
RADIO: Falcon Radio Network - Todd Walker
TELEVISION: Ohio Bobcat Sports Network / ESPN Full Court
SERIES: BGSU leads, 66-56 // STREAK: BGSU - 1
LAST MEETING: at BGSU 52, Ohio 49 (Jan. 5, 2008)
BGSU Notes, Stats, Player Bios & GBG Boxscores in PDF Format
THE GAME
The Bowling Green State University men's basketball team, after playing three of the last four games at home, now plays four road games in the regular season's five remaining contests ... the Falcons of head coach Louis Orr head to Athens for a Mid-American Conference East Division contest vs. Ohio University ... tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. at the Convocation Center (13,080) ... the game is scheduled to be televised by the Ohio Bobcat Sports Network, and also will appear as part of the ESPN Full Court package ... following Tuesday's game, the Brown and Orange will break from MAC play for the O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters, heading to the Motor City for a Saturday (Feb. 23) game vs. the University of Detroit Mercy.
THE OPENING TIP
• Redshirt freshman Chris Knight had a double-double, with 12 points and a game-high 11 rebounds, in Saturday's (Feb. 16) Akron game ... Knight now has three double-doubles on the season, tied with Nate Miller for the team lead ... Knight's total of three double-doubles this year is the most of any freshman in the MAC ... the Cincinnati native leads all conference frosh in scoring (11.0 ppg) and rebounding (7.3 rpg).
• With three quarters of the MAC schedule elapsed, the Falcons - picked to finish sixth (i.e., last) in the East Division in the league's preseason poll - have a 6-6 league mark, tied for sixth overall among the 12 teams ... BGSU has doubled the team's MAC win total for all of last season (Falcons went 3-13 in conference play in 2006-07).
THE STARTING LINEUP
In 24 games this year to date, Falcon head coach Louis Orr has used a total of three different starting lineups ... by contrast, the last year's team used 11 different combinations in the first 11 games, and BGSU used 23 different starting lineups in last season's 31 games.
ANOTHER NOTE ON THE STARTING LINEUP
The Falcons have used the same five players in the starting lineup - juniors Darryl Clements and Nate Miller, sophomore Marc Larson and freshmen Joe Jakubowski and Chris Knight - in each of the last 13 games ... BGSU has not used the same starters for as many consecutive games since the 2001-02 season ... that year, the lineup of Erik Crawford, Brent Klassen, Len Matela, Keith McLeod and Brandon Pardon started at least 10 consecutive games on two occasions (13-straight games from Nov. 28, 2001 to Jan. 23, 2002; 10-straight games from Jan. 30, 2002 to Feb. 27, 2002).
ABOUT THE FALCONS
• The Falcons enter the Ohio game with an overall record of 11-13, and BGSU is 6-6 in MAC play ... BG has dropped four of the last five games ... the Falcons are coming off a 65-56 loss to Akron on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 16) ... finishing the cross-divisional swing with a 3-3 mark ... BGSU is looking to reverse a two-game losing streak, including a 10-point setback at Eastern Michigan,78-68, on Wednesday (Feb. 13) ... that game came on the heels of a 69-58 home win over Toledo before a national-TV audience (Feb. 10) ... BGSU is 3-3 vs. MAC East Division teams, and the Falcons went 3-3 vs. the West.
• The Falcons opened the league schedule with a 52-49 win over Ohio (Jan. 5), before losing at Kent State, 63-49 (Jan. 12) ... the Brown and Orange rebounded with an 83-70 victory against Buffalo (Jan. 17), but suffered an 80-44 setback at Akron three days later (Jan. 20) ... after that 2-2 MAC start, BG then won three-straight games, posting narrow home wins over Miami (55-52; Jan. 23) and Northern Illinois (63-59; Jan. 27) before heading to Ball State and picking up a 63-53 decision (Jan. 30) ... that winning streak came to an end with a 64-50 loss at Western Michigan (Feb. 2), followed by an overtime setback to Central Michigan (81-77; Feb. 6).
• The Falcons opened the season with a 4-2 record, including a 2-1 mark at the season-opening Peggy Cronin Classic at Cincinnati ... the wins in that tourney came over Belmont and host UC ... the Falcons' other victories over the first six games of the year came against Morehead State and at Furman ... then, however, the Brown and Orange suffered a four-game losing streak ... three of those losses came on the road, and none by more than 11 points.
• The Falcons won two of three games on the homestand that bridged the New Year, with a 52-48 win over Eastern Illinois (Dec. 29), a 96-78 loss to Duquesne (Jan. 2) at Anderson Arena and the MAC-opening victory over Ohio.
• The Falcons are 7-5 at home, 3-7 on the road and 1-1 in neutral-site games ... BGSU is averaging 63.7 points per game to the opponents' 66.6 ppg ... the Falcons are shooting 44.7 percent from the field, while allowing the opponents to shoot just 40.5%.
• Individually, junior Nate Miller leads the team in scoring, averaging 13.5 points per game ... Miller, who had a double-double (21 points and 11 rebounds) vs. UT, also paces the Falcons in assists (2.9 apg) and steals (1.6 spg), and is second on the squad in rebounding (6.0 rpg) ... Miller has hit double digits in scoring in a team-high 19 of BG's 24 games this year.
• Redshirt freshman Chris Knight is second on the team in scoring, and leads the Falcons in rebounding ... Knight has 11.0 points and 7.3 boards per game, and is third on the team in blocked shots (1.0 bpg) ... Knight had a double-double vs. Akron, his third of the season ... he is tied with Miller for the team lead in that category.
• Junior Brian Moten has moved into third on the team in scoring, averaging 8.2 ppg ... he is shooting 50.7 percent from the field, ranking second on the team, and has shot a BG-best 41.4% from the three-point line ... Moten leads the Falcons with 24 three-pointers made ... classmate Darryl Clements has 8.0 points and 3.0 rebounds per game ... he ranks fourth on the Falcons in scoring, and is second in steals (1.2 spg), third in assists (2.2 apg) and fourth on the team in rebounding ... Clements is right behind Moten with 23 three-point FG made.
• Freshman Joe Jakubowski is averaging 6.6 points per game, and is second on the Falcons in assists, with 2.8 per outing ... Jakubowski's total of 67 helpers is two behind Miller ... the freshman is third in three-pointers made, with 22 this year to date ... sophomores Otis Polk and Marc Larson have split time at center, and are averaging 5.6 and 4.8 points per contest, respectively ... Polk has 4.5 rpg, ranking third on the team ... he is shooting a team-leading 52.7% from the field, and also leads the Falcons in blocked shots, with 36 (1.5 bpg) ... Larson has 2.8 rpg and 1.2 blocks per game, and is shooting 50.6% from the floor ... he is second on the team in blocks and ranks third in FG pct.
• Soph Ryan Sims has played in 22 games off the bench, and is averaging 1.1 ppg, while freshman Cameron Madlock has seen action in 12 games, and has 1.2 ppg and 1.0 rpg ... sophomore Matt Karaffa made his collegiate debut in the Indiana State contest, and also saw action in road games vs. Akron and Western Michigan.
• In MAC action, Miller leads the team in scoring, with 13.6 ppg, while Moten is also in double digits, at 12.2 ppg ... Miller paces the Falcons in assists in MAC play, with 3.5 apg ... Clements has 9.0 ppg and 1.4 steals per game in MAC play, and is tied with Miller for the team lead in the latter category ... Knight also has 9.0 ppg, and has a team-leading 7.3 rpg, while Jakubowski has 6.6 ppg and Polk 5.7 ... Polk also has 4.8 rpg off the bench in conference games ... BGSU is shooting 44.7% from the field to the opponents' 41.0% in MAC action.
• Clements, Larson and Miller each have started all 24 games to date for first-year BGSU head coach Louis Orr ... Jakubowski has started each of the last 16 games, while Knight has started 23 times, including each of the last 13 ... that lineup has taken the floor at the beginning of all 13 games in calendar year 2008 ... the Falcons went 13-18 overall and 3-13 in MAC play in 2006-07.
A WIN OVER OHIO WOULD ...
• improve BGSU's MAC record to 7-6, which would more than double the team's conference win total for all of last season (3-13 in the MAC a year ago);
• make the Falcons the first team to win at the Convocation Center this year, where Ohio is 9-0;
• give BG a two-game winning streak in the series; and
• give the Falcons four road wins this year, topping last season's total (3-10).
SCOUTING OHIO
Ohio enters Tuesday's game with an overall record of 16-9, and the Bobcats are 7-5 in MAC play ... Ohio is a perfect 9-0 at home, 5-8 on the road and 2-1 in neutral-site games this season to date ... the team's non-conference schedule included wins over Maryland and St. John's ... in MAC play, the 'Cats won five-straight games from Jan. 19 to Feb. 2, but have lost three of the last four contests ... OU dropped a narrow 54-52 decision at Toledo last week (Feb. 13), before suffering a 72-62 setback at Kent State over the weekend (Feb. 16) ... Ohio's last loss at home came nearly a year ago, vs. KSU on Feb. 24, 2007 ... individually, senior forward Leon Williams leads the team in both scoring and rebounding, and is averaging a double-double ... Williams has 16.0 points and 10.2 rebounds per game this year to date ... two other Bobcats boast double-digit scoring averages, including junior forward Jerome Tillman, who has 12.7 ppg and 7.1 rpg ... senior guard Bubba Walther has 11.6 points per outing, and leads the team with 56 three-point field goals made ... junior guards Bert Whittington IV and Justin Orr are averaging 8.2 and 7.7 ppg, respectively ... another junior guard, Michael Allen, has 4.2 ppg and a team-leading 4.4 assists per outing ... still another junior guard, Allen Hester (2.8 ppg), joined Allen, Tillman, Whittington and Williams in the starting lineup at KSU ... prior to that game, Orr had joined Allen, Tillman, Whittington and Williams in the starting lineup for eight-straight contests for head coach Tim O'Shea ... O'Shea welcomed back four letterwinners, including three starters, from last year's team that finished 19-13 overall and 9-7 in MAC action ... O'Shea has a record of 116-91 in his seventh season as a collegiate head coach, all with the Bobcats ... the school's athletics web site is ohiobobcats.com.
THE SERIES
The Falcons lead Ohio, 66-56, in the all-time series between the teams, and BGSU was victorious in the teams' initial 2007-08 meeting ... BG downed Ohio, 52-49, in this season's MAC opener, on Jan. 5 at Anderson Arena ... that win snapped a five-game series losing streak for the Brown and Orange ... the teams met three times last season, with the 'Cats capturing a 67-49 win in Athens (Jan. 11, 2007) and an 88-63 decision at Anderson Arena (Feb. 21, 2007) ... the Falcons also met OU in the first round of the MAC Tournament at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland (March 7, 2007), with the Bobcats ending the Falcons' season with a 69-59 win ... BG is looking to snap a three-game losing streak at the Convocation Center, with the Falcons' last road win over Ohio coming in overtime, 66-60, on Jan. 28, 2003.
FAMILY TIES
Ohio guard Justin Orr is the nephew of BGSU head coach Louis Orr ... Justin, a junior, is in his first playing season with the Bobcats ... he sat out last season as a transfer after playing two seasons at Murray State ... Justin Orr, like his uncle a native of Cincinnati, had a total of 401 points (6.8 ppg) with the Racers ... he is averaging 7.7 points per game this year with the Bobcats.
LAST TIME OUT
Visiting Akron withstood a BGSU second-half run, holding off the Falcons by a 65-56 count Saturday afternoon (Feb. 16) at Anderson Arena ... the Brown and Orange overcame a 10-point second-half deficit to tie the score, and BG took a three-point lead with under eight minutes to go ... but, the Zips would rally, scoring 12 of their final 16 points at the free-throw line ... the Falcons had a better field-goal percentage than UA in each half, and BG owned a 41-33 rebounding advantage ... but, the hosts committed 18 turnovers and went just 11-for-22 from the free-throw line ... three Zips - Nate Linhart, Cedrick Middleton and Nick Dials - scored 14 points apiece, while Chris McKnight was also in double digits, with a 10-point afternoon ... for the Falcons, Brian Moten had a game-high 15 points off the bench, while Nate Miller scored 13 ... Chris Knight had a double-double, with 12 points and a game-high 11 rebounds ... with UA leading, 37-27, a 10-0 run by BG tied the game with just under 14 minutes left ... that was the first of five second-half ties ... when Miller found Moten for a layup, BG's lead was 50-47 with 6:13 left ... the Zips, however, got four-straight points to take the lead ... Knight's jump shot with 2:31 left gave BG the lead, 52-51, but Middleton scored the next four points ... Joe Jakubowski made two free throws at 1:12 but, as Dials rose for a right-elbow 3-point attempt, the Falcons were called for a foul ... Dials hit all three FTs, giving UA a four-point lead with 47.2 seconds left ... after a BG miss at the other end, the Zips went ahead by six points on two more FTs ... the Brown and Orange could get no closer than four points the rest of the way.
BLOCK PARTY, HOSTED BY OTIS
Sophomore Otis Polk tied his career high with four blocked shots in the win over Toledo, and had three more against Akron ... Polk now has 36 blocks this year, the seventh-highest single-season total in school history ... the Detroit native is eight rejections shy of third place on the list, a spot currently held by Ed Colbert (44 in 1990-91) ... Cornelius Cash holds the record, with 59 blocks in 1973-74 ... with 66 career blocks, Polk is nine shy of 10th place on that BG chart.
BLOCK PARTY II: CHRIS AND MARC MIGHT STOP BY, TOO
Sophomore Otis Polk, as mentioned, is seventh on the BGSU single-season list for blocked shots ... classmate Marc Larson and redshirt freshman Chris Knight are close to adding their names to the top-10 on that same list ... Larson has 29 blocks this year to date, just one shy of tying for 10th place ... Knight has 25 rejections in 2007-08.
KNIGHT TIME IS THE RIGHT TIME
Redshirt freshman Chris Knight scored a team-high 15 points at Eastern Michigan, tying his season best with three assists ... then, he had a double-double, with 12 points and a game-high 11 rebounds against Akron ... Knight has hit double digits in scoring in 15 games this year, and is averaging 11.0 points per game ... he is second in scoring, and leads the Falcons in rebounding, with 7.3 per contest ... Knight has three double-doubles this season ... he has hit double digits in rebounding five times this year, and has had nine boards on five other occasions this year ... his three 20-point games include a 24-point outing in his hometown, in a win at Cincinnati.
MOTEN OFFENSE
Junior Brian Moten has provided the Falcons with an offensive spark this season, especially since the 2008 calendar year began ... Moten has hit double digits in scoring 11 times, including 10 times in the last 13 games ... he is averaging 8.2 points per game this season, and is second on the team in scoring in MAC games, with 12.2 ppg vs. conference opposition.
MILLER TIME
Junior Nate Miller has emerged as a go-to player for the Falcons ... Miller had back-to-back 20-point games, with 20 vs. Central Michigan and 21 more - tying his career high - vs. Toledo ... he added 13 points and a game-high six assists at Eastern Michigan, and had 13 more points and nine rebounds vs. Akron ... Miller leads the Falcons in scoring, with 13.5 points per game, and has a team-high 19 double-digit games this season to date ... Miller scored 11 of 14 points for the Falcons during a key stretch of the CMU game, with four of BG's final seven points of regulation, and BG's first seven points of the overtime period ... vs. Toledo, he had a double-double, with 11 rebounds, and also had five assists in the win ... Miller was 9-of-13 from the field in that game.
PHALCON PHRESHMAN PHENOMS
Several first-year Falcons are at the top of their class when it comes to the MAC statistics ... Chris Knight leads all MAC freshmen in scoring (11.0 ppg, tie-20th in MAC) and rebounding (7.3 rpg; fifth), and is also the MAC's top freshman shot-blocker (1.04 bpg; seventh) ... Joe Jakubowski paces all league frosh in assists (2.79 apg; 12th).
DOUBLE(-DOUBLE) TROUBLE
• Redshirt freshman Chris Knight had his third double-double of the season in the Akron game (Feb. 16), with 12 points and a game-high 11 rebounds ... Knight is tied for the BG lead in that category ... he had a double-double in his collegiate debut, in his hometown, no less ... the Cincinnati native had 16 points and 10 boards in his first game at BGSU, against Western Carolina (Nov. 9) at the Peggy Cronin Classic on the UC campus ... his other double-double came in the Duquesne game (Jan. 2), as he had 14 points and a career-high 14 rebounds vs. the Dukes.
• Junior Nate Miller is tied with Knight for the team lead this season ... Miller had his third double-double in the Toledo game, with game-high totals of 21 points and 11 rebounds ... Miller's other two double-doubles this year came during the Falcons' three-game homestand that ended calendar year 2007 and began 2008 ... Miller had 13 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Ohio (Jan. 5) ... the Springfield, Ohio, native had 17 points and 14 boards in the Eastern Illinois game (Dec. 29) ... Miller has eight career double-doubles, the most among current Falcons ... that total includes a triple-double (20 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists) at Buffalo last Feb. 13.
• Sophomore Otis Polk had his first career double-double in last month's (Jan. 17) Buffalo game, scoring 13 points and grabbing a game-high 10 rebounds ... it marked the fourth time in five games that a Falcon player had recorded a double-double.
LEADERS OF THE MAC
The Falcons continue to lead the Mid-American Conference in several team defensive categories ... BGSU paces the MAC in field-goal percentage defense (40.5%) and blocked shots (4.88 bpg), and BG is second in the league in three-point FG pct. defense (31.7%).
UP NEXT
Following the Ohio game, the Falcons will step outside of conference play for a BracketBusters game at Detroit on Saturday (Feb. 23), with tipoff at 4:05 p.m. at Calihan Hall in the Motor City ... then, BGSU will have a week off from competition, before the final home game of the season, a contest vs. league-leading Kent State on March 1 at venerable Anderson Arena ... the Falcons end the regular season with games at Buffalo (March 4) and Miami (March 9), and the MAC Tournament begins on March 12.
