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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Grind Out Win Over Northern Illinois
January 31, 2009 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 31, 2009
DeKalb, Ill. -
Coach Orr Postgame Press Conference Audio
The Bowling Green men's basketball team used an 11-0 run late in the second half to break a 53-53 tie and the Falcons extended their winning streak to three with a 69-61 win over Northern Illinois Saturday.
The three-game winning streak is the team's longest of the season and the Falcons have improved to 11-9 overall and 4-3 in Mid-American Conference play. Northern Illinois fell to 6-13 overall and 2-5 in the MAC.
Bowling Green took the lead early in the second half and never trailed over the final 17 minutes of play but the Huskies erased a deficit with eight straight points to tie the game at 53-53 with 6:50 to play.
On BGSU's next possession, Joe Jakubowski scored on a runner that sparked the team's 11-point spurt that put the game away. Otis Polk and Darryl Clements combined for the next nine points, including Polk's three-point play on a dunk that ended the run. The Falcons made 5-of-6 free-throws the rest of the way to ice the game.
Nate Miller ended just one rebound from a double-double, posting 15 points and nine rebounds, along with four assists. Clements added 12 points and six boards and Polk finished with 10 points, posting two straight double-digit scoring games for the first time in his career. Brian Moten became the 10th player in BG history with 100 made three-pointers when he knocked one down early in the first half. He added his 101st later in the game and finished with nine points.
Bowling Green held Northern Illinois to just 39 percent from the floor in the second half. The Huskies entered the game as the worst free-throw shooting team in the MAC and made only 5-of-14 free-throws for the game.
The Falcons stayed close in the first half by making 6-of-10 three-pointers. Northern Illinois jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead but BG tied the score at 11-11 and the two teams battled back-and-forth for the remainder of the half until Northern Illinois went into the locker room with a 35-34 advantage.
The Huskies' Sean Kowal and Ante Dzepina gave the Falcons fits in the opening 20 minutes, combining to go 6-for-7 with 12 points. Bowling Green did a much better job in the second half, holding them to 4-of-9 shooting.
Bowling Green hosts Western Michigan Wednesday at 7 p.m. looking to extend its winning streak to four games.
