Falcons Face Rival Toledo In First Crossover Game

Bowling Green Falcons (8-11, 3-2 MAC) at Toledo Rockets (4-15, 1-4 MAC)
Jan. 25, 2011 • 7:30 p.m. • Toledo, Ohio • Savage Arena (7,300)

Radio: Falcon Radio Network (99.1 FM) • Todd Walker (Play-by-Play)/Kirk Cowan (Color)
Television: Sports Time Ohio
Live Stats: via Toledo Website
Online: Stretch Internet (audio)/Live Video
Complete Game Notes (.pdf)

Bowling Green starts MAC West crossover play Tuesday at rival Toledo, beginning at 7:30 p.m., in a game televised statewide on Sports Time Ohio. The Falcons went 3-2 in their first trip through the bruising East Division, while Toledo went 1-4 against the West Division. Bowling Green is one of four teams tied for first in the MAC East, joining Buffalo, Kent State, and Miami. The Falcons went 2-1 against those three teams with two of those contests on the road.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
• When Bowling Green won the MAC regular season crown in 2008-09, the Falcons went 5-1 against the West to spark the team. A year ago, however, BGSU went just 3-3 and never recovered. Crossover play again could play a critical role in winning the MAC East.
• While Bowling Green has won five straight home games, the Falcons have lost their last two road contests, dropping an 80-63 decision at Kent State and a 73-68 result at Akron Saturday. BGSU is just 2-9 away from Anderson Arena this year and 2-7 in true road games.
• For the second consecutive season, Scott Thomas has stepped up once conference play began. He has scored in double figures in all five contests, averaging 14.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 2.4 steals. He is shooting 50 percent from the field and 38 percent from three-point range.
• Bowling Green is one of the top teams in the country in terms of forcing turnovers this year. The Falcons rank seventh in the nation in steals per game and are third in the country in steal percentage, picking up a steal on 14.2 percent of its opponents possessions (only Oregon State and Alabama are better).

THE SERIES
In 160 all-time contests, the series between rivals Bowling Green and Toledo is almost dead even with the Rockets holding a slim 83-77 advantage. The Rockets won the first meeting between the two programs 16-14 during the Falcons' first season in 1915-16. Bowling Green has won three of the last four meetings, with victories in each of the past two years. In 2008-09, the Falcons picked up a 59-54 win in Savage Arena but the Rockets had won nine consecutive home games over Bowling Green prior to that game.

SCOUTING THE TOLEDO ROCKETS
After a tumultuous offseason, Toledo hired Tod Kowalczyk to lead the program and the Rockets are off to a 4-15 start overall and 1-4 in Mid-American Conference play. Toledo's lone conference win was a 73-60 victory at home against Western Michigan and the Rockets are a respectable 4-6 at home. Malcolm Griffin leads the team with 12.7 points per game and is shooting 47 percent from the field. On the whole, the Rockets have struggled to score, averaging just 58.0 points on 40.6 percent shooting and Toledo tends to turn the ball over a lot -- second-worst in the MAC at 15.8 per game.

AKRON SHUTS DOWN FALCONS LATE FOR 63-58 WIN
The Bowling Green men's basketball team built a 48-44 lead with 6:02 to play Saturday night at Akron but the Falcons went scoreless for the next 5:32 and the Zips escaped with a 63-58 victory. Bowling Green battled back from a seven-point halftime deficit to take the lead but was unable to hold on late. Scott Thomas finished with 14 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals, while Jordon Crawford came off the bench for a team-high 16 points to go with seven assists, four rebounds and four steals. Luke Kraus made 3-of-4 three-pointers to finish with 12 points and five rebounds.

TRANSFORMING BGSU BASKETBALL
Bill Frack has watched Bowling Green basketball since 1948 and on Jan. 19, 2011, he showed his appreciation to the program by announcing the formation of an endowment that will exceed $10 million to the program. The gift is the largest in University history and the largest to a men's basketball program in MAC history. When realized, the endowment will be used to build the program to an elite non-BCS level through additional funding for buying home games against quality opponents, competitive coaching salaries, recruiting, strength and conditioning, academic support, and marketing, among other things.

PROGRESSION OF A PROGRAM
In the course of the past four years, the Bowling Green men's basketball program has had its share of headline news. Consider:

• On April 4, 2007, Louis Orr, a former Big East Coach of the Year, was named the new head coach of the men's basketball program.
• On March 1, 2008, Kermit and Mary Lu Stroh announced an $8 million donation as a lead gift for a new basketball arena, named the Stroh Center. The $8 million donation was, at that time, the largest gift in University history. The Stroh Center will open for the 2011-12 season.
• On March 9, 2009, Bowling Green beat Ohio 75-41 to win the MAC regular season championship. Orr was later named MAC Coach of the Year.
• On Sept. 30, 2009, Orr announced the hiring of Dennis Hopson as an assistant coach. Along with Orr, BGSU is one of the few programs in the country to have two college first-team All-Americans and NBA players on staff.
• On Jan. 19, 2011, longtime fan Bill Frack annnounced the formation of a $10 million endowment for the men's basketball program. The $10 million gift is the largest in University history and the largest for a men's basketball program in MAC history.

THE MCELROY FACTOR
When Bowling Green gets strong offensive production from sophomore forward Danny McElroy, the Falcons' chances of winning increase exponentially. The team is 5-0 in McElroy's career when he scores at least eight points, including 4-0 this year. In wins over Ohio Dominican, Florida International, Buffalo, and Miami, he shot 57 percent from the floor and made at least four field goals in each.

THE STAT FILLER
Junior forward Scott Thomas really knows how to fill up a stat sheet. He leads Bowling Green in scoring, rebounding, steals, three-pointers made, and free-throws made, while ranking second on the team in assists. Showing off his versatility, Thomas is the only player in the MAC to rank in the top 10 in the league in both assists and rebounds and he ranks in the top five in the conference in rebounds, steals, defensive rebounds, and minutes played. In conference action only, he ranks in the top three in the league in all of those categories.

PLAYING BIGGER THAN HIS SIZE
Sophomore point guard Jordon Crawford stands just 5-foot-6 but plays a big role for the Falcons. Even though he starts the game on the bench, he has played at least 25 minutes in each of the past six games. He has taken over the team assist lead by posting at least seven in each of the past three games. He also has 11 steals in the last three games and is a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line, while making 50 percent of his 26 field-goal attempts. Crawford has scored at least eight points in seven consecutive games.

WHO NEEDS THREE?
Some teams rely on the three-pointer to win games but Bowling Green is not one of those teams. The Falcons did make seven three-pointers in a win over Ohio Wednesday but Bowling Green made a total of three three-pointers in the three previous wins. In fact, the team snapped a string of 356 consecutive games with at least one three-pointer made by going 0-for-4 in a road win at St. Louis. The team followed that up by going 1-for-5 in a double overtime road victory at Buffalo.

WE MUST PROTECT THIS HOUSE (THAT ROARS)
Anderson Arena has always been a difficult place for opponents and the Falcons are 6-2 so far in 2010-11 with five straight wins. The Falcons are 462-187 (.712) all-time in Anderson Arena and 176-61 (.743) in the past 18 years.

THIEVERY
Bowling Green leads the MAC and ranks seventh nationally in steals, averaging 9.8 per game. The Falcons have had eight games with at least 10 steals and three with at least 15 this year, including a 19-steal performance against Western Kentucky, the most in a game for a MAC school this year. The 19 steals were just one shy of the program record (the team had 20 steals against Heidelberg in 1990) and Scott Thomas had six steals individually in that game. Thomas ranks third in the MAC and 17th nationally with 2.44 steals per game and Jordon Crawford is fourth in the league at 2.11 steals per game. The Falcons rank third in the country in steals per possession, picking up a theft on 14.2 percent of their opponents' possessions (only Oregon State and Alabama are better).

POINTING THE WAY
Point guard play has been critical for the Falcons this year and when BGSU has played well, Joe Jakubowski and Jordon Crawford have played well. Jakubowski and Crawford have combined for 61 assists and just 18 turnovers in the team's eight victories (a 3.39 assist/turnover ratio). In 11 losses, the duo has 53 assists and 42 turnovers (a 1.26 assist/turnover ratio).

SHOOTING THE ROCK
A year ago, Bowling Green led the Mid-American Conference with a 44.4 field goal percentage. After struggling to shoot through the first nine games, the Falcons have again found their rhythm. Bowling Green has shot 48.6 percent over the course of the past 10 games, including identical 27-of-53 shooting nights in four victories. The team is 8-2 when shooting at least 44 percent from the field this year but has been below 35 percent five times (all in the first nine games). The Falcons are 7-3 in the past 10 games and have shot better than 50 percent in six of those wins.

TAKING ADVANTAGE OF CHARITY
Through the course of the year, Bowling Green has been one of the worst free-throw shooting teams in the MAC, but the Falcons have been much better lately. The team did not reach 80 percent from the line in any of the first 15 games but has done that in three of the last four, shooting a combined 32-of-40 (80.0 percent) from the stripe.

NOW TO GET TO THE LINE
While the Falcons have shot the ball better from the free-throw line in the past four contests, the trips to the line have decreased. The team averaged 19.2 free-throw attempts per game in the first 15 contests but are averaging just 10.0 attempts in the last four.

LARGER ROLES
Four players on this year's team are averaging at least 9.5 minutes per game more than they did a year ago. Jordon Crawford, A'uston Calhoun, Luke Kraus, and Danny McElroy combined to play 666 minutes a year ago but have already played 1,588 this season.

STARTING A CAREER
Freshman Cameron Black started the first 17 games of the 2010-11 season before coming off the bench Wednesday against Ohio. He is the first BGSU freshman to start that many games to begin his collegiate career since Anthony Stacey started all 27 games during the 1995-96 season. Stacey went on to have one of the best careers in program history, setting the school record with 1,938 career points.

SETTLING ON A ROTATION
Head Coach Louis Orr has searched for a consistent starting rotation for much of the year. While the bench has been productive, Orr has used seven different starting lineups and 10 of the 11 active scholarship players have picked up at least one starting nod. Scott Thomas and Cameron Black lead the team with 17 starts in 19 games, while Dee Brown and Joe Jakubowski have 15 starts each.

DEFENSE WINS
A year ago, Bowling Green held opponents below 45 percent shooting in 13 of its 14 victories and have done the same in 6-of-8 wins this year. In fact, the Falcons are just 6-29 in Head Coach Louis Orr's first four years when an opponent shoots better than 45 percent, including 2-7 this year. The two victories came against Manhattan (48.9 percent shooting) and Ohio (45.8 percent).

DOWN LOW
Head coach Louis Orr's philosophy is always to play inside-out and the Falcons have continued to do that well in 2010-11. The Falcons have scored at least 20 points in the paint in 16 of the first 19 games after reaching that total in 27-of-30 games a year ago. Bowling Green has outscored its opponents in the paint 12 times (and tied both Florida International and Manhattan) after doing it in 23-of-30 games a year ago. The Falcons scored at least 28 points in the paint in six consecutive games before being held to 18 against Kent State. The team had a season-high 50 in the win at Buffalo, as well as 44 at Milwaukee and 42 at Saint Louis.

ORR SIGNS TEAMMATES IN EARLY SIGNING PERIOD
Head coach Louis Orr announced that Canton Timken High School teammates Jehvon Clarke and Desmond Rorie signed National Letters of Intent during the early signing period to attend Bowling Green for the 2011-12 season. Clarke is a highly-touted 6-foot-1 point guard who averaged 15.5 points, 5.6 assists, and 3.0 steals per game as a junior. Rorie is a 6-9 post player whose best days are ahead of him. He averaged 3.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.7 blocked shots per game as a junior.

WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU?
Junior guard Dee Brown was named MAC Player of the Week Jan. 3 for the second time in his career after averaging 14.5 points in leading the Falcons to wins over UTSA and Saint Louis in a three-day span. Brown scored a team-high 21 in the win at Saint Louis and had eight points, six rebounds, and three steals in the victory over UTSA.

THOMAS NAMED LEGENDS CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT
Scott Thomas was named to the Legends Classic Subregional Round All-Tournament team for his performances against Niagara, Detroit, and Albany. He averaged 9.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.7 assists, while picking up eight steals in the three games.

JAKUBOWSKI NAMED COUSY AWARD CANDIDATE
Bowling Green senior Joe Jakubowski was named as one of 66 candidates for the 2011 Bob Cousy Award, given to the top point guard in the country. Jakubowski was BGSU's starting point guard during the last half of his freshman campaign and then started every game at the position as both a sophomore and junior. He entered the 2010-11 season with 85 career starts and is one of the most experienced point guards in the country entering the year.

THE PRIDE OF FINDLAY, OHIO
Sophomore guard Luke Kraus had a highly decorated prep career at Findlay High School, where he passed Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to become the school's all-time leading scorer. Since Roethlisberger officially changed his hometown to the fictional Corey Rawson, Ohio during the offseason, Kraus is now likely the most famous athlete from Findlay, Ohio. One other Findlay resident is a large contributor to the Bowling Green program as Bill Frack, who just announced a $10 million donation to the program, is a lifelong Findlay resident.

FALCONS PICKED FIFTH
Bowling Green was picked to finish fifth in the Mid-American Conference East Division in the preseason media poll. The Falcons had 42 points to edge Buffalo (32 points) in the division. Defending MAC Tournament champion Ohio was selected first, followed by Kent State, Akron, and Miami.

MAC Preseason Media Poll
East Division - 1. Ohio (128 points/12 first-place votes), 2. Kent State (114 points/8 first-place votes), 3. Akron (104 points/4 first-place votes), 4. Miami (84 points), 5. Bowling Green (42 points), 6. Buffalo (32 points)
West Division - 1. Ball State (124 points/12 first-place votes), 2. Central Michigan (122 points/8 first-place votes), 3. Eastern Michigan (88 points/2 first-place votes), 4. Western Michigan (68 points), 5. Northern Illinois (64 points/2 first-place votes), 6. Toledo (38 points)
Tournament Champion - Ohio (10), Kent State (6), Central Michigan (4), Ball State (2), Akron (2)

THOMAS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-MAC
Scott Thomas was selected as one of five Preseason All-MAC East Division players by vote of the media. Thomas led BGSU in scoring and steals a year ago, ranking second in rebounds, assists, and blocked shots. He averaged 13.2 points per game on the season but improved that average to 15.4 points in conference games and 16.9 points over the final eight contests.

Preseason All-MAC Teams
East Division - Brett McKnight (Akron), Scott Thomas (Bowling Green), Justin Greene (Kent State), Julian Mavunga (Miami), D.J. Cooper (Ohio)
West Division - Jarrod Jones (Ball State), Trey Zeigler (Central Michigan), Brandon Bowdry (Eastern Michigan), Xavier Silas (Northern Illinois), Flenard Whitfield (Western Michigan)

IT WILL STILL ROAR
Known as "The House That Roars", Anderson Arena will play host to the Bowling Green men's basketball team for the final time in 2010-11. The team will move into the brand new Stroh Center next year and will open the building by hosting Howard on Saturday, Nov. 12, 2011. In honor of the final season in Anderson Arena, the Athletics Department is holding a year-long celebration titled "Closing The Doors Of The House That Roars". Here are the key events of the final year in Anderson Arena and the first year in the Stroh Center:

March 4/5, 2011 - All-Anderson Team recognized vs. Buffalo
March 5, 2011 - The B!G Event; One final celebration of Anderson Arena
Sept. 9, 2011 - Volleyball vs. Michigan State; Stroh Center ribbon-cutting
Nov. 12, 2011 - Men's basketball vs. Howard; First game in Stroh Center
Nov. 17, 2011 - Women's basketball vs. Purdue; First game in Stroh Center
March 17-20, 2012 - NCAA Women's Basketball Tourney in Stroh Center

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