Falcons Head To Kent State Looking For 2-0 MAC Start

Bowling Green Falcons (6-9, 1-0 MAC) at Kent State Golden Flashes (9-6, 0-1 MAC)
Jan. 11, 2011 • 7:00 p.m. • Kent, Ohio • M.A.C. Center (6,327)

Radio: Falcon Radio Network (99.1 FM) • Todd Walker (Play-by-Play)
Television: None

Live Stats: http://livestats.prestosports.com/kentstate/
Online: Stretch Internet (audio)
Complete Game Notes (.pdf)

Bowling Green, Ohio - Bowling Green will head on the road for its second consecutive MAC contest to open the season, facing one of the preseason favorites Kent State. The opening tip is set for 7 p.m. as the Falcons look for their fifth consecutive win. Bowling Green has not won its first two league road games since the 2002-03 team won at Northern Illinois and at Kent State. In fact, the last time a BGSU played its first two league games on the road and won them both was the 1982-83 MAC regular season championship team that went 21-9 overall and 15-3 in league play.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
• Bowling Green has won four games in a row and five of its last six games. The Falcons won four in a row a year ago early in non-conference play but have not won five straight since winning six consecutive MAC games on the way to the 2008-09 regular season crown.
• Since losing five true road games to start the year (and seven straight losses away from Anderson Arena including neutral site games), the Falcons have won two straight on the road, beating Saint Louis 67-61 and Buffalo 74-71 in double overtime. The Falcons have not won three consecutive games, all on the road, since the 2000-01 team beat Miami, Ohio, and Buffalo in succession on their home floors.
• What's the biggest difference between this team from the 1-8 start to the 5-1 run that followed? Shooting. BGSU failed to shoot better than 45 percent in any of its first nine games and has not shot below 49 percent in a game since then. The team is shooting 50.9 percent from the floor in the last six games
• Bowling Green is avoiding the three-point shot like the plague. The Falcons broke a streak of 356 consecutive games with at least one three-pointer when the team went 0-for-4 at Saint Louis and then BGSU was just 1-of-5 at Buffalo. Amazingly, the Falcons still won both of those games.

THE SERIES
Bowling Green has not beaten any team more often than it has beaten Kent State, holding an 80-64 lead in the all-time series, dating all the way back to 1917. A year ago, the two teams won a pair of six-point games on the opposition's home floor and the programs have split the season series in each of the past three years. Few teams have had more success in recent years inside the M.A.C. Center than Bowling Green. KSU lost is 98-19 inside the arena in the past eight years but four of those defeats came to Bowling Green.

SCOUTING THE KENT STATE GOLDEN FLASHES
In the preseason, Kent State was picked to finish second in the MAC East Division and had the second-most votes to win the MAC Tournament. The Golden Flashes did not disappoint in non-conference play, going 9-5 and posting the best RPI in the conference. Kent State, though, lost a hard-fought conference opener at Akron and needs a victory to avoid an 0-2 start. Justin Greene is one of the conference's premier players and averages 16.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game, while shooting 53 percent from the floor and blocking 22 shots. Carlton Guyton is the team's second leading scorer but he has missed the last four games due to a suspension. His availability for Tuesday night's game is unknown. Rodriguez Sherman chips in 12.5 points per game and is a dangerous shooter (43 percent from three-point range) and a solid distributor (51 assists). As a team, KSU has been winning with defense, holding opponents to 40.4 percent shooting and 30.2 percent shooting from three-point range.

FALCONS OUTLAST BUFFALO IN DOUBLE OT, 74-71
Bowling Green won its fourth consecutive game and second straight road game, defeating Buffalo in double overtime 74-71 in the MAC opener for both teams. Danny McElroy broke open a tie by powering in a basket inside with 24 seconds left in the second overtime to give the Falcons the win. Scott Thomas had 19 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double and A'uston Calhoun had a game-high 20 points to go with nine rebounds. Cameron Black had 11 rebounds and McElroy added 13 points, two shy of his career high. Bowling Green controlled the boards, 46-37, and held Buffalo to 29 percent shooting after the Bulls shot 58 percent from the floor in the first half. BGSU overcame a six-point halftime deficit.

LEADING MAN
Last year, Scott Thomas led the Falcons in scoring and steals, ranking second in rebounds, assists, and blocked shots. This year, he's taking it a step further by leading the Falcons in rebounding, assists, steals, three-pointers made, and free-throws made, while ranking second in scoring. He ranks in the top five in the MAC in rebounds, steals, defensive rebounds, and double-doubles, while ranking in the top 10 in assists, assist/turnover ratio, offensive rebounds, and minutes.

WHO NEEDS THREE?
Few teams have avoided attempting three-pointers the way Bowling Green has lately. The Falcons had a string of 356 consecutive games with at least one three-pointer snapped when they went 0-for-4 in a road win over Saint Louis. The team followed that up by going just 1-for-5 in another road victory at Buffalo.

THIEVERY
Bowling Green leads the MAC and ranks eighth nationally in steals, averaging 10.1 per game. The Falcons have had seven 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 18th nationally with 2.43 steals per game and Jordon Crawford is sixth in the league at 1.80 steals per game. Dee Brown and Joe Jakubowski are also averaging at least a steal per game. The Falcons rank fourth in the country in steals per possession, picking up a theft on 14.3 percent of their opponents' possessions (only Oregon State, Louisville and Morehead State 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 40 assists and just 14 turnovers in the team's six victories (a 2.86 assist/turnover ratio). In nine losses, the duo has 40 assists and 33 turnovers (a 1.21 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 50.9 percent over the course of the past six games, including identical 27-of-53 shooting nights in three victories. The team is 6-1 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). In MAC games only, Bowling Green is shooting a league-best 51.7 percent from the field.

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.

LARGER ROLES
Four players on this year's team are averaging at least eight 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 1,218 this season.

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 13 of the first 15 games after reaching that total in 27-of-30 games a year ago. Bowling Green has outscored its opponents in the paint 10 times (and tied both Florida International and Manhattan) after doing it in 23-of-30 games a year ago. The Falcons have scored at least 28 points in the paint in each of the past six games, including a season-high 50 in the win at Buffalo, as well as 44 at Milwaukee and 42 at Saint Louis.

STARTING A CAREER
Freshman Cameron Black has started the first 15 games of the 2010-11 season. 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. While Black is not scoring at the same rate Stacey did as a freshman, the rest of his statistics compare favorably.

DEFENSE WINS
With the improved offense over the past six games, the work the team has done defensively has been overlooked. But the Falcons have held each of their last three opponents below 41 percent shooting and a combined 39.0 percent shooting. A year ago, Bowling Green held opponents below 45 percent shooting in 13 of its 14 victories and have done the same in 5-of-6 wins this year. In fact, the Falcons are just 5-28 in Head Coach Louis Orr's first four years when an opponent shoots better than 45 percent, including 1-6 this year. The lone victory in that situation this year came against Manhattan as the Jaspers shot 48.9 percent.

SETTLING ON A ROTATION
Head Coach Louis Orr used six different starting lineups in the first seven games of the season and he searched for combinations that would be effective on the floor. But he has now used the same starting lineup for four consecutive games and seven of the last nine games total. Only freshman Cameron Black has started every game so far for the Falcons.

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.

WE MUST PROTECT THIS HOUSE (THAT ROARS)
Anderson Arena has always been a difficult place for opponents and the Falcons are 4-2 so far in 2010-11. The Falcons are 460-187 (.711) all-time in Anderson Arena and 174-61 (.740) in the past 18 years.

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.

EXPERIENCE AT THE POINT
Most experts agree that an experienced point guard can play a huge role in a team's success in college basketball. If that's the case, then Bowling Green could be primed for a big season. Point guard Joe Jakubowski enters the 2010-11 season with 85 games started, 10th most in the country.

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.

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)

THE WALK-ONS
Head Coach Louis Orr accepted two walk-ons to his program this year and both are seniors in eligibility. Wiley Roberts is a feel-good story who served as a team manager for the past two years at Bowling Green. Mike Dabney spent the 2006-07 season at NAIA Concordia University in Ann Arbor, Mich., where he posted the third-highest single-season blocked shot total in program history with 56 rejections. Roberts saw his first collegiate action by playing one minute in the team's victory over Ohio Dominican and Dabney got his first BGSU action with one minute against Michigan. Dabney played a large role in the team's game against Detroit, picking up five points, four rebounds, a blocked shot, and a steal in 13 minutes of action.

NAME DROPPING
BGSU freshman Craig Sealey was a part of two AAU National Championship teams with the All-Ohio Red Team in 2006 and 2007. Sealey's teams included Ohio State freshmen Jared Sullinger, J.D. Weatherspoon, and Aaron Craft, along with Michigan State freshman Adreian Payne.

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:

Jan. 16, 2011 - Men's basketball throwback game vs. Miami (Ohio)
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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