Falcons To Battle No. 21 Michigan State On Big Ten Network

Bowling Green Falcons (5-4) at No. 21 Michigan State (8-2)
Dec. 17, 2011 • 7 p.m. • East Lansing, Mich. • Breslin Center (14,759)
Radio: Falcon Radio Network • Todd Walker (Play-by-Play)
Television: Big Ten Network • Greg Kelser/Eric Collins
Live Stats: http://www.msuspartans.com
Online: Stretch Internet (audio)
Complete Game Notes (.pdf)
PURCHASE TICKETS

QUICK HITS
* BGSU looks for its first road win Saturday. The Falcons are 0-3 on the road, but 5-1 at home. Michigan State is 6-0 at home with six sell-outs.
* Bowling Green is 3-9 all-time against Michigan State.
* This is the second of a three-game set between BGSU and Michigan State. The Falcons played in East Lansing last year and the two teams will play in the Stroh Center in 2012-13.
* BGSU is playing the second game of a five-game road swing. The Falcons will not play a home game for a one month stretch.
* A'uston Calhoun averaged 22.5 points during two games last week. He has scored in double-figures in four consecutive contests.
* Scott Thomas needs just 27 points and six steals to become the first player in program history with 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 100 three-pointers and 150 steals in a career.
* BGSU has shot at least 53 percent from the floor in three of the past four games, including each of the last two.
* The Falcons have had more turnovers than their opponents only one time this season and rank 23rd in the country in turnover margin.
* With three steals against Valparaiso, Scott Thomas moved into ninth place in career steals at BGSU.
* Michigan State has climbed into the top 25 at No. 21 in the Associated Press Poll and No. 23 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll.
* BGSU scored 58 points in the paint against Malone and followed that up with 44 more against Valparaiso. A'uston Calhoun, Cameron Black, and Torian Oglesby are a combined 30-of-40 (75 percent) from the floor in those two games.

FALCONS FACE NO. 21 MICHIGAN STATE ON ROAD
Bowling Green plays its first ranked opponent since the Falcons faced No. 6 Michigan State a year ago as the team travels to East Lansing for the second consecutive season. Bowling Green has historically been a giant killer against the Spartans, going 3-2 when facing a ranked Michigan State team. The Falcons are 0-7 all-time when facing an unranked MSU squad.

THE SERIES
As noted above, Bowling Green is 3-2 all-time when facing a ranked Michigan State team, but 0-7 when the Spartans are not in the top 25 for a 3-9 all-time record. The series began with a 96-67 Spartan win on Dec. 3, 1959 and the teams have played one time in the postseason. Michigan State notched a 72-71 win during the 1983 National Invitation Tournament (NIT).

SCOUTING MICHIGAN STATE
Since losing its first two games of the season to North Carolina and Duke, Michigan State has reeled off eight straight wins to climb into the top 25 at No. 21 in the Associated Press Poll and No. 23 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. The Spartans are led by All-American candidate Draymond Green, a 6-feet-7 senior forward, who is averaging 16.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. Keith Appling, a 6-1 sophomore guard, follows with 11.6 points and 3.0 assists, while 6-0 freshman guard Travis Trice is coming off the bench to shoot 46 percent on three-point attempts. Michigan State dominates the glass, ranking sixth in the country with a +11.0 rebounding margin. MSU head coach Tom Izzo is 391-163 in his 17th season coaching the Spartans.

LAST GAME: CALHOUN, CRAWFORD LIGHT IT UP IN LOSS TO VALPO
A'uston Calhoun scored a season-high 25 points and Jordon Crawford added a career-best 22 points but Bowling Green lost to Valparaiso 82-79 Saturday on the road. The Falcons battled back from a 12-point second-half deficit to take the lead on 10 different occasions down the stretch, the last on a Calhoun jumper with 1:59 to play. The Cruasaders, though, made 3-of-4 free-throws on the next possession and held off the Falcons in the final minute.

THE FALCONS AGAINST TOP 25 TEAMS
While Bowling Green has won four consecutive home games against nationally ranked opponents, it has been almost 22 years since the Falcons won a road game against a top 25 team. That victory came on Dec. 18, 1989 when Bowling Green beat this Michigan State program 81-79 in East Lansing. Bowling Green is 1-2 against Top 25 teams under head coach Louis Orr, defeating No. 23 Kent State 89-83 on March 1, 2008. Since the Associated Press began conducting a poll on Jan. 20, 1949, the Falcons have a record of 22-49 against nationally-ranked foes.

WHERE MY FALCONS AT?
Bowling Green will play away from the Stroh Center for a month, heading on the road for five games in five different states. According to Google Maps, the BGSU men's basketball team will travel a total of 6,442 miles during the road trip, or slightly more than a quarter of the way around the planet.

STAT STUFFER
While Scott Thomas has proven to be the team's most consistent scoring threat this year, he will also go down as one of the most versatile players in program history. A two-time All-MAC honorable mention performer, Thomas was the only player in the conference to rank in the top 10 in both rebounding and assists a year ago. He needs just 27 more points and six more steals to become the first player in BGSU history to have 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 150 steals, and 100 three-pointers. On top of that, he needs only four assists for 250 in his career.

DEFENDING ON THE PERIMETER
Since George Washington made 11-of-17 three-pointers on the final day of a three-game-in-three-day stretch for the Falcons, Bowling Green has defended the three-point shot well. In the past four games, only Temple has shot better than 30 percent from three-point range and the combined long-range percentage of those opponents is just 23.8 percent (19-of-80).

WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU?
Senior Dee Brown has always been an integral scorer for the Falcons, but this year he has taken on a new role, serving as the point guard when regular starter Jordon Crawford is getting a breather. In the team's past three wins (over Detroit, Temple and Malone), Brown has 15 assists with just one turnover. He posted a career high eight against Detroit and then followed that up with six when he started at point guard for the first time in his career against Temple. On the year, Brown has a solid 2.5 assist/turnover ratio.

TAKING CARE OF THE ROCK
Bowling Green ranks second in the Mid-American Conference and 23rd nationally in turnover margin, averaging 4.56 less turnovers per game than their opponents. The Falcons are only turning the ball over 12.3 times per game, best in the conference, and are forcing 16.9 turnovers by opponents, fourth-best in the league. BGSU has turned the ball over 11 times or less in four of the past five contests.

CRAIG'S LIST
Craig Sealey is beginning to fulfill the potential he flashed a year ago as a freshman. In the first two games of the season, he posted consecutive double-digit scoring efforts for the first time in his career. Sealey played a career-high 30 minutes against George Washington and is averaging 6.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game a year after averaging 2.4 points and 1.1 rebounds. In fact, he has already scored more points and grabbed twice as many rebounds as he did a year ago.

THEY'RE ON FIRE
Bowling Green has shot at least 53 percent from the floor in back-to-back games. The last time the Falcons shot that high in back-to-back games was late in the 2008-09 season. BGSU shot 60 percent in a home win against Ohio to close out the regular season and then shot 60.5 percent in a MAC Tournament quarterfinal victory over the same Ohio squad.

CALHOUN GETS INTO THE RECORD BOOK
By going 9-for-9 from the field in Wednesday's win over Malone, A'uston Calhoun etched his name into the record book for making the most shots without a miss in program history. Brent Klassen and Erik Marschall shared the previous record at 8-for-8.

IMPROVING EFFICIENCY
While Scott Thomas does just about everything on the floor for the Falcons, the area in which he most needed to improve coming into the 2011-12 season was shooting from three-point range and the free-throw line. A year ago, Thomas shot 29 percent on three-pointers and 59 percent from the charity line. This year, he has made 10-of-24 three-pointers (41.7 percent) and 21-of-27 free-throws (77.8 percent). He is tied for seventh in the MAC in three-point percentage.

JORDON IS SCORIN'
Junior point guard Jordon Crawford started the first five games of the season and then came off the bench for the next two. Since being moved back into the starting lineup for the last two contests, Crawford is averaging 13.0 points and shooting 59 percent from the floor. He scored a career-high 22 points in Saturday's loss to Valparaiso.

A NEW HOLIDAY TRADITION
BGSU men's basketball will play on New Year's Day for the second consecutive year as the Falcons play at Texas San Antonio on Jan. 1. The Falcons are 4-1 all-time when breaking in the new year, including last year's 67-61 win at St. Louis. Bowling Green is just one of eight NCAA Division I programs playing on New Year's Day in both 2011 and 2012 (joining Syracuse, DePaul, Marquette, Southern Illinois, Illinois State, Northern Iowa, and Evansville).

THE BIG APOSTROPHE
A'uston Calhoun's junior season began much like his sophomore campaign did, but he began to find his form much quicker than a year ago. Calhoun averaged just 7.0 points and 4.0 rebounds over the first 10 games in 2010-11, shooting 31 percent from the field. But in the last 23 games, he averaged 15.0 points and 6.3 rebounds, while shooting 47 percent from the floor. Through the first two games this year, Calhoun averaged just 2.5 points per game. In the last seven games, he is averaging a team-best 15.3 points, while shooting 49.4 percent from the floor.

1,000 POINT SCORERS
In BGSU basketball history, 37 different players have scored 1,000 points in their careers. This year both Scott Thomas and Dee Brown could reach that plateau. Only six times in BGSU history have two players reached 1,000 career points in the same year. Thomas currently has 973 points and Brown has 804.

DOWN LOW
Head coach Louis Orr's philosophy is always to play inside-out and the Falcons have done that well during his tenure. This year, the Falcons have scored at least 20 points in the paint in 8-of-9 games with a season-high 58 against Malone. In fact, the 58 points in the paint represents the most in a game in Orr's tenure. In 2009-10 and 2010-11, the Falcons scored 20 or more points in the paint in 57-of-63 games.

THE STROH CENTER
BGSU played its first regular season game ever in the Stroh Center against Howard. After 51 years in venerable Anderson Arena, the Falcons opened one of the newest facilities in the country. Here are the NCAA Division I institutions opening new facilities this year.

BALANCED PRODUCTION
Bowling Green is getting offensive production from its entire lineup as seven players or more have scored in every game this year. Against Malone, all 14 players who saw court time scored. Against both Austin Peay and Detroit, 10 different Falcons scored. Against George Washington and Western Kentucky, nine different players got into the scoring column.

PARKER/HOLMES SIGN WITH THE FALCONS
Louis Orr announced the signing of Spencer Parker and Richaun Holmes during this year's early signing period. Parker is from West Bloomfield, Mich. and is playing for Fishburne Military School in Waynesboro, Va. this year. He will have four years of eligibility remaining. Holmes is from Lockport, Ill. and is playing this year at Moraine Community College. As a full qualifier out of high school, he will transfer to Bowling Green and be able to play immediately with three years of eligibility remaining.

FOREIGN TOUR
The BGSU men's basketball team got the opportunity to travel to Toronto for a summer foreign tour and play three games. The Falcons went 2-1 on the trip, gaining experience and the opportunity for extra practices.

50 PERCENT PROVIDES BETTER THAN A 50/50 CHANCE
When Bowling Green shoots at least 50 percent from the floor, the Falcons have an excellent chance of winning the game. The Falcons went 8-1 a year ago in such instances and are 31-6 in head coach Louis Orr's four years when make at least half of their shots. This year, Bowling Green shot over 50 percent in wins over Temple and Malone, but lost to Valparaiso despite shooting 53.6 percent.

THE NEW HOUSE
Anderson Arena provided BGSU with an excellent home court advantage as the Falcons went 466-190 (.710) all-time in The House That Roars. Bowling Green will attempt to build a new home court advantage after going 10-5 in Anderson Arena a year ago. This year, the Falcons are 5-1 (.833) in the Stroh Center.

FALCONS TO PLAY ON REGIONAL/NATIONAL TELEVISION
BGSU will play a minimum of five games on ESPNU, SportsTime Ohio, or the Big Ten Network this year. The Falcons played on ESPNU at Georgia on Nov. 13 and will play three games on STO (Jan.7 vs. Ohio, Jan. 28 at Eastern Michigan, Feb. 4 vs. Northern Illinois). Bowling Green will also play on the Big Ten Network Dec. 17 at Michigan State. On top of those contests, there are approximately a dozen other opportunities for STO or ESPN to choose the Falcons for television games.

DEFENSE WINS
Over the course of the past three years, Bowling Green has held its opponent to 45 percent shooting or worse in 28 of the Falcons' 33 wins. A year ago, Bowling Green went just 2-12 when an opponent shot at least 45 percent, posting victories against only Manhattan (48.9 percent shooting) and Ohio (45.8 percent). This year, the Falcons have already equaled that win total and are 2-3 when an opponent shoots over 45 percent. Bowling Green actually won for the first time in Louis Orr's tenure when a team shot 50 percent as Austin Peay scored at a 51 percent clip, but the Falcons won 82-72.

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON?
Head coach Louis Orr was an All-American at Syracuse and he will have the opportunity to help his son, freshman Chauncey Orr, grow into a strong collegiate player. Chauncey was a first team all-state player at Bowling Green High School.

FIRST TEAM ALL-STATE
Bowling Green has brought in an Associated Press Division I First Team All-State player Ohio first team all-state player for three consecutive years. Junior Luke Kraus was named first team all-state at Findlay High School in 2008-09. Redshirt freshman Anthony Henderson earned the honor at Toledo Start High School in 2009-10 and Chauncey Orr was named to the team from Bowling Green High School in 2010-11. BGSU is the only school in the country with three players from the AP Division I First Team All-State teams from the past three years on the roster. Miami (Ohio) and Ohio State each has two.

FALCONS PICKED SIXTH
Bowling Green was picked to finish sixth in the Mid-American Conference East Division in the preseason media poll. Defending MAC champion Kent State was selected to win the East while Western Michigan was selected to win the West.

MAC Preseason Media Poll
East Division - 1. Kent State (132 points/16 first-place votes), 2. Akron (104 points/8 first-place votes), 3. Ohio (94 points), 4. Miami (80 points), 5. Buffalo (62 points), 6. Bowling Green (32 points)
West Division - 1. Western Michigan (128 points/14 first-place votes), 2. Ball State (111 points/9 first-place votes), 3. Central Michigan (92 points/1 first-place vote), 4. Toledo (76 points), 5. Northern Illinois (59 points), 6. Eastern Michigan (38 points)
Tournament Champion - Kent State 12, Akron 6, Ball State 3, Western Michigan 2, Central Michigan 1

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