Falcons to Battle Northern Illinois in the First Round of MAC Tournament

Monday, March 10

DeKalb, Ill.

8 PM

Bowling Green State University

Northern Illinois (First Round)

Photo by: Bianca Garza, BGSU Marketing and Communications

Falcons to Battle Northern Illinois in the First Round of MAC Tournament

March 10, 2014 | Men's Basketball

By: by Kevin Davis, Assistant Director for Athletic Communications

Bowling Green (12-19, 6-12 MAC) vs. Northern Illinois (14-16, 8-10 MAC)
Monday, March 10, 2014; 8:00 p.m. ET
NIU Convocation Center / DeKalb, Ill.
LIVE STATS
LIVE AUDIO
LIVE VIDEO
COMPLETE GAME NOTES (PDF)

2013-14 MAC STANDINGS
EAST TEAMS	MAC	OVERALL
Buffalo	13-5	19-9
Akron	12-6	20-11
Ohio	11-7	21-10
Miami	8-10	12-17
Kent State	7-11	16-15
Bowling Green	6-12	12-19
WEST TEAMS	MAC	OVERALL
Toledo	14-4	26-5
Western Michigan	14-4	21-9
Eastern Michigan	10-8	18-13
Northern Illinois	8-10	14-16
Central Michigan	3-15	10-20
Ball State	2-16	5-24

LAY-UPS (SIZED FOR YOUR TWITTER ADDICTION)
* NIU defeated BGSU in a defensive battle 45-36 on Jan. 12 in Bowling Green.
* BGSU's 36 points versus NIU earlier this season is the lowest total points in a single game for the Falcons on the year.
* BGSU is 4-10 overall in true road contests this season.
* BGSU is winless thus far this March with losses to Akron, Ohio and Buffalo.
* The Falcons last MAC Tournament win came back in the 2011 championship event, where BGSU defeated Northern Illinois 74-54 in the first round.
* Richaun Holmes (159) is tied with Otis Polk for the most career blocks in BGSU history.
* Cameron Black has amassed 614 career rebounds to place ninth overall for career boards in BGSU history.
* Richaun Holmes broke his previous BGSU record of 73 for the most blocks in a single-season earlier this year and now has 86 swats on the year.
* Cameron Black has totaled 52 blocks this season which ranks fourth in BGSU's single-season block history.
* BGSU as a program is only one wins away from win number 1,300 (1,299).
* Bowling Green is in its 99th season of basketball this year.

LAST TIME THEY MET
Date: Jan. 12, 2014
Location: Bowling Green, Ohio (Stroh Center)
Score: NIU, 45-36
Notes: Richaun Holmes had 12 points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots and freshman guard Zack Denny made his Bowling Green debut, but the BGSU men's basketball team shot just 29 percent from the field in a 45-36 loss to Northern Illinois Saturday evening at the Stroh Center. Holmes had at least five blocks in a game for the fourth time this year and Denny gave the Falcons something it badly needs, a deadly outside shooter, but the NIU defense was too strong down the stretch. Denny played 19 minutes in his debut after injury kept him out of the first 14 games and he showed his potential early in the second half. After Bowling Green trailed 26-18 at the break, the Falcons held Northern Illinois scoreless for the first five minutes of the second half. Denny's first career points, a long three-pointer from the top of the key, tied the score at 26-26. After a Northern Illinois three-pointer put the Huskies back ahead, Denny made another one from almost the same spot to tie it at 29-29. Holmes then added back-to-back dunks and Bowling Green led 33-30 with 12:05 to play. Over the course of the next nine minutes, BGSU held Northern Illinois to just four points during a defensive stretch that could have put the game away. The Falcons, though, got only a Jehvon Clarke lay-up during the stretch and led 35-34. With 3:01 to play, Aksel Bolin hit a three-pointer to give the Huskies the lead for good and NIU's Travon Baker followed with a lay-up to make it 39-35. After Denny made a free-throw to get the Falcons within three, Baker knocked down a three-pointer to ice the game. While Holmes was the only Falcon to score in double-figures, Clarke added nine points, five assists and four rebounds. Denny finished with seven points but the Falcons shot only 29 percent from the field. NIU was not much better, finishing at 33 percent but the Huskies generated more opportunities with a 40-29 rebounding edge and four fewer turnovers than Bowling Green's 17.

BGSU vs. NIU SERIES HISTORY
Bowling Green is 30-26 versus NIU all-time with the two teams first meeting
coming back in 1965. The Falcons have won seven of the last 10 over the Huskies since the 2007-08 season, including a MAC Championship Tournament win over NIU in the first round back in 2011.

LAST 10 MEETINGS (BGSU leads 7-3)
   Date                        Location                        Result
   Jan. 12, 2014        at Bowling Green          L, 36-45
   Feb. 6, 2013          at Northern Illinois       W, 57-41
   Feb. 4, 2012          at Bowling Green         W, 65-40
   March 8, 2011       at Bowling Green #    W, 74-54
   Feb. 2, 2011          at Northern Illinois       W, 73-70
   Feb. 10, 2010        at Bowling Green         W, 73-69
   Jan. 31, 2009        at Northern Illinois       W, 69-61
   Jan. 27, 2008        at Bowling Green       W, 63-59
   Feb. 7, 2007         at Northern Illinois         L, 51-73
   Jan. 11, 2006        at Bowling Green          L, 74-75

   # MAC Championship Tournament game

LAST TIME OUT
Buffalo, N.Y. – Bowling Green State University senior center Cameron Black posted a career-high 19 points to go along with 11 rebounds, yet the Falcons could not overcome 16 turnovers and a hot-shooting Buffalo squad on Senior Day in an 88-65 loss at Buffalo in the two teams' regular season finale Saturday afternoon in Alumni Arena. BGSU's 16 turnovers led to 25 Buffalo points, as the Bulls also drained eight three-pointers and was 18-of-23 (78.3 percent) from the free throw line to hand the Falcons the loss. Richaun Holmes' tallied three blocks to place him in a tie with Otis Polk as the career blocks leader in BGSU history with 159 rejections. Buffalo's Javon McCrea led the way with a career-high 34 points, as he was 13-of-18 from the floor and 7-of-10 from the free throw line for the game. Guard Jarryn Skeete added 11 points off the bench for the Bulls, while senior guard Joshua Freelove had 10 points in the win. The Falcons weathered an early three-point storm from the Bulls to start the contest, as back-to-back baskets from Black and Holmes in the paint pushed the visitors in orange out to a 7-6 lead with 16:46 to go in the opening half. The two teams would trade the lead back and forth four more times over the next several minutes, as a jump-hook in the lane from Black at the 14:11 mark gave the Falcons a one point lead at 12-11. The Bulls then went to its senior in McCrea as the forward hit back-to-back mid-range jumpers to kick start a 9-2 run to put the home team in front by six at 20-14 with 10:32 to go in the first half of play. An old-fashion three-point play from Parker, followed by two straight baskets from Sealey, put the Falcons within two at 23-21, only to see the Bulls use the free throw line and the three-point arc to push its lead to seven at 28-21 at the eight minute mark of the first half. BGSU was able to get baskets from Black, Anthony Henderson and Holmes over the rest of the half, however, the defense could not stop McCrea, as the favorite for the MAC Player of the Year, scored nine of the final 11 points of the half for the Bulls to lead Buffalo to a 41-31 lead at the halftime break. Bowling Green struggled to protect the ball on the offensive end, coughing up the ball nine times over the final 20 minutes of play and failed to get a series of stops to get back into the contest in the second half. Buffalo opened up the second half the exact way they managed to pull away in the first, as a jump shot from McCrea and a three-pointer from Freelove pushed the Bulls' lead to 13 at 46-33 with 18:30 to play. BGSU battled back to cut the Buffalo lead to nine on back-to-back buckets from Black and Clarke at 48-39, only to see the home team take advantage of two Falcon turnovers which jump-started a 13-1 run over the next eight minutes to run out to a 21 point lead at 61-40 on two straight McCrea free throws. Down 21 with 10:44 to play, BGSU was able to use a 9-1 spurt late in the half to cut the Buffalo lead to 13 at 71-58 on a fast break layup from Henderson, yet the Bulls refused to take its foot off the gas pedal and pulled away down the stretch to pick up the 88-65 home win. BGSU was 26-of-57 (45.6 percent) from the field overall, including shooting 13-of-26 (50 percent) in the second half of play, yet struggled on the defensive end where the Bulls shot 31-of-63 (49.2 percent) and 17-of-31 (54.8 percent) in the second half.

ON THE ROAD FOR THE FIRST ROUND
For the first time in four years and since the 2010 MAC Championship Tournament, the Falcons will be on the road for the first round of the week long event. BGSU was last on the road in the first round back in 2010, when the Falcons lost at Western Michigan 75-73. BGSU has hosted a first round game in each of the past three years.

RECORD IN TRUE ROAD BOUTS IN THE MAC CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Falcons have struggled on the road in true road contests in its MAC Championship Tournament history. BGSU has played six true road contests in its MAC Tournament history, posting a 2-4 record overall.

BGSU VERSUS NIU IN THE CONFERENCE TOURNEY
The Falcons are 2-2 versus NIU in MAC Championship Tournament action, including having posted a 74-54 win at home over the Huskies in the first round of the 2011 championship tournament. BGSU's lone other win over NIU in the conference tournament came back in 1980, a 78-63 win over the Huskies in the semifinals.

LOOKING TO STOP THE FIRST ROUND SKID
Bowling Green is looking to stop its first round skid, as the Falcons have lost two straight first round MAC Tournament contests (2013 & 2012) and five of its last six games that have come in the first round.

COMING IN AS THE #10 SEED
This year's number 10 seed is the lowest seed that the Falcons have had going into the MAC Championship Tournament since they were the number 10 seed for the 2010 tournament. BGSU has been no higher then the No. 7 seed in each of the last three years.

1300
BGSU as a program is only one win shy of win number 1,300. Bowling Green, who first started a men's basketball program in 1915-16, has posted 1,299 wins in the program's 99 years of basketball history.

ROAD TRIUMPHS IN 2013-14
Bowling Green has posted four road wins this season - at Morehead State, at Western Michigan, at Ohio and at Ball State - which is four times as many true road wins than last season. Prior to last season, the Falcons won only four road games in each of the previous two years.

REJECTION HISTORY IN BGSU CAREER RECORD BOOKS
Richaun Holmes has recently tied former Falcon Otis Polk for the most career blocks in BGSU men's basketball history with 159 career swats. Black is currently in third-place all-time on the career blocks list with his 154 career blocks.

BREAKING INTO THE TOP-10 IN BGSU SINGLE SEASON HISTORY
The Falcons' Anthony Henderson has already broke into BGSU's top-10 single season steals record book with 66 thefts, placing him in sixth overall, yet Jehvon Clarke is right on the edge of the top-10 himself with 59 steals this season.

HOLMES SETS NEW SINGLE SEASON BLOCKS RECORD - AGAIN
Junior forward Richaun Holmes recorded his 74th block of the season at the 10:55 mark of the second half at Miami on Feb. 23, to set a new BGSU single-season record for blocked shots in a season. Holmes' surpassed the old BGSU record of 73 blocks set just last year by Holmes himself. He currently has 86 blocks this season.

CLOSE CONTESTS
This season, BGSU has had 12 games decided by five points or less, including eight of the Falcons' 18 MAC contests this season. In fact, five of the Falcons last nine games - vs. Akron, at Kent State, at Ball State, at home versus Toledo and at Miami - all saw the outcome come down to the final seconds of the game.

FOUR SCORES ... IN MAC PLAY
The Falcons had four players average double digit points this year in MAC play. Richaun Holmes (12.8), Jehvon Clarke (12.7), Spencer Parker (12.4), and Anthony Henderson (10.7) all averaged double figures in BGSU's 18 MAC games.

LAST SECOND GUT WRENCHING LOSSES
In four of the last seven Falcon losses (Akron, 65-63; Kent State, 62-61; Toledo, 60-58; Miami, 55-52), Bowling Green lost in the closing seconds of the game with the outcome looming until the final possession was over. Akron hit the go-ahead shot with just over two seconds to play to defeat BGSU 65-63 on Feb. 9, while Kent State hit a three-pointer in the final second to escape the Falcons on Feb. 12, 62-61. On Feb. 20, Toledo hit a baseline jumper with 3.2 seconds on the game clock to defeat the Falcons 60-58. Miami hit two free throws down the stretch to hold off BGSU for a 55-52 win on Feb. 23, after BGSU had cut the lead to one with less than a minute to play in the game.

FIVE MINUTE WARNING: FALCONS CLUTCH SHOOTING
The Falcons as a team are shooting 44.2 percent from the floor and 64.1 percent from the free throw line in clutch situations this season - For these purposes, clutch is defined as (a) the final five minutes of a game when the scoring differential is single digits at the time the shot was attempted OR (b) any overtime. Richaun Holmes leads the Falcons in shooting during these clutch situations with a 66.7 field goal percentage, while both he, Spencer Parker, Jehvon Clarke and Damarkeo Lyshe are all shooting over 66.7 percent from the free throw line during clutch time.

NO REST FOR THE WEARY
Bowling Green has three players in the top-five of the league in minutes played thus far this season. Jehvon Clarke (36.2) and Spencer Parker (34.8) are 1 and 2 in the MAC in minutes played, while Anthony Henderson (33.7) is fourth in the league.

STARTERS SHOULDERING SCORING LOAD
The five starters for BGSU - Jehvon Clarke, Anthony Henderson, Spencer Parker, Richaun Holmes and Cameron Black - are shouldering most of the scoring load this season for the Falcons, as they combined are averaging 89 percent of the scoring for BGSU this season. The five starters have combined for a total of 1,740 points for BGSU this season, while the rest of the team has scored a total of 216 points. That is an average of just over 56.1 points per game for the starters and just under 7.0 points per contest from the non-starting five this season.

DEFENSIVE PROWESS
BGSU takes pride in its defensive prowess, as the Falcons are ranked third in the MAC in scoring defense allowing only 64.5 points per game on the season. BGSU is also second in the conference in blocked shots per game (5.6) and third in steals per game (7.6). The Falcons are allowing only 64.3 points per game in MAC play, which ranks fourth in the league.

AT THE TOP IN THE MAC
Bowling Green's Richaun Holmes is second in the MAC in blocked shots on the season, as he has 86 total blocks and an average of 2.8 per game, while Anthony Henderson is ranked second in the MAC in steals with an average of 2.2 per contest and 66 total thefts overall. Jehvon Clarke leads the league in minutes played with an average of 36.2 minutes per contest.

BGSU MEN'S HOOPS RANKED IN THE TOP-30 IN BOTH BLOCKS AND STEALS
BGSU finished the regular season ranked in the top-30 nationally among a number of defensive categories in the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball statistical rankings released on Friday, March 6. BGSU was ranked 22nd overall in total blocks (173) and 23rd in blocked shots per game (5.6). The Falcons were also ranked 27th in steals per game (7.6).

AMONG THE NATION'S LEADERS IN STEALS AND BLOCKED SHOTS
BGSU's Anthony Henderson is ranked 19th in the nation overall in steals per game with an average of 2.28 per contest and 20th overall in total steals with 66. Richaun Holmes is ranked 23rd overall nationally in total blocks with 86 and 26th in blocked shots per game with an average of 2.77 per outing.

DOUBLE DIGIT DEFICIT DISTRESSES
Bowling Green has proven to be a notoriously slow starting them this season, as the Falcons have fallen behind by double digits in 23 of its 31 contests this season. Oddly enough, when BGSU doesn't fall behind by double digits (8 times) the Falcons are 7-1 on the season. BGSU is just 5-18 in the 23 contests in which the orange and brown has trailed by double digits at some point in the game.

70 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
The magic number for the Falcons is 70 - as in 70 points per game. BGSU is 5-2 this season when scoring 70 points or more and 44-17 overall under head coach Louis Orr since his first year at BGSU in 2007-08. On the flip side, Bowling Green is only 7-17 this year when scoring less than 70 points and 59-73 overall during Orr's tenure when not amassing 70 points or more.

GETTING TO THE LINE
Aggressive play has aided the Falcons this season, as BGSU is 8-4 on the year when making more free throws than its opponent for the game. Overall BGSU is 58-23 under head coach Louis Orr when hitting more free throws than its foes over the last six + seasons.

WORKING OVERTIME ON THE FLOOR
A number of BGSU players in Jehvon Clarke, Anthony Henderson, Richaun Holmes, Damarkeo Lyshe and Spencer Parker have all logged more minutes this season alone than they had for their entire careers prior to this year.

COMEBACK KIDS
In four of the Falcons six MAC wins - at Western Michigan, at Ohio, versus Buffalo at home and at Ball State - BGSU has overcome a deficit at some point in the contest. At Western Michigan, BGSU came back from a 15-point deficit in the second half to earn a 69-64 win. Versus Ohio, the Falcons overcame an 11 point first half lead to upend the Bobcats 58-56, and at home against Buffalo, BGSU overcame a 10 point first half deficit to storm back for a 74-68 win. Against Ball State, BGSU trailed by as much as three points less than two minutes to play in a 66-64 road win.

20 POINT GAMES
After not having a single player on the 2013-14 roster score 20+ points or more in a collegiate game heading into the season, the Falcons have had four different players combine to post 14 different 20+ point games this season. Richaun Holmes (5), Spencer Parker (4), Jehvon Clarke (3) and Anthony Henderson (2) all have posted multiple 20+ point games thus far this season.

CLARKE DISHING OUT DIME NUMBER 200
Point guard Jehvon Clarke eclipsed the 200 career assists mark with his two assists at Akron on March 1. He now has totaled 209 assists in his three years at BGSU.

ANTHONY'S SINGLE-SEASON THEFTS
Redshirt-junior guard Anthony Henderson has totaled 66 steals thus far this season, which places him in the top-10 for the most steals in a single season in BGSU history. Currently Henderson rank's sixth for the most steals in a single season in BGSU history, as he is six steals behind both Anthony Stacey (1996-97) and David Jenkins (1981-82) who are tied for fourth with 72 steals. The single-season record is 82 thefts set by DeMar Moore in 1996-97.

A BLOCK FOR BLACK & HOLMES - SHARPIE
You can sharpie in a block for both Cam Black and Richaun Holmes at the opening tip, as each Falcon big has posted at least one block in a game double digit times. Holmes has registered at least one block in 28 contests this season, while Black has recorded at least one swat in 24 different games on the year.

2ND HALF > 1ST HALF
Bowling Green has proven to be a second half team this season, as the Falcons have scored 147 more points (1,049 > 902) over the final 20 minutes of play compared to the first 20 minutes of action so far this year. Six of BGSU's eight lowest total points output per half this season (18, 18, 19, 19, 21, 21) have come in the first half of play.

KEEPERS OF THE RIM: BLOCK BROTHERS
BGSU's duo of Cam Black and Richaun Holmes continue to prove to be an effective last line of defense for the Falcons, as the tandem have combined for 138 blocks for the Falcons this season. Both Holmes (159) and Black (154) are already in the top-three all-time at BGSU in career blocked shots.

BALANCED SCORING ATTACK
The Falcons this season have had a balance scoring attack, as in 28 of their 31 games this season BGSU has had multiple players record double digit points. In fact, BGSU has had at least three different players post double digit points in 25 of those 28 contests this season, while six different players have registered double digit points in at least one game thus far this year.

BALANCED SCORING ATTACK: TAKE 5
BGSU has had all five starters score in double digits in three different contests this season (Earlham, Presbyterian, Morehead State), all of which were wins.

BREAK OUT SEASONS FOR THE FALCONS
BGSU has had a number of players already have break out seasons thus far in 2013-14, as nine different Falcons have recorded career-high's in points thus far this year with multiple players setting multiple career marks. Bowling Green has also seen a handful of players set career marks in other statistical categories such as rebounds, steals, assists, blocked shots and minutes played.

ORR'S MILESTONES IN WIN AT BALL STATE
Coach Louis Orr reached not one, but two milestones with the Falcons win at Ball State on Feb. 15. Orr posted his 100th win overall as the head coach at BGSU and also tallied the 200th win overall for his career as a head coach.

PARKER STEPPING UP
Sophomore Spencer Parker has stepped up his game thus far this season, as the forward is averaging 12.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game on the year. Parker, who was thrust into the starting lineup in the second game of the season due to injuries, has scored in double figures in 24 contests for Bowling Green this year, including setting a career-high in points per game on four different occasions. He also has surpassed the 20 point mark four times this season. Parker is also second on the team and in the MAC in minutes played per game with 34.8 minutes per contest.

PAINT PRESENCE
Head Coach Louis Orr's philosophy is always to play inside-out and the Falcons have done that well during his tenure. Over his last four-plus seasons, BGSU has scored 20 or more points in the paint in 141-of-164 games. BGSU has scored a high of 58 points in the paint twice during that span, including 58 points in a win versus Earlham in the season opener.

HISTORICAL ROAD WINS
With their back-to-back road wins at Western Michigan and at Ohio, the Falcons posted wins at Kalamazoo, Mich. and at Athens, Ohio for the first time in the same year since the 1990-91 season.

HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
In the last two years, the Stroh Center has proven to be a difficult place for opponents to play. The Falcons went 23-9 at home over the last two years, including posting a 3-0 mark at home in 2011-12 against teams that eventually went to the NCAA Tournament. Overall, the Falcons are 30-17 in the Stroh Center, which comes out to a .638 winning percentage.

THAT 70'S STROH
Bowling Green is 16-0 all-time when scoring at least 70 points in the Stroh Center. The Falcons have reached 70 points at home five times this year, six times last season in 2012-13 and dropped 70 points or more five times in 2011-12.

BLACK COLLECTS CAREER REBOUND NUMBER 600
Senior Cam Black hauled in a game-high 11 rebounds in the loss at Akron on March 1 to give him 600 for his career. Earlier this season, Black grabbed six rebounds in the win at Western Michigan on Jan. 19, which allowed him to surpass the 500 career rebounds milestone.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
For the first time in over two years, the Falcons had two players each post a double-double in the same game. Richaun Holmes (16 points / 10 rebs.) and Jehvon Clarke (11 points / 11 rebs.) each posted a double-double for BGSU in the 74-68 win over Buffalo on Feb. 2.

CLEANING THE GLASS
Juniors Richaun Holmes and Jehvon Clarke became the first BGSU duo since 2011-12 to each post 10 rebounds or more in the same game. Both Holmes and Clarke had 10 rebounds apiece in the Falcons' win over Buffalo on Feb. 2. Holmes (11) and Cam Black (12) went on to post double digit rebounds in the Falcons' 66-64 win at Ball State on Feb. 15. The last tandem to do that prior to this season was Oglesby and Thomas against UTSA back on Jan. 1, 2012.

HOLMES' DUNK IN THE FIRST HALF VS. AKRON PLAY #2 ON ESPN'S WEEKEND TOP PLAYS
Richaun Holmes received a pass from Jehvon Clarke and drove the lane before throwing down a one-handed slam over Akron's Pat Forsythe at the 11:09 mark of the first half on Feb. 9. The dunk was featured on ESPN SportsCenter's Weekend Top-10 Plays later on that night as the No. 2 play.

NEW FACE ON THE BGSU ROSTER
Redshirt-senior Shaun Joplin (Sylvania, Ohio) joined the BGSU roster in Jan. 2014. Joplin was a four year letterwinner on the Falcons' football team and was a pivotal part of the BGSU MAC Championship run this past season.

BLOCK HISTORY
The Falcons 14 total team blocks on Dec. 15 at Morehead State set a new BGSU single game record for the most blocks in a game. The previous record was 13 blocks, which BGSU set just one game earlier versus North Dakota on Dec. 11.

MUCH NEEDED ROAD WIN
The Falcons picked up its first road of the season on Dec. 15, as BGSU defeated Morehead State 67-61 in Morehead, Ky. The road win was the first non-conference road win for BGSU since a 61-53 win at FIU on Dec. 22, 2011 and is the first overall road win for the Falcons since last year, a 57-41 road win at Northern Illinois on Feb. 6, 2013.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE X TWO
Senior Cam Black posted two straight double-doubles in the Falcons two contests in Cancun, Mexico at the 2013 Cancun Challenge. The 6-10 center posted 12 points and 14 rebounds versus Presbyterian and then 10 points and 13 rebounds against Oral Roberts. With his second straight double-double, Black becomes the first Falcon to accomplish that feat since Nate Miller posted three-straight double-doubles in March of 2008.

WE'LL TAKE THAT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH
The Falcons set a new school record for thefts as a team in a single game in its season opener versus Earlham, as BGSU recorded 22 steals overall for the game. Guards Jehvon Clarke and JD Tisdale each recorded six steals apiece, both career-highs.

RECORD SETTING SEASON OPENING WIN OVER EARLHAM
The 53-point win over Earlham was the largest margin of victory for a Falcons' team since BGSU defeated Urbana 114-52 back on Dec. 22, 1999. BGSU also reached the 100-point mark for the first time since defeating Urbana 103-78 back on Nov. 21, 2003. The Falcons had six players score in double figures in the season opening win for the first time since the Nov. 28, 2009 vs. Milwaukee.

FILLING OUT THE ROSTER
BGSU's roster has been filled out with a number of walk-ons, which includes former BG football player Shaun Joplin (Sylvania, Ohio/Southview High School) who joined the team in January 2014. Brandon Busuttil (Kitchener, Ontario, Canada/St. John's-Kilmarnock School), Michael Gallagher (Mentor, Ohio/Mentor High School) and Avery Turner (Detroit, Michigan/Renaissance High School) round out the roster for the Falcons.

FRESH FACES
BGSU head coach Louis Orr has four new players on the 2013-14 squad. JD Tisdale (Flint, Mich./Swartz Creek High School), Zack Denny (Germantown, Ohio/Valley View High School), and Garrett Mayleben (Milford, Ohio/Milford High School) will all join transfer Josh Gomez (Brooklyn, N.Y./Rice High School/Iona) among this year's incoming class.

MEDIA PICKS BOWLING GREEN SIXTH IN PRESEASON POLL
After graduating their top-two scorers, as well as three of its five starters, Bowling Green was selected to finish sixth in the Mid-American Conference East Division by vote of the league's MAC News Media. Akron was selected to win the East, followed by Buffalo, Ohio, Kent State, and Miami.

###