BGSU To Battle Broncos In Kalamazoo For Saturday Matinee

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University men's basketball program will return to the road for the first of two straight road games, first heading to Kalamazoo, Mich. to face the Western Michigan Broncos Saturday (Jan. 14). The game between the Falcons and the Broncos is set for a 1 p.m. tip and will be available to watch on ESPN+. Fans can tune in to the action via WFRO Eagle 99. A live stat link will be provided at bgsufalcons.com with live updates available on Twitter (@BGSUMHoops).

Saturday will mark the 126th meeting all-time between Bowling Green and Western Michigan. The all-time series leans to the Falcons with a record of 43-18. As for games in Kalamazoo, the series is tied 31-31. BGSU's last win in the series came in Kalamazoo on Jan. 22, 2022. In that game, Samari Curtis stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block.

A Bowling Green Win Would …

Give the Falcons four straight wins in Kalamazoo.
Mark Bowling Green's sixth win in the last eight games against WMU.
Bring BGSU's road record to .500 at 4-4.
Push the Falcons back above .500 for the season at 9-8.

Scouting The Broncos
Western Michigan is coming off their first MAC win of the season, topping Eastern Michigan, 85-79, at home. The Broncos previously lost to Kent State, 80-72, and Toledo, 102-74 on the road. Lamar Norman Jr. is coming off a 25-point game and leads Western in scoring with a mark of 17.5 points per game. Markeese Hastings adds 10.3 rebounds per game, including 20 in the game against Toledo.

Efficient Offense Fueling Falcons
The Falcons have logged a shooting percentage of 49% or higher from the field in each of the last five games, including a season-best 58.3% against Ohio Dominican. Over the five-game stretch, Bowling Green has shot 158-of-300 (52.7%) from the field. The last time the Falcons had at least a five-game streak of shooting 49% or better was the 2010-11 season when BGSU went 167-of-328 (50.9%) over six games with a high of 52.1%, going 5-1 over the six-game stretch.

Ball Security
As a team, the Falcons are currently second in the MAC and 36th in the nation for Assist/Turnover ratio with a mark of 1.38 with 242 assists and 176 turnovers this season. Across the conference, Leon Ayers III is second (1.9) and Samari Curtis is third (1.7). The duo of Ayers and Curtis has combined for 123 assists and just 69 turnovers for a ratio of 1.8. BGSU is also second in the MAC and 30th in the nation for fewest turnovers per game, averaging 11.0 per game.

Mills Establishing 3-and-D Role
Brenton Mills has started the last four games for the Falcons and has etched out a 3-and-D role for the Orange and Brown. Prior to entering the starting lineup, Mills was 3-of-10 (30%) from behind the arc, averaging 2.6 points per game with three steals. However, since entering the starting lineup, Mills is averaging 7.3 points per game, shooting 8-of-14 (57.1%) from three with three steals over just four games.

Metheny Maintaining Hot Hand
In the first 12 games of the season, Kaden Metheny tallied double-digit points four times. Over the last four games, he has four double-digit outings. Metheny is averaging 18.0 points per game over the last four contests, shooting 47.1% (16-of-34) from three and 52.9% (27-of-51) from the field. In addition to establishing his shot, Metheny is also averaging 4.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game over the four-game stretch.

Follow the Falcons
Be sure to follow the Falcons' men's basketball team on social media
Twitter - @BGAthletics and @BGSUMHoops
Instagram - 'bgfalcons' and 'bgsumhoops'
Facebook - 'BGSU Athletics'
YouTube - 'Falcon Athletics'

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Leon Ayers III

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