The Bowling Green-Toledo rivalry, fierce in every aspect from the Blood Bowl to the Battle for the Peace Pipe, usually does not need any more fuel thrown onto the fire.

But this year’s women’s basketball edition of the rivalry has exactly that — and then some.

Two of the most heated rivals in the Mid-American Conference will go head-to-head tonight at UT’s Savage Hall, but the first of two meetings on the slate in the stretch run has that extra kick: This year, both teams, not just UT, are smack dab in the middle of the MAC’s championship race. And though it’s still early in the conference schedule, that’s all the Falcons need to be ready for this tilt.

“This is a big barometer for us. I think it’s a good test for us to see how far we’ve come and how much farther we have to go as a program,” BG coach Curt Miller said. “This is a big game for us because we have a tough, tough February, so we’re trying to get off to a good start in January.