BGSU men’s basketball (14-16, 8-9) returns to the Stroh Center and looks for their fifth win in a row against the Western Michigan Broncos (11-19, 8-9) and a spot in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) tournament.
With a victory, the Falcons would clinch a spot in the MAC Tournament and book their trip to Cleveland. If the Falcons pick up a win, then they would hold the seventh spot in the tournament and face Miami Oh (ranked second) in the first round.
Falcon Media Sports Network’s Holden Ruck and Andrew Smith will be on the call for the season finale, with pregame at 6:45 and tip-off at 7:00 p.m. on Falcon Radio.
Matchup History
The Orange and Brown’s Friday night matchup with Western Michigan will be the 130 meeting between the two squads. The Falcons lead the all-time series 75-53 and have won the last three meetings, including an 83-79 victory earlier this season.
When playing on home court, BG has a 44-20 record against the Broncos. In their last 10 meetings, BG is 7-3 vs the Broncos.
Bowling Green
Bowling Green is red hot heading into their most important game of the season, they’ve won four games in a row, coming off a 71-58 win vs Northern Illinois-where they shot 46.9% as a team from the field and outrebounded the Huskies 45-30.
After beginning the conference schedule with a 2-7 record, the Falcons have battled back to win 7 of their last nine games to improve to an 8-9 record in the MAC and finally break through to the seventh seed in the conference after being out a trip to the MAC tournament for the entire MAC schedule.
While the Falcons are seeking a victory, if they were to lose, there is still a path towards Cleveland. In the event of a loss, qualifying for the MAC tournament would require a Ball State loss to Miami OH, and a Central Michigan loss to Nothern Illinois.
If both losses were to occur, Bowling Green would be the eighth seed vs the number one seed Akron Zips.
Heading into their last game of the regular season, BG is averaging 74.1 points per game, shooting 43.9% from the field and 34.6% from the three-point line. The Falcons shoot 74.7% from the free-throw line and grab 34.6 rebounds per game.
Western Michigan
Western Michigan enters the Friday game holding the eighth spot in the MAC. The Broncos have an 8-9 record vs the MAC this season.
The Broncos have a 3-2 record in their last five games, currently coming off a 77-76 loss to Kent State on their senior night, which snapped a two-game winning streak.
Western Michigan is also fighting for a spot in the MAC tournament, a win for them would clinch a spot in the tournament for the Broncos. The other path to Cleveland for the Broncos would require a Central Michigan loss to Northern Illinois.
The last time the Broncos faced the Falcons, they shot 19% from the three-point line, only connecting on 4/21 of their shots from beyond the arch.
While the Broncos are on a three-game losing streak to the Falcons, they have won two of their last three trips to the Stroh Center.
The Broncos are averaging 72.5 points per game, shooting 42.7% from the field and 28.8% from the three-point line– the worst three-point shooting in the conference. The Broncos shoot a conference worst 67.6% from the free throw line.
The Broncos’ biggest strength is rebounding, averaging 38.1 rebounds per game, the second best in the MAC.
Falcon Four Players to Watch
Javontae Campbell (Bowling Green #2)
Javontae Campbell is on absolute fire right now, scoring 19 points vs Northern Illinois, leading the Falcons once again in scoring after five straight games of 20+ points. Campbell also got his 86 steals of the season against the Huskies.
Derrick Butler (Bowling Green #10)
Butler and his teammate Marcus Johnson scored 14 points each in the first half vs the Huskies. Butler’s last matchup vs WMU he scored 19 points on 6/14 shooting.
Chansey Willis Jr (Western Michigan #2)
Willis Jr is averaging a team-high 17.2 points per game. Willis Jr is coming off a 24-point performance on 57.1% shooting vs Kent State.
Owen Lobsinger (Western Michigan #20)
The Broncos’ biggest strength is rebounding, Lobsinger is currently averaging a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game.
