The BGSU men’s basketball team (8-3) hosted the Chicago State Cougars (2-10) on Tuesday, winning 76-55. The win was the Falcons’ fifth in their last six games.
While senior guard Javontae Campbell is usually the offensive engine for the Orange and Brown, others stepped up in the non-conference contest. Senior forward Sam Towns, senior guard Javon Ruffin, and senior forward Troy Glover II took over, shouldering the team’s offensive load.
Towns paced the team with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Though the 6-foot-9 big man scored two three-pointers, shooting 50% from beyond the arc. Of Towns’ 11 rebounds, nine came on defense, allowing the Falcons to cut Cougar possessions short.
Towns has had a strong season, averaging 13 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. Earlier this season, he got 18 rebounds against Virginia Military Institute and scored 27 points against Kansas State.
“I think a big emphasis this week in practice was physicality; we need to be physical,” Towns said. “We were lacking a bit this past week, so we took it personally to do well at it.”
Ruffin was second on the team with 15 points, but he also had nine assists and six rebounds. A new addition from the University of Colorado, Ruffin has averaged 10.2 points and 2.8 rebounds per game this season.
“Assists get two people involved, so that always helps. We just did a good job communicating,” Ruffin said.
Glover II was truly the surprise star of the night. A transfer from Missouri-St. Louis, last year’s Great Lakes Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year, crashed the boards, grabbing 10 rebounds.
He also scored 10 points and led the team with four blocks. Glover II has averaged 6.6 points per game and 4.5 rebounds per game this season, but his total of 15 blocks leads the team and is almost double that of the player with the second-most blocks, senior guard Justin Thomas.
Other players made contributions—Campbell and junior forward Mayar Wol combined for five steals—but the efforts of Towns, Ruffin, and Glover II helped the Falcons win the day.
“I’m proud of these guys, the consistency on the defensive end,” head coach Todd Simon said. “I thought we did a good job of sharing the ball, not turning it over.”
BG will now gear up for Mid-American Conference (MAC) play, as they travel to face the Ohio Bobcats on Dec. 20 at 4:00 p.m. A recap can be found at bgfalconmedia.com. Foster Roesti and Kevin Hutchinson will be on the call on Falcon Radio.
