The BGSU men’s basketball team won its season opener 63-53 against Lake Erie College on Friday, but fell to Cleveland State 79-73 in overtime on Tuesday.
The win against Lake Erie College marks the 21st straight home opener that the Falcons came out on top.
Senior point guard Jordan Crawford led the Falcons with 22 points, 16 of which were scored in the first half.
BG beat the Storm on the boards 44-35, which helped the team dominate Lake Erie the entire game. The Falcons recorded 20 offensive rebounds and 24 defensive rebounds. The Storm only had nine offensive rebounds, but beat BG in defensive rebounds with 26.
The Falcons first game against a Division I opponent was against the Cleveland State Vikings on Monday in the Preseason NIT in Ann Arbor, Mich.
The Falcons and Vikings went back and forth the whole game, and the score was tied at the end of the first half (33-33) and the second half (66-66).
The Falcons stayed strong throughout regulation but the Vikings put a stop to senior Auston Calhoun’s offensive game. In regulation, Calhoun put up 30 of the Falcons’ 66 points, but in overtime he did not score a single point.
Turnovers plagued Crawford and the Falcons the whole game. BG recorded 16 turnovers during the game, eight of which were during the second half alone. Crawford recorded nine turnovers during the game against Cleveland State, which ties his career high that was set last season against Akron.
With the loss against Cleveland State, the Falcons will not qualify for the second round of the tournament in New York City, and will face the loser of the Michigan-IUPUI game on Tuesday at 5 p.m. in Ann Arbor, Mich.
BG will return to the Stroh Center on Nov. 27 when they take on the Detroit Mercy Titans of the Horizon League at 7 p.m.
