MBB Struggles Continue

 It was a very long day at the Stroh.  A good St. Thomas team---favored by 4.5 coming in--ran the Falcons right out of the gym, beating BG 93-68.  It was BG's worst loss since Louisiana in round 2 of the SBC and the worst home loss since Akron of 2022.

Coach said it was one of those games where nothing went right.  The ball wouldn't go for us, the other team shoots the lights out and it was just a blowout.  St. Thomas is a very solid team and well-coached.  We are short-handed...Braelon Green went down as well.  

Having said that, it was uglier than you'd want it to be.  BG never led.  The lead was in double digits for the last 29 minutes of the game and over 20 for the last 23.

BG shot 43% from 2FG.  Even that doesn't tell the whole story...BG missed 12 of their 21 shots inside the restricted arc and missed 19 of 34 in the paint.  3FGs were just as bad....BG made 27% on those.

Combine that with a season-worst 20.3% turnovers and only 15.6% on the offensive boards (2nd lowest this year) and you have the making for a .86 points per possession, the worst of the season.

St. Thomas scored easily.  They had 1.18 points per possession, making 66% from 2FG and 37% from 3FG.  It's the second straight game where BG's opponent has shot a crazy high percentage. 

The Coach on the post-game with Todd Walker said that BG is lacking a rim protector with Khayat and Towns out...Felt started and played 23 minutes, Squire played 12.

Javontae Campbell had 18 points on 6 of 12 and 0 of 2 shooting. He made 6 of 6 at the line, led the team with 6 rebounds and had 4 steals over 4 turnovers.

Marcus Johnson had 16 on 0-2 2fg and 4 of 7 from 3FG.  Derrick Butler had 15 on 3 of 4 and 2 of 7 shooting.

BG finishes the 2024 portion of the schedule with Aquinas, an NAIA team that lost to CMU by 24 at Aquinas (beats me).  Then, there's a holiday break and January 3 the Zips come in to the Stroh. 

The entire MAC is off to a disappointing start. The good news is that things are relatively wide open.  BG's injury issue is the key thing to watch....