MBB Wins Close One in Tempe

 BG went to Tempe to play two games in an MTE.  They ended up with the two best teams in the tournament and both games came down to the final possession.  And, BG picked up the win in the second, a nice win for our club.

First, BG played both games without Sam Towns and Youssef Khayat, presumably to injury.  The BG starters were Johnson, Butler, Thomas, Campbell and Exacte.

It was a close game the entire way, with no team leading by more than 7.  That was even truer in the first half, when no team led by more than 5 and BG held the lead for 12 minutes.  BG led by 3 at the break.  Key note is that while the game was close, the shooting was terrible on both sides.

Dr. Naismith explains basketball to a Springfield resident

The Falcons held the lead for the first five minutes of the half before the Aggies took a 31-30 lead.

The next few minutes were closely contested, with leads within 2 points either way. 

With 7 minutes left, a short run put the Aggies up by 7, but a 10-3 run tied the game with 3:22 left.

The game went from 3:22 to 1:23 with no scoring at all.  NM State got a 3FG with 1:33 left.  Felt was fouled after getting an offensive rebound and missed both FTs (4-6 on the night). 

With 1:14 left, the Aggies were fouled and split the pair, now up 4.  At that point, New Mexico State has a 90% chance of winning. 

Campbell missed a 3FG, but Johnson got the offensive board.  BG called time and Johnson scored and was fouled...converting the and-one and the lead was down to 1 with :50 left.

NM State ran clock and finally shot with :23 left.  They missed and Johnson cleared the board. 

BG called time with :15 left.  Campbell drove to the rim and drew the foul.  He converted both FTs and BG was up 1.

Aggie timeout.  They get a drive to go for the win, and though it doesn't show up in the play by play, Derrick Butler blocked the shot and preserved the Falcon win.

The game was played at 67 possessions.  It was a terrible night for the art of offensive basketball.  BG had .91 points per possession, shooting 32% on 2FG and 24% on 3FG.  I went to try and see when BG shot this poorly and won, and I didn't have to look any farther than last year's Southern Indiana game. The Aggies had .89 points per possession.  They shot a little better (32% on 2FG and 36% on 3FG), but had double the turnovers but were very good on the offensive glass.  

The key difference was at the line.  BG committed 15 fouls and the Aggies committed 22.  Here, BG got the ball into the peach basket. BG was 26 of 30 at the line.  NM was 8-10.

BG is #9 in the country in FT%.

Marcus Johnson had a big night.  He scored 23 on 5 of 8 and 2 of 5 shooting. He made all 7 FTs, added 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals.  Butler had 15, though less efficient.  He was 2 of 8 and 2 of 7 shooting.  He did have 5 rebounds 5-5 at the line and the game's most important defensive play. Campbell had 12...1 of 9 2FG shooting, but 10-12 at the line and 8 rebounds.  Felt has 12 rebounds in 29 minutes and 2 blocked shots.

Exacte started but only played 4 minutes.  No idea why.

So, BG has the week off.  Next up is Morgan State at home....a game they should absolutely win.

For today, they are 3-5, 2-5 in D1 games. The conference is off to a poor start as everyone tries to find their way.