BG MBB Gets Another Road Win

The Falcons inched closer to Cleveland last night, picking up a third-straight road win, this time over the EMU Eagles.  There are some things to note here.  EMU had been playing better---they had beat UT and MU at home in the last couple of weeks.  BG came in short-handed, as they will for the remainder of the year.  They also came in off a big, emotional win on Friday.  This would have been a prime point to have a let down.

And while there was a very rough patch, the Falcons ended up getting the win.

It was not a typical game.  EMU never led and BG led for 36:00.  Within that....is a story.

The first half could not have gone any better.  BG made 5-8 from 3FG...meanwhile, their zone defense completely flummoxed EMU, who went 1-16 from 3FG.  BG ended up leading by as much as 18 and by 16 at the break., 35-19.

The second half started out pretty rough.  EMU went on a 12-0 to start the half and had the game tied with about 14 left.  You go from looking like a cakewalk to a real battle in 6 minutes.  EMU never broke though but the game was still tied with 10 minutes left.

I was starting to really sweat. Given all the issues, you had to wonder if BG had the strength to turn it around.

Turns out, they did. BG went on a 10-2 run to go up 8 with 7 to play.  The game was in hand most of the way, though the Falcons had some trouble with pressure in the last few minutes.  EMU had it down to 4 with the ball before Henry missed a 3FG and Campbell hit 4 FTs to close it out, BG winning 65-60.

It was a nice win.  As mentioned, EMU has been playing better.  They made a hard run at the Falcons, which the Falcons absorbed and turned around.  Coming into a possible let-down game, it was a good effort.

It wasn't a great offensive game for BG.... they scored .98 per possession.  BG won the shooting battle easily, battled even on turnovers, had a terrible disadvantage on the boards but made 10 of 16 at the line while EMU made 2-4.  BG committed only 10 fouls.

BG struggled from 2FG, making only 42%, but made 52% from 3FG, their best D1 game of the season.

Meanwhile, they held EMU to .91 PPP.  EMU was good from 2FG (57%) but made only 21% on 3FG.

Javonte Campbell continued to take the team on his back.  He scored 25 on 7 of 12 and 1 of 2 from 3FG. He has made only 5 3FGs in MAC play, but teams play off him due to his injury and if he can nail the open ones, it helps.  He was fouled 11 TIMES and took 13 of BG's 16 FTs, making 10. He had 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 turnovers and 5 steals, giving him the BG all-time single-season steal record, previously held by DeMar Moore.

Humphrey had 14, making all 4 of his 3FGs. Butler had 11 and 5 rebounds.

Marcus Johnson seems like his batteries are getting low.  He was not much of a factor in this one....he has carried this team most of the year, so he deserves some grace.

BG played 7 guys.  EMU played 10.

Here is how things stand.  The orange highlights are games where kenpom has that team with a 50% chance of winning or better.  BG was supposed to lose to EMU, and now has a shot at hitting 9 wins.  Reminder there are five teams above this group, so you need to finish 3rd among this group to get to Cleveland.  BG has two games with teams they are competing with and they are at home....the finish is more interesting than it was shaping up to be.