The BIG Game! (MBB)

The regular season ends tomorrow.  BG is playing WMU....with a win, BG is in the tourney...with a loss, they need both Ball State and CMU to lose as well.

It has been a wild and unexpected ride. At one point, BG was 2-7 in MAC play.  A trip to Cleveland appeared nearly impossible.  BG has won 6-8 in the MAC since then (7-9 overall) and put that into play.  With a win, BG is 9-9 in MAC play, which is pretty amazing given the injuries and the flu bug that flew through the team.

I'm proud of this team and our program. Playing like this under duress is the kind of program I want us to have.  I also want us to be the kind that goes 16-2, has nothing go wrong and makes the Sweet Sixteen.  But you face the first scenario more in life than the second.

We beat WMU the first time. The first game was not a defensive affair.  BG had 1.2 points per possession and WMU had 1.14.  BG won by 4. What you see below is a close game.  BG made 7 of 8 at the line coming home.  The key difference was BG going 6 of 17 from 3FG and WMU going 4-21.

WMU is overachieving.  They were picked 10th in the MAC.  They were 4-7 in the MAC, but have gone 4-2 since then, including home wins over OU and Miami. They lost their last one also at home to Kent by 1.

They are 4-4 in MAC play on the road.

It seems to me to be a decent matchup for us.  BG is playing as good on the defensive end as anyone on the MAC.  WMU is last in the MAC in shooting and last in 3FG shooting. They are 10th in 2FG shooting. If we play defense as we have been, we can keep their point total low.  The one thing to watch for is the offensive rebounding, which is 2nd in the MAC, as you would expect from an Izzolyte.

Against a zone, they might make a difference.  As you can see below, they rebounded against us really well last time.

They are 7th in defense. They are 10th against the shot, 9th against the 2FG. They are 9th in terms of giving up FTs, which might be the key number for us.  We offensive rebounded like crazy in the first one, but I don't think we can't count on that.  We have not been crashing the boards at all, presumably to avoid fouling.

Chansey Willis the 2nd leading scorer in the MAC in MAC play at 17.6 PPG. He shoots 51% and 31%, 4.2 RPG and is #2 in the MAC with 5.8 per game. 

JaVaugh Hannah is scoring 12.9 PPG, shooting 50% and 27%. Marki Strickland is scoring 11.4 PPG on 49% and 27%. 

Donovan Williams is scoring 10.1 PPG on 46% and 35%.  He is #5 in the MAC in rebounding with 7.2 rpg.

They have 9 players averaging 10 minutes more a game, which could be a factor. 

So here we go.  Let's hope to see the Falcons get it done.  It's a good run and it would be great to take it to Cleveland.