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Darryl Clements had a game-high 15 points

The BG women went first on Saturday after beating Ohio University, 79-64 to finish 15-1 in conference play and gain the out-right title.

It was a little more complicated on Sunday for BG’s men as they started the day in a four-way tie for first place in the MAC East.

The Falcons did their part starting the game on fire and then never really letting up in posting a 75-41 victory over Ohio to finish 11-5 in the MAC.

With Kent State’s win over Akron and Buffalo’s overtime victory over Miami, Bowling Green ended up in a two-way tie for the best record in the MAC with Buffalo. Due to BG’s two victories over Buffalo in the regular-season, the Falcons are the No. 1 seed for the MAC tournament and can claim the MAC title. It’s BG’s first MAC championship since the 1999-2000 season.

“We grinded until the end of the regular season and put ourselves in a great position — Last game of the season, playing at home on Senior Night for the MAC championship. What more can you say?,” said BG’s Nate Miller, one of three seniors on the team along with Darryl Clements and Brian Moten.

“It’s been such a long journey ... all the losses we have taken,” Moten said. “I think all the hard work we’ve put in has finally come to show. Everything has fallen together. We have the right pieces. It’s just a great feeling.”

The Falcons’ next game is Thursday at 7 p.m. in Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena against the winner of the Western Michigan-Ohio University first-round game.

“Our guys, the resiliency they have shown all year, to be able to persevere and bounce back and turn things around. They showed their true character,” BG head coach Louis Orr said. “They got part of their rewards, the fruit of the labors with the MAC championship.”

“I thought they were the aggressor right at the beginning of the game,” Ohio head coach John Groce said about the Falcons. “After four or five minutes I thought they (BG) really set the rules of the game and did a terrific job in doing so.

“They came out punching and fighting. Obviously they had a lot at stake today,” Groce added. “They’ve got some older players ... They made plays, they made big shots early. They played with an energy level and a toughness about them and a purpose about them.”

The quick start was in sharp contrast to Thursday’s outing at Miami, where the Falcons suffered a 50-45 overtime loss. BG scored only 40 points in the first 40 minutes of that game, but the Falcons had 40 in the first half against Ohio.

“I was a little surprised. OU is a quality team. That just shows what type of energy we brought from the start,” Moten said. “It just seems like we took it to another level from the opening tip.”

The Falcons never let up in the second half. All nine Falcons who played in the game scored.
The Falcons had four players finish in double figures led by Clements, who had game-highs in points (15) and assists (six).

Miller added 14 points and 11 rebounds and Otis Polk also finished with 14 points. Joe Jakubowski chipped in with 10 points.

“Usually as the point-guard goes the team goes. For us, we tell Otis as he goes we go,” Clements said. “Every time
Otis has a good game it shows in everyone else. We told Otis to play big and he did and we won.”

NOTES: Ohio is 14-16 overall and finished 7-9 in the MAC East ... The Bobcats are the No. 9 seed for the tournament ... As MAC regular-season champions, Bowling Green has earned a bid to the National Invitation Tournament, if the Falcons do not advance to the NCAA tournament ... Miller and Jakubowski each had four steals as BG finished with 14 steals ... Miller now has five double-doubles in the last 10 games and is averaging 14.3 points and 9.9 rebounds per game in that stretch ... BG held a 32-10 advantage in points in the paint  and held a 35-29 rebounding edge ... Ohio’s Jerome Tillman came into game averaging 18.5 points and 8.2 rebounds a game, but he was held to one point and two rebounds in 20 minutes of action.