 BOWING GREEN 67, DETROIT 61 In the second half, the Falcons were 5-of-8 on 3-pointers and 8-of-10 from the line, including a 7-of-8 effort in the final 40.2 seconds of the game.
“The difference between this year and last year is that we’re older now. We’ve been through it. We’ve had our struggles. Now we’ve learned how to win,” BG senior Scott Thomas said. “We talked in the locker room that it’s time for us to grow up. This year is showing that.
“Late in the game we’ve got to buckle down both defensively and offensively, and we have been able to do that so far.”
Bowling Green also got good play off its bench as six different Falcons finished the game with three or more fouls. BG used 11 players, with 10 hitting the scoring column.
“Our depth showed,” BG head coach Louis Orr said. “We had guys keeping their confidence and coming in and helping us. I think we’re a more mature team.”
Craig Sealey had nine points and nine rebounds to lead the bench players. James Erger chipped in with two baskets, his first points of the season, including a big 3-pointer, and Chauncey Orr converted a three-point play despite losing a shoe on the drive to the basket.
“The guys who came in did a great job,” Thomas said. “Everybody is playing their role and we know anybody can play and succeed on this team.”
Bowling Green had a nice 11-1 run early in the second half as Thomas hit two 3-pointers and Luke Kraus had one.
Then Erger’s three gave BG a 48-42 lead with 9:04 left in the game.
“It’s good to see James hit a shot,” Thomas said. “He doesn’t get many minutes ... It was real good to see him make shots, and they were both nothing but net, so that’s even better.”
A’uston Calhoun capped BG’s 3-point efforts with 3:01 left, pushing BG’s lead to 57-52. Calhoun had been on the bench for almost 10 minutes with four fouls, but his stroke was true on the three.
BG was up two when Sealey got a dunk off a Calhoun assist to increase BG’s lead to 60-56. UD hit one free throw with 1:33 left to make it 60-57, but BG then put things away at the free-throw line.
“They did a good job against our zone,” UD head coach Ran McCallum said about the Falcons. “They made three threes in a row that got them back in it and got (them) momentum.
“In the final couple of minutes they made the big shots; they made their free throws where we didn’t get the much-needed basket or the stop.”
In the first half BG built a 17-7 lead with 9:48 to play. Detroit then came back and tied the game at 20 with 3:20 left before the break. The Titans took a 27-26 lead into the half.
Detroit maintained a lead in the second half until BG’s 11-1 run. The game remained close and was tied at 52 with 5:22 left. The Falcons took the lead for good on Cameron Black’s hook shot in the lane with 4:50 left and then held on for the win.
Calhoun finished with 14 points and Thomas had 11. Dee Brown scored only five points, but had a career-high eight assists with no turnovers.
“Dee Brown did a great job of getting into the lane and finding us,” Thomas said. “He hit Luke, James and I, all for a three. When your point-guard is able to get in and find the guys, that really helped us out. All the threes were open off drives and kicks.”
Coach Orr also appreciated the effort of Brown.
“He played with great poise,” coach Orr said. “At times he’s been our best point-guard on our team. He made some good decisions.”
The Falcons now 3-1 overall faces George Washington tonight at 7:30 p.m. GW, also 3-1, edged Austin Peay 54-52 in Tuesday’s first game. Both BG and George Washington are 2-0 in the subregional. Austin Peay, 0-5, plays Detroit, 2-3, at 5 tonight.
NOTES: BG had assists on 14 of its 24 baskets ... The Falcons finished with 26 points in the paint, 25 points off UD’s 21 turnovers, and 24 points off the bench ... Detroit dressed only nine players for the game and were hurt when Nick Minnerath had to leave the game with a knee injury with 17:43 remaining in the first half ... Minnerath, who was averaging 15.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, did not return.
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