Roles are still being defined on Bowling Green’s men’s basketball team and there’s plenty of questions to
be answered.
It’s still being determined which player or players can and will be the defensive stopper; who’s going to
hit the big shot when needed; and who’s willing to carry the team on his back. CLICK
HERE TO VIEW PHOTO GALLERY
Those things were painfully missing Saturday afternoon when Bowling Green held a 74-69 lead with 1:20
remaining in regulation against Wisconsin-Milwaukee in Anderson Arena.
The Falcons did not score again in regulation, missing two free throws and turning the ball over once.
The Spartans scored the final five points to send the game to overtime. UWM had two shots to win the
game in the final seconds, but missed a 14-foot jumper from just inside the foul line and a 6-foot
jumper from the baseline after the rebound.
Wisconsin-Milwaukee then controlled the final 2:15 in overtime, out-scoring Bowling Green 11-3 to gain
the 90-83 victory.
“There were some good things that we did. But in order for us to do what we do, it starts at the
defensive end. And we’ve got to learn to close games out,” BG head coach Louis Orr said.
The overall effort was improved for the Falcons, now 1-3 overall, after road losses to Xavier (by 44
points) and to Iowa (by 22 points), but Bowling Green’s defense did not stop UWM when needed. And the
Falcons only made one basket in overtime.
“The bottom line was we didn’t get stops, we played tag as coach always says. It was they score, we
score, back and forth,” said BG junior Joe Jakubowski, from Rossford.
“We had the momentum and were getting some confidence (late in regulation). They just hit a few shots.
They got on a little run,” Jakubowski continued. “We didn’t play good individual defense, we didn’t play
good team defense. It’s something that we need to work on because we’re not going to win many games
playing they way we played.
“I’m one of the biggest offenders. I need to pick up my defense and so does everyone else.”
Bowling Green led by seven points midway through the first half.
Fueled by its outside shooting, 7-of-17 on 3-pointers in the first half, UWM went on a run and led by 12,
35-23, with 4:21 to play in the half. The Falcons scored the final eight points of the first half to
trail 35-21 at the break. A dunk by Otis Polk over Jason Averkamp spared the late run.
The game remained close in the second half. Scott Thomas’ layup gave BG a 74-69 lead with 1:20 remaining
in regulation.
Rick Franklin then spoiled things, hitting a jumper and converting a three-point play in the final minute
to gain the tie. He also made a good move to get open, but missed the 14-footer in the final seconds.
In overtime a pair of Thomas free throws gave BG an 80-79 lead with 2:38 remaining. Averkamp then nailed
a 3-pointer from the right corner to put the Spartans ahead to stay. BG was within three, 86-83 after
Jakubowski’s 3-pointer
with 21.8 seconds left. The Spartans then made four free throws in the final 10.8 seconds and BG missed
two 3-pointers
“It was a tough pill to swallow because we didn’t close the game out,” Orr said. “But the fact that we
had a chance to win the game, late in the game, is a step in the right direction.
“We made some strides, but it wasn’t good enough,” he added. “Eighty-three points is more than enough to
win the game.”
Six Falcons scored in double figures for the Falcons led by Jakubowski’s 16 points and including a
double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds from Otis Polk. Also 5-foot-6 freshman Jordan Crawford
provided a lot of energy in his 19 minutes off the bench, scoring 13 points and adding five rebounds,
two assists, three steals with two turnovers.
”Jordon’s a little sparkplug. He’s really quick. He can really be a pest on defense,” Jakubowski said.
“He gave us energy … We fed off his energy, got on a little run and got confidence through him.
“He did well tonight. He keeps doing that, he’ll help us a lot this year.”
NOTES: On Monday Bowling Green hosts Florida International, coached by former NBA great Isiah Thomas,
with tipoff at 7 p.m. … UWM’s starting center James Eayers was listed as 6-7, 310 pounds … Both
teams scored 38 points in the paint and BG scored 17 points off turnovers to 16 for UWM … Kate Achter,
a former standout on BG women’s basketball team did the color commentary for BCSN’s broadcast of the
game.
