BG men's basketball claims win at Miami

1/16/2018
BY JOHN WAGNER
BLADE SPORTS WRITER

OXFORD, Ohio — The Bowling Green State University men’s basketball team avenged a home loss to Miami in the two team’s Mid-American Conference opener by beating the RedHawks 81-70 at Millett Hall Tuesday.

The Falcons improved to 12-6 overall and 3-2 in the MAC as four players finished in double figures. Demajeo Wiggins led BG with 22 points and 15 rebounds, while Dylan Frye had 16 points, Rodrick Caldwell scored 12 and Daequon Plowden added 10 in the second half.

Nike Sibande scored 20 points to lead Miami (9-9, 2-3 MAC), while Jalen Adaway added 17. Freshman Dalonte Brown, a Bowsher High School graduate, had three points in 14 minutes for the RedHawks.

The first half was defined by runs, the first coming when Wiggins, a Springfield High School product, scored seven quick points to give the Falcons a 7-2 lead less than three minutes into the contest. After a Miami 3-pointer, BG responded with five more points to lead 12-5 at the 15:23 mark of the half.

But the RedHawks bounced back with a 19-6 run over the next eight minutes, allowing Miami to lead 24-18 with 7:37 on the clock.

Bowling Green’s Frye scored the game’s next seven points, though, lifting the Falcons to a 25-24 advantage with 4:55 still to play. From that point there were three lead changes and one tie, with the RedHawks holding a 32-30 halftime lead.

There were five ties and three lead changes in the early going of the second half before BG broke a 45-45 with a 12-4 run. Plowden scored eight straight points, including a pair of 3-pointers, and Antwon Lillard follow with the next four to give the Falcons a 57-49 lead with 8:51 to play.

After Miami crept closer with four consecutive points, Bowling Green broke the game open with a 10-1 spurt to lead 67-54 with 4:31 left in the half.

The RedHawks used one more run, a 7-0 push, to cut the Falcons lead to 69-62 with 2:13 remaining, but BG scored on six straight possessions – thanks in part to eight straight free throws made – to close out the win.

Bowling Green returns to the Stroh Center to host Central Michigan Saturday in a 3:30 p.m. contest. The program will honor the 1968 Mid-American Conference championship team, the last to represent the school in the NCAA Tournament, at that game.

Contact John Wagner at jwagner@theblade.com419-724-6481, or on Twitter @jwagnerblade.