Bowling Green starts its six-game swing through the Mid-American Conference West tonight at Toledo.
Tipoff is at 7:30 and the game will be televised on SportsTime Ohio.
The rivalry leads to "some added emotions, mainly for the players and the fans, probably more so for
the fans and the alumni," BG head coach Louis Orr said. "For me as a coach, it’s always the
next game is the biggest game of the year. That’s the way I coach.
"In the big picture, it’s one of 16 MAC games and we’re trying to win every game we play to put
ourselves in the best position when it’s all said and done."
Two players are averaging in double figures, Scott Thomas (11.0 ppg) and A’uston Calhoun (10.3 ppg) for
the Falcons, 8-11 overall and in a four-way tie for first in the MAC East at 3-2. The Falcons are coming
off a 63-58 loss at Akron.
TURNOVERS: Bowling Green is one of the top teams in the country in terms of forcing turnovers this year.
The Falcons rank seventh in the nation in steals per game (9.84 per game) and are third in the country
in steal percentage, picking up a steal on 14.2 percent of its opponents’ possessions.
SCOUTING UT: Toledo is rebuilding under new head coach Tod Kowalczyk. The Rockets are 4-15 overall and
1-4 in the MAC with one win in their last seven games. All four of UT’s wins have been at home.
"On the road, you expect every team to be comfortable in their own gym," Orr said.
Toledo is coming off a 70-60 loss to MAC West leader MAC Ball State.
BG will be faced with defending guards Malcolm Griffin and Reese Holliday.
Griffin, a 6-foot-4 sophomore, has scored 20 or more points in each of his last three games including 25
in the loss to Ball State. Griffin is the only Rocket averaging in double figures at 12.7 ppg.
Holliday, a 6-4 freshman, has four double-doubles this season and had 13 points and a game-high 11
rebounds in the loss to Ball State. Holliday is averaging 9.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.
Zach Leahy, a Rossford High School graduate, has played in 17 games for the Rockets, with four starts.
The 6-0 freshman is averaging 18.1 minutes and 4.9 points per game.
The Rockets are averaging only 58.0 points a game and have turned the ball over an average of 15.8 times
per game.
"Tod is trying to lay a foundation, being a first-year coach with the team, on how he wants them to
play," Orr said. "That foundation is key because that’s what you build on."
Kowalczyk, and the other members of the coaching staff, will wear bow ties in support of cancer research
and funding during the game.
NEXT: Bowling Green hosts Eastern Michigan Saturday with tipoff at 3 p.m.