TEMPE, Ariz. - The Bowling Green State University men's basketball team topped New Mexico State at the Arizona Tip Off on Saturday (Nov. 30) in exciting fashion. NMSU led, 60-56, with 1:14 left in regulation, but an and-one by Marcus Johnson pulled BGSU within one. Javontae Campbell added two more at the line to swing the score in the Falcons' favor. On the defensive end, Derrick Butler swatted away his first block with Bowling Green, securing the win for the Orange and Brown, 61-60. The win marks the 150th of Todd Simon's head coaching career in the collegiate ranks. Bowling Green will now return home for four of their next five contests.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Falcons opened the game with a 5-0 burst. Marcus Johnson started the scoring with a three followed by a layup from Derrick Butler for the quick advantage. 
• New Mexico State's first points came from two free throws. They added a layup for a 5-4 score at the first media timeout of the game.
• After the timeout, the Aggies added a pair of baskets for an 8-0 run and 8-5 NMSU lead. Johnson ended the run, making two at the line for an 8-7 score at the second media break.
• The Falcons ended a seven-minute drought from the field with a jumper from Butler, reclaiming the early lead, but a layup for New Mexico State swung the score back to them, 10-9.
• The bucket for the Aggies sparked a 5-0 run for NMSU with Braelon Green ending the run with a layup, keeping the Falcons within a possession, 13-11. The score held to the under-8 media timeout.
• The defensive matchup continued with the next points coming with just over six minutes left in the half. Johnson hit a three for the Falcons followed quickly by jumper the next time down. Johnson's back-to-back shots made it a 7-0 BGSU run over more than four-and-a-half minutes of game action. 
• New Mexico State scored, but Johnson hit back-to-back jumpers, scoring nine-straight BGSU points for a 20-15 lead at the final media timeout of the first half. For Johnson, he alone put together a 9-2 run for the Falcons.
• Coming out of the break, NMSU started battling back with a 4-0 run, but a Johnson layup halted the burst with a 22-19 BGSU lead.
• Johnson then tallied a steal, finding Green in transition for a layup. The Aggies answered with a layup of their own. Two NMSU free throws pulled New Mexico State within one, 24-23. 
• Jamai Felt joined the scoring column with a pair of free throws, sending the teams to halftime with the Falcons leading 26-23.
• Javontae Campbell started the second half scoring, hitting two free throws. NMSU hit a three, but Felt added two more at the line for the Falcons, making it a 30-26 score.
• The Aggies responded with a 5-0 burst, taking a 31-30 lead in the first media timeout of the second half.
• After the break, Butler connected on three free throws to swing the score back to BGSU, 33-31, but NMSU quickly tied it up at 33-33.
• Preston Squire hit a three for the Falcons to regain the lead with the Aggies making a layup to stay within one, 36-35.
• A Campbell make at the line extended the BGSU lead, but a New Mexico State layup tied the score back up at 37-37. 
• The trading of free throws began with one for NMSU followed by two for Butler, giving the Falcons a 39-38 lead. However, an Aggie three pushed them back in front 41-39.
• Campbell hit two more at the line for BGSU, tying the score up at 41-41. Campbell later hauled in a defensive rebound, scoring on the other end at the conclusion of the possession for a 43-41 Bowling Green lead.
• A 5-0 burst for New Mexico State pushed them back in front. Two Johnson free throws interrupted the run, but two more baskets for NMSU made it a 9-2 run with a 50-45 score for the Aggies at the under-8 media timeout.
• Campbell made a free throw for the Falcons, but a three pushed the Aggie lead to 53-46. Johnson added two more free throws to the BGSU tally.
• Johnson found Butler on an inbound pass with Butler hitting a three, but NMSU answered back with a three to make it a 56-51 score at the under-4 media timeout.
• Campbell hit two at the line followed by a transition triple by Butler to tie the game up at 56-56 with just under three-and-a-half minutes left.
• With a little over a minute left, New Mexico State hit a three to move back in front, adding a free throw for a 60-56 lead.
• Out of a BGSU timeout, Johnson got an and-one opportunity to fall, making the free throw for a 60-59 score.
• The Falcons forced a miss and grabbed the rebound, calling timeout. Campbell drove and was fouled, making both at the line for a 61-60 lead with 10 seconds left.
• New Mexico State worked for a couple looks, but a big block by Butler secured the win for the Falcons, 61-60.

STAT LEADERS

• Marcus Johnson: 23 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals
• Derrick Butler: 15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 1 steal
• Javontae Campbell: 12 points, 8 rebounds, 5 steals, 2 assists
• Jamai Felt: 4 points, 12 rebounds, 2 blocks

FALCON STAT FACTS

• With the win, head coach Todd Simon now has 150 as a head coach at the collegiate level.
• The Falcons did damage at the free throw line, shooting 26-of-30 at the stripe. The 26 makes are the most for BGSU this season and the first time eclipsing 20 since Feb. 20, 2024 against Central Michigan with 23. As for the 30 attempts, they are the most for BGSU since attempting 32 against Ohio Dominican on Dec. 10, 2023.
• Marcus Johnson led the Falcon offense with a team-high 23 points, his third 20-point game of the season. Johnson converted all seven of his free throw attempts while adding five rebounds and a team-high three assists to his stat line. He also swiped a season-high three steals in the game. 
• Derrick Butler put up 15 points in 39 minutes for the Falcons, playing 79 of BGSU's 80 minutes over the course of the two days. Butler matched his season-high for rebounds with five and added his second-straight 5-for-5 night at the line. Butler closed out the game with his first block as a Falcon, sealing the win for BGSU in the process. 
• Javontae Campbell continued his strong start to the season in the steal department. Entering the night with 18 on the year, Campbell registered a team-high five steals for the Falcons. He is the second Falcon this year with five steals in a game after DaJion Humphrey had five against Taylor. 
• Campbell added 12 points for the Falcons with 10 coming at the line. Campbell went 10-of-12 at the free throw line, his second time this season with those numbers, doing the same against Davidson. Campbell closed out his stat line with a career-high eight rebounds, finishing second on the team in the stat.
• Jamai Felt hauled in a team-high 12 rebounds for the Falcons. Not only is the mark a career-high for Felt, it's the most by any player on the BGSU roster in a Falcon uniform. Felt added a pair of blocks, now with seven on the season. 
• The win is the first for Bowling Green over New Mexico State in program history while also being the first meeting between the teams all-time. BGSU has now topped 266 different opponents in program history The win is also the first on the road for Bowling Green so far this season.  

UP NEXT
The Falcons will return home for their next game, scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 2. Bowling Green will welcome Morgan State to the Stroh Center for a 2 p.m. tip.  

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