EAST LANSING, Mich.- The Bowling Green State University men's basketball team challenged the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday (Nov. 16), leading for over 24 minutes of game time. In the first half, the Falcons jumped out to a 15-6 lead before growing the advantage to 12 with a 40-28 score. Michigan State worked to tie the game up before half, 43-43. Bowling Green again claimed the advantage in the second half, leading by as many as eight, but the Spartans closed out the game with an 18-0 run for the 86-72 final score. Bowling Green will return home for their next game, hosting Niagara on Tuesday (Nov. 19) for their final home game in November. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Michigan State tallied the first points of the game, but a 6-0 run put the Falcons in front thanks to four points from Marcus Johnson and two from Javontae Campbell.
• A three from Johnson continued his hot start before Trey Thomas joined the three-point party, pushing the BGSU lead to 12-6. Youssef Khayat converted three free throws at the line to make it a 6-0 BGSU run and 15-6 lead.
• The Spartans ended the run with the next BGSU buckets coming as second-chance points from Khayat and Johnson, pushing the score to 19-12.
• Michigan State showed life with a 4-0 burst, cutting into the lead 19-16, but a transition triple from Thomas followed by an alley oop dunk for Jamai Felt off a Braelon Green lob gave BGSU a 5-0 run and 24-16 advantage.
• Another 4-0 Spartan burst trimmed the lead to 24-20, but back-to-back buckets from Johnson, first a hook shot and then a turnaround jumper, answered back for a 28-20 score.
• Michigan State tallied a bucket, but layups from Green and Thomas continued to add to the Bowling Green advantage, reaching 32-22. MSU added two points at the line for a 32-24 tally at the under-8 media timeout.
• MSU and BGSU traded buckets with Campbell scoring six-straight on the BGSU end, keeping the Falcon lead at 10. Khayat sank a hook shot to push the lead to 12 for the Falcons, 40-28, the largest BGSU lead in the game.
• Michigan State put together a 5-0 run, all at the free throw line, but Khayat, for the second time in the game, made three free throws in one trip to push the BGSU lead back to 10, 43-33, with under three minutes left in the first half.
• The Spartans closed out the first half with a 10-0 run, tying the score at 43-43 going into the halftime locker room. 
• Each team added two points to their tally to start the second half, but a three by Michigan State granted them a 48-45 lead, their first lead since leading 2-0 to start the contest. The scoring turned into a 7-0 Michigan State run with a 50-45 lead.
• Campbell put the Falcons back on the board with a layup soon followed by a Sam Towns three, cutting the score back down to one possession at 52-50 MSU.
• The two teams traded free throws for a 54-52 score, but a tip-in off a rebound by Towns tied the game at 54-54. 
• Michigan State pushed back ahead with a jumper, but Johnson answered for BGSU, starting a 10-0 run for the Falcons. Khayat followed with an and-one on a fast break before Towns hit another three. Felt capped off the run with a second chance layup, making it a 64-56 BGSU lead with just under 11 minutes remaining in the game.
• Six-straight free throws for Michigan State chipped away at the score followed by back-to-back dunks for a 10-0 run of their own, reclaiming the lead. Another Johnson jumper tied it back up at 66-66 with just under nine minutes remaining. 
• Michigan State moved back in front with two free throws, but the Falcons put together a 6-0 run. Johnson and Campbell got layups to fall before two Campbell free throws made it a 72-68 BGSU lead.
• From there, Michigan State put together an 18-0 run to close the game, taking the 86-72 final.

STAT LEADERS

• Marcus Johnson: 23 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
• Javontae Campbell: 14 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
• Youssef Khayat: 13 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, 1 assist
• Sam Towns: 8 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal
• Trey Thomas: 8 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal

FALCON STAT FACTS

• As a team, the Falcons went 13-of-14 at the free throw line for a 92.9% mark. This is the first time BGSU has shot above 90% at the line this season. 
• Marcus Johnson led the Falcons in points, registering his first 20-point game of the season finishing with 23. After making 10 threes over the last two games, Johnson did his damage this time around from inside the arc, making just one three while adding four free throws and nine total field goals.
• Johnson also led the team in rebounding with a season-high five and tied for the team-lead in assists as one of five different players with two assists for the Falcons. 
• Javontae Campbell followed in the scoring column with 14 points while leading the team in steals with a pair. Campbell added a season-high four rebounds as well.
• Johnson and Campbell have both registered double-digit points in all four of BGSU's games this season. 
• Youssef Khayat played a team-high 37 minutes in the game and recorded a season-high 13 points. Khayat was perfect at the free throw line, shooting 7-for-7 at the stripe. He added a career-high two blocks as well. 
• Sam Towns tallied a season-high eight points for the Falcons. After entering the night with eight career threes, Towns hit two in the game, going 2-for-2 behind the arc after making just one three all of last season on six attempts. 
• Jamai Felt contributed just shy of nine minutes of action for the Falcons, rejecting two of BGSU's four blocks in the game. Felt added four points and three rebounds off the bench. 

UP NEXT
Bowling Green will return home for their next contest, hosting Niagara on Tuesday (Nov. 19) at the Stroh Center. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip and will mark the final home game in the month of November for the Falcons. 

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