Falcon Fodder

Your questions, my answers – Nov. 30

"Rocky” e-mailed me: Shame on you for saying the Temple game was a big win [for the men’s basketball team]. Temple didn’t have two of its stars, and I’m sure they didn’t get very excited to play BG, especially on the road. How big of a deal was that game, really?

Dear Rocky: It was a big, big, BIG deal.

Before we discuss this game, here are links to a few stories about the contest. Click here to read my game story about the contest, and click here to read the BiG Look at the win. And click here to read Dave Hackenberg writing a column about how important the win was to the Falcons.

First, there was a kernel of truth in Rocky’s e-mail. Temple was minus two players, although the Owls already had posted a 3-1 record without senior guard Scootie Randall, a pre-season All-Atlantic 10 third team choice. Losing 6-11 Micheal Eric, who was averaging 10.5 points and 11.3 rebounds per game, just two days before the contest is a bigger blow because Temple had little time to adjust to his loss.

But otherwise I disagree with the rant. Sure, a game against Duke might have given the Owls sharper focus, but Bowling Green was the team on Temple’s schedule. Should we discount ALL upsets because one team may have “looked past” the other?

And you don’t get to pick when your injuries happen – and what player gets injured. It’s just a hazard teams have to deal with all the time. Using this logic, BG should get bonus credit for the victory because it came despite having Jordon Crawford not at 100 percent because of injuries.

Still, set those things aside and it’s STILL a big victory. Temple is a traditional basketball power, and it had won 12 straight games against MAC opponents – and had a 17-5 record against MAC schools since 2006.

What’s more, the Falcons can certainly say they played well enough to deserve the win. BG shot the ball well, making 55.8 percent of its shots from the floor, and shot consistently well – 53.6 percent in the first half, 55.8 percent in the second.

Bowling Green also won the rebounding battle 31-26, thanks in part to nine offensive rebounds. And BG committed just 11 turnovers, a solid number even considering the slow pace of the game.

Most importantly, the win over Temple showed that the Falcons were able to bounce back from a disappointing performance in the loss to George Washington. BG allowed the Colonials to shoot too well in that contest, and a loss to Temple meant the Falcons had slipped back to the .500 mark with a tough stretch of road games coming in December.

Instead Bowling Green will have some bounce in its step, knowing that it can put together a performance worthy of victory against just about any opponent.

Is that a big deal? Yes, it is.

Thanks for writing, John.

Have a question you would like me to answer? Post it as a comment (click on the "comments" link below) or send me an e-mail to jwagner@theblade.com. I will edit for clarity, length and style, but I promise you will recognize your question when you read it. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Samuel: Winning MAC award "best feeling"

Bowling Green freshman running back Anthon Samuel said he was "shocked" when he learned he was named the Mid-American Conference's top freshman football player.

"Honestly, I was shocked when I found out [I had won]," he said Monday. "It's the best feeling I've had in a while. It's an honor, and it's a big accomplishment early in my career."

Samuel was voted MAC freshman of the year, one of six specialty awards the league announced.

Six of his teammates also were honored as senior wide receiver Kamar Jorden, junior defensive tackle Chris Jones, sophomore punter Brian Schmiedebusch and junior linebacker Dwayne Woods were voted All-MAC first team by the league's coaches, while sophomore rover BooBoo Gates was named second team All-MAC as a kickoff return specialist, and senior center Ben Bojicic was voted to the third team.

Samuel set a BG record for rushing yardage for a freshman by posting 844 yards in nine games. Samuel ranked fifth in the MAC and 37th nationally with his average of 93.8 yards per game; he ranks third nationally among freshman at FBS schools, and is the top-ranked "true" freshman.

But winning this type of honor wasn't his goal when he came to Bowling Green in August.

"My goal was to come here and to help this program win," he said. "I just wanted to have a good season."

Don't think Samuel didn't have aggressive goals when he joined the Falcons for fall drills.

"[Earning the starting job] definitely was my goal when I came here," he said. "I wasn't afraid to compete, to fight for the starting job."

Samuel ran for at least 100 yards in five of his nine games, including a season-best 141 yards on 22 carries in his first-ever game, at Idaho on Sept. 1.

"After that first game, I realized I could make it happen [and start at BG]," Samuel said. "I knew if I continued to work hard in practice and continued to play hard in games, I could meet my goal. That first game was a confidence booster. After that, I knew I could do anything I put my mind to."

Samuel had 122 yards on 11 attempts against Morgan State while running for 121 yards on 16 carries at Miami -- a day that included a 96-yard TD run, the longest rush in school history. Samuel's other 100-yard days came in a 25-carry, 105-yard effort against Toledo and a 18-rush, 112-yard day against Temple.

"I'll never forget that 96-yard run against Miami," he said. "It was our first conference game, and we were leading by seven but were on our four-yard line. If they stopped us, they would have a chance to score and beat us.

"The coaching staff believed in me, even though I had fumbled in the same place the week before. The offensive line did a great job of blocking, and I saw a crease. I made one guy miss, and then I just ran."

Samuel is the third Falcon to be named MAC freshman of the year. The others were Brian McClure in 1982 and Kurt Gerling in 1998.

"This off-season I want to gain weight, be stronger, be faster, and run through tackles," Samuel said. "Next year I want to have an even bigger impact on this team."

Samuel received the freshman honor in a vote of MAC News Media Association. The other honors announced today were Northern Illinois' Chandler Harnish as the league's offensive player of the year and Vern Smith Leadership Award winner; Drew Nowak of Western Michigan as the league's defensive player of the year; Matt Weller of Ohio named as the special teams player of the year; and Eastern Michigan's Ron English was the coach of the year.

Samuel named MAC's top freshman; six named All-MAC

Bowling Green freshman running back Anthon Samuel was named the Mid-American Conference's top freshman football player, while six of his Falcon teammates were named to the All-MAC team, the league announced Wednesday.

Samuel was voted MAC freshman of the year, one of six specialty awards the league announced. Four BG players -- senior wide receiver Kamar Jorden, junior defensive tackle Chris Jones, sophomore punter Brian Schmiedebusch and junior linebacker Dwayne Woods -- were voted All-MAC first team by the league's coaches.

Sophomore rover BooBoo Gates was named second team All-MAC as a kickoff return specialist, while senior center Ben Bojicic was voted to the third team. The All-MAC teams were selected in a vote of the league's coaches.

The four Falcons to receive All-MAC first team honors were the most since 2004.

Samuel received the freshman honor in a vote of MAC News Media Association. The other honors announced today were Northern Illinois' Chandler Harnish as the league's offensive player of the year and Vern Smith Leadership Award winner; Drew Nowak of Western Michigan as the league's defensive player of the year; Matt Weller of Ohio named as the special teams player of the year; and Eastern Michigan's Ron English was the coach of the year.

Samuel set a BG record for rushing yardage for a freshman by posting 844 yards in nine games. Samuel ranked fifth in the MAC and 37th nationally with his average of 93.8 yards per game; he ranks third nationally among freshman at FBS schools, and is the top-ranked "true" freshman.

Samuel ran for at least 100 yards in five of his nine games, including a season-best 141 yards on 22 carries in his first-ever game, at Idaho on Sept. 1. He also had 122 yards on 11 attempts against Morgan State while running for 121 yards on 16 carries at Miami -- a day that included a 96-yard TD run, the longest rush in school history. Samuel's other 100-yard days came in a 25-carry, 105-yard effort against Toledo and a 18-rush, 112-yard day against Temple.

Samuel is the third Falcon to be named MAC freshman of the year. The others were Brian McClure in 1982 and Kurt Gerling in 1998.

Jorden was named to the All-MAC first team for the second straight season after catching 78 passes for 1,089 yards and 12 touchdowns. Jorden's yardage total was the fourth-highest in school history -- just shy of the 1,109 yards he had in 2010 -- and made him the first receiver in BG annals to surpass 1,000 yards receiving in two different seasons.

Jorden ranked fourth in the MAC in both receptions per game (6.5) and receiving yards per contest (90.8).

Jones stepped up to the first team after being voted to the third team last season. In 2011 Jones had 47 tackles, including 8.5 sacks and 14 tackles for loss. Jones tied for the MAC lead in sacks with 0.71 per game and tied for fourth in tackles for loss with an average of 1.17 per game.

Schmiedebusch had 57 punts for 2,583 yards for an average of 45.3 yards per kick. Schmiedebusch had 19 punts of 50 yards or more (33.3 percent), including an 81-yard boot, and landed 18 punts inside the opponent's 20-yard line (31.6 percent), with just eight touchbacks.

As a team, the Falcons led the MAC and ranked fifth nationally with an average of 40.56 yards per punt.

Woods moved up from second team All-MAC last season to first team this year. Woods led the Falcons with 111 tackles, including 57 solo stops, and ranked seventh in the league with his average of 9.2 tackles per contest.

Woods tied Jones for the team lead in tackles for loss with 14 to tie for fourth in the MAC with 1.17 per game. He also caused two fumbles and recovered two fumbles, intercepted one pass and broke up another, and also had one quarterback "hurry."

Gates received All-MAC honors for the first time in his career after returning 38 kickoffs for a total of 981 yards, setting a school record for return yardage. Gates ranked fourth in the MAC and 28th nationally with his average of 25.8 yards per return, thanks in part to an 88-yard kickoff return for a TD against Toledo.

Bojicic gave stability to an offensive line that struggled in 2011. Bojicic started all 12 games for the Falcons -- six at center and six at left tackle -- and helped BG average 122.9 rushing yards per game, nearly double its total from the previous season.

Twitter feed from BG women's win over Western Kentucky

Man, I Tweet a lot during games. Want to read what I've Tweeted, all conveniently combined in one file? Your wish is my command (earliest Tweets are at the bottom, most-recent at the top) ...

#BGSU women's hoops: Final from the Stroh Center is #BG 86, Western Kentucky 62. #Falcons win 3rd row (3-2); WKU is 1-6.

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#BGSU women's hoops: The Stroh goes cold... #BG 11-27 from field (40.7%), 1-7 3's (14.3%); WKU is 10-for-28 field (35.7%), 5-12 FTs (41.7%)

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#BGSU women's hoops: DId I mention #BG's 84 points also are a season high? #Falcons lead 84-54 at 3:46 media timeout.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #BG getting killed on boards in 2nd half ... WKU has 25 rebs this half, #BG 12.

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#BGSU women's hoops: Career point highs 2nite 4 Steffen (24), Halfhill (22), Stein (10), Hoekstra (5) & Ogle (2). #BG leads 84-52 4:44 2nd.

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#BGSU women's hoops: And did I mention the two teams are 5-for-11 on FTs (not good, either) in 2nd half. #coolingoffliketheweather

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#BGSU women's hoops: Remember that hot-shooting 1st half? Forget it. #BG & WKU are 13-for-39 (33.3%) in 2nd half, including 1-for-8 on 3's.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons lead 76-45 at 7:55 media timeout. Steffen has 24, Halfhill 22 and Rogers 10.

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#BGSU women's hoops: Steffen drives for layup, now has career-high 24 points.

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#BGSU women's hoops: W/ 9:01 left it's #BG 74, WKU 43. #Falcons have forced 19 turnovers and 34.7% shooting from 'Toppers.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #BG 6-for-15 from field 2nd half (40%), WKU is 2-for-11 (18.2%). BG leads 74-36 w/ 11 minutes left.

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#BGSU women's hoops: Halfhill & Steffen each have 22 points (Halfhill 5-for-5 on 3's, Steffen 3-for-4); Rogers has 10 pts. Rebs are 26-24 WK

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#BGSU women's hoops: At 11:45 media timeout it's #BG 71, Western Kentucky 36. #Falcons already at season point high w/ LOTS of time left ...

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#BGSU women's hoops: #BG leads WKU 66-36. Chrissy Steffen just got a death stare from Curt Miller. She seems to have recovered on bench, tho

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#BGSU women's hoops: To start 2nd half, #BG & WKU combined for 2-for-11 from field, 0-for-4 3's, 1-for-4 from line. #wheredidhotshootinggo?

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons are 1-for-6 from field to start 2nd half ... but no worries, because they lead 62-32 at 15:50 media timeout.

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#BGSU women's hoops: After 60-point 1st half, it took #BG 3 minutes to score 1st bucket of 2nd half. Still lead 62-31 w/ 16:29 left in 2nd.

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#BGSU women's hoops: So who gets the rebound when the ball is stuck on the rim? #lifesunansweredquestions

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#BGSU women's hoops: Halftime from the Stroh, and #BG leads WKU 60-29. Stats, thoughts are more are right here ... bit.ly/tkgx0E

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#BGSU women's hoops: Halftime at the Stroh ... #BG leads Western Kentucky 60-29. Officially a Stroh Center record for points in a half.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons officially 99-for-100 on 3's. Well, ONLY 10-for-11 (90.9%). Just seems like 99-for-100.

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Yes. Yes we can. RT @jknavel: @jwagnerblade Can we call the Stroh a shooter's gym? GW goes 10/11 on 3's; BGSU women now 8/9. Wow.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons crack 50 points w/ 2:48 left in 1st half. 20-for-28 from field (71.4%). Is that #scorching or #whitehot?

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons lead 49-27 at 3:06 media timeout. For the record, #BG's season high for points is 71 (in 40 minutes).

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#BGSU women's hoops: Jillian Halfhill w/ 3 minutes left in 1st half ... 5-for-6 from field, 4-for-4 on 3's (2-for-2 on FTs), 16 points.

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#BGSU women's hoops: WKU calls time w/ 5:06 left and #BG leading 44-25. #Falcons are 17-for-24 (70.8%) from field, 7-for-8 on 3's (87.5%).

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@zach_greenwell 'Toppers are 10-for-20 from field, but also have 8 turnovers and are "only" leading 11-7 on boards. That won't be good enuf.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons are 14-for-19 from field & here's why ... Rogers is 4-for-4 (10 pts), Stein 3-for-3 (6), Halfhill 3-for-4 (11)

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons lead 37-21 at 7:43 media timeout. #BG is 14-for-19 from field (73.7 percent), and that's considered good.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #BG finally misses its 1st 3-pointer ... at 11:26 of 1st half -- after making their 1st 5. Still 28-12 #BG.

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#BGSU women's hoops: Halfhill leads #BG with 11 points, while Steffen has 6 & Rogers has 5. 6 #Falcons have scored already.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons lead WKU 28-12 at 11:35 media timeout. #BG has forced 8 turnovers & is even on boards (rebounds are 5-5).

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#BGSU women's hoops: WKU calls time at 11:52 1st half & #BG leading 28-12. #Falcons are 10-for-13 field (76.9%), including 5-for-5 on 3's.

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#BGSU women's hoops: This is getting silly ... #BG now 5-for-5 on 3's (3 different shooters); #Falcons lead 25-12 w/ 12:32 left

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#BGSU women's hoops: What shooting woes? #Falcons now 4-for-4 on 3's ... lead 22-12 w/ 13:18 left in 1st half.

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#BGSU women's hoops: #Falcons are 3-for-3 on 3-pointers; #BG leads 19-11 w/ 13:58 left in 1st half.

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#BGSU women's hoops: Halfhill already has 5 pts for #Falcons; she's 1-for-2 from field, made a 3-pointer and 2-2 FTs.

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#BGSU women's hoops: Falcons lead WKU 13-7 at 15:11 media timeout. #Falcons are 5-for-7 from field; WKU is 2-for-4 w/ 4 turnovers.

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#BGSU women's hoops: Dr. Mazey on #BG bench, sitting between Maribeth Giese & Simone Eli. #scarycombination #beniceladies

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#BGSU women's hoops: Pre-game notes from the Stroh as #BG hosts Western Kentucky. Lineups, notes & more right here ... bit.ly/voNKrJ

If you're crazy enough to want to follow me, you can do so at ... jwagnerblade JWagnerBlade

BiG look at Western Kentucky victory

The BG women's basketball team posted an 86-62 win over Western Kentucky at the Stroh Center Tuesday. The Falcons shot 71.9 percent from the field in the first half, making 10-of-11 3-pointers, to score 60 points in the first half. Let's take a closer look ...

BiG TWITTER POST: Falcons shoot 71.9% from field in first half, including 90.9% on 3-ptrs, 2 score 60 points on way to 86-62 win over Western Kentucky Tuesday

BiG GAME STORY: The Falcons scored on 8-of-10 possessions early in the first half to build a 26-12 lead with 12:23 to play. BG made its first five 3-pointers in that stretch, and eventually used a 15-2 field to lead 60-29 at halftime. The Falcons made 23-of-32 shots from the field (71.9 percent), including 10-of-11 3-pointers (90.9 percent), to reach 60 points. In the second half BG cooled off, but still led by as many as 38 points before the Hilltoppers used a 12-2 finish to reach the final score.

BiG OVERVIEW: Chrissy Steffen made 10-of-16 shots from the field, including 3-of-6 3-pointers, to finish with a career-high 24 points. ... Jillian Halfhill made 7-of-8 shots from the floor, including 5-of-5 3-pointers, to score a career-high 22 points. ... Jill Stein made 5-of-6 shots from the field to score 10 points. ... Alexis Rogers made 4-of-5 shots from the floor, including 2-of-3 3-pointers, to finish with 10 points.

BiG PLAY: Bowling Green used a play early in the contest to get Alexis Rogers a touch in the low post. She scored at the 19:19 mark of the first half, and she had 10 points in the first half to help get the Falcons rolling. "We got her an easy basket early in the game, and I think that was a pressure release, that she found a way to score," coach Curt Miller said.

BiG PLAYER OF THE GAME: Sophomore guard Jillian Halfhill put together a strong offensive performance, scoring 22 points in 25 minutes. Her shooting was nearly flawless as she made 7-of-8 shots from the floor, including 5-for-5 on 3-pointers, and also made all three free throws she attempted. Halfhill also finished with three rebounds and three assists.

BiG NUMBERS: Shooting better than 70 percent from the floor for a half was impressive. Making 10-of-11 3-pointers was amazing. But scoring 60 points in a half is BiG. The last time the Falcons scored 60 points in a half was in the second game of the 2004-05 season, in the second half of a 115-84 win at IPFW. With Tuesday's huge output, BG could try some things and give a lot of players time on the court without risking a loss.

BiG NOTE: Remember when play was stopped very early in the contest, and the officials looked at the basketball before replacing it with another ball. BG's Jillian Halfhill and Chrissy Steffen said the reason the ball was replaced was because it was a men's basketball, which is larger than the basketball used in the women's game.

BiG QUESTION: Shooting problems? Did anyone see a BG team having shooting problems? OK, things slowed down in the second half, but the first half caused coach Curt Miller to substitute liberally in the second half, which caused some unevenness. It's too much to ask a team to repeat a 70-percent shooting day ... but can the Falcons consistently shooting 53.8 percent from the field for a whole game? That was Tuesday's game total, so it's obviously possible.

BiG QUOTES: "Obviously that was a fantastic first half offensively -- I wish we could bottle that," coach Curt Miller said. "We wanted to play better offensively than we have in past games. ... I'm excited about that first half. We haven't seen many first halves like that in our career."

"The challenge for a young team at halftime was to show we could come out and still play with maturity and determination," Miller said. "Things got away from us a little bit in the second half, especially in the rebounding."

"I know the final stats sheet shows they outrebounded us by 19 -- and they did beat us on the boards handily in the second half," Miller said. "But we really, really competed with them on the boards in the first half, and I was proud of that." The Falcons outrebounded WKU 16-15 in the first half. In the second half the Hilltoppers outrebounded BG 35-15, including 15 offensive rebounds. WKU's Keshia Mosley outrebounded BG 16-15 in the second half."

"My coaching contributed to there not being a great flow to the second half," Miller admitted. "By trying to get a lot of people some minutes, I contributed to a half that wasn't as good [as the first half]. But I felt it was important to get everyone into the game."

On having president Mazey on the bench for the game. "Don't underestimate what that presence does to young people," Miller said. "The president of the university is on the bench, and in the pre-game talk. She's the CEO of the university, so don't underestimate the intensity that [her presence] gave us. It's not common to have the president sitting on the bench for a women's basketball game. We didn't take it lightly; the kids were honored."

"Our objective was to look for the open shot -- and to take it when you're open," Jillian Halfhill said. "I think we did that. We tried to make the extra pass, and we were confident shooters."

Is is hard to stay confident when you're struggling with shooting early in the season? "It's hard to stay confident when you're missing shots," Chrissy Steffen admitted. "Coach Miller keeps telling us to shoot, shoot, shoot. And I think that's what we did tonight: we didn't think about it, we just shot it. For our team, we really needed it."

"When you make your first shot, and other people start making shots, you feel like, 'We have this,' " Halfhill said. "In practice we make shots all the time. In the first four games we weren't 'whole' because we were getting a feel for each other. Now we have a feel for each other. With the way we shot today, coach Miller probably won't expect anything less."

BG women's hoops -- Halftime notes from the Stroh, 11/30

It's halftime at the Stroh Center, and the Falcons are destroying Western Kentucky 60-29. Here are a few stats and thoughts ...

BOWLING GREEN STATS:  The Falcons are a white-hot 23-for-32 from the field (71.9 percent), including 10-for-11 on 3-pointers (90.9 percent). BG also made 4-of-5 free throws. Jillian Halfhill already has 19 points (she's 6-for-7 from the field and 4-for-4 on 3-pointers), while Chrissy Steffen has 16 (she's 6-for-9 from the field and 3-for-4 on 3's) and Alexis Rogers has 10. Bowling Green has 15 rebounds (Halfhill, Rogers and Danielle Havel each have three) and has committed seven turnovers.

WESTERN KENTUCKY STATS: The Hilltoppers are 12-for-31 from the field (38.7 percent), including 2-for-4 on 3-pointers and 3-for-3 from the foul line. Western Kentucky is led by Vanessa Obafemi with eight points and Jasmine Johnson with six. WKU has 14 rebounds (LaTeira Owens has 3) and has committed 13 turnovers.

OFFENSIVE THOUGHTS: Man, no complaints. Are you kidding? The Falcons made 71.9 percent of their shots and were nearly perfect from the 3-point arc. It's worth noting that the Falcons even had four offensive rebounds. The turnovers are a touch high (BG has seven), but fine shooting masks all mistakes, doesn't it? Just an impressive effort through 20 minutes.

DEFENSIVE THOUGHTS: The Falcons did a decent job of making Western Kentucky's "bigs" work for their points. BG also forced 13 turnovers, which was what it needed to do to limit the success of the Hilltoppers offense. BG actually leads the rebounding battle 15-14, although WKU has eight offensive boards. Again, fine shooting covers up a lot of ills, doesn't it?

FOUL TROUBLE: For Bowling Green, no one has three fouls, although Alexis Rogers and Danielle Havel each have two. For Western Kentucky, Alexis Govan has three fouls, but no one else has more than one.

BG women's hoops -- Pre-game notes from the Stroh, 11/30

This season I am writing notes before and after Falcons' women's basketball games, as well as at halftime, including Tuesday's contest against Western Kentucky at the Stroh Center. This is a work in progress, so you're welcome to share comments, both good and bad, to make it the best it can be. Here we go ...

PROBABLE STARTERS:  The Falcons are going to go with Jillian Halfhill, Jessica Slagle and Chrissy Steffen at guard and Alexis Rogers and Danielle Havel along the frontline ... For Western Kentucky, the starting guards will be Alexis Govan, Chaney Means and Vanessa Obafemi, with LaTeira Owens at forward and Jasmine Johnson at center. That is a switch from what was expected: Teranie Thomas is the usual starter at forward, with Means entering the lineup.

INJURIES: For Bowling Green, freshman Kaila Hulls has been lost for the season with an ACL injury. She had her surgery the Friday before Thanksgiving, and is at the game tonight. ... junior Simone Eli will not be in uniform because of a hand injury, but is expected to return this weekend. ... senior Maribeth Giese has seen her career come to an end because of a medical problem. ... For Western Kentucky, freshman guard Danay Fothergill has suffered a leg injury and is on crutches. She will not dress for the contest. ... Sophomore guard Chaney Means suffered a broken nose, but she is in uniform. She is wearing a plastic mask on her face and is expected to play.

NOTES: Today's game is being televised on BCSN and can be heard on 88.1 FM.

FOR MORE INFO: Click here to read a scouting report on Western Kentucky. Click here to read the story in Tuesday's Blade previewing the Falcons.

BG women’s hoops -- Scouting report on Western Kentucky

Here's a more in-depth look at Western Kentucky, the Falcons' opponent Tuesday, Nov. 29, at the Stroh Center ...

OVERVIEW: The Hilltoppers of coach Mary Taylor Cowles enter this contest with a 1-5 record, with their lone victory a one-point win over Samford in the UAB Classic. Among their five losses are a setback at Duke and a 20-point home loss to Wright State. Last season the Hilltoppers finished with an 15-17 record, including a 9-7 mark that placed them third in the six-team Sun Belt Conference's East Division. Western Kentucky was picked to finish third in the Sun Belt East in the league's pre-season poll.

ALL-TIME MEETINGS: Bowling Green and Western Kentucky are meeting for just the second time, with the first meeting last season. In that game the Falcons made all 15 of their free throws to claim a 72-68 road victory.

PLAYERS TO WATCH: The Hilltoppers starting lineup includes four senior starters, led by forward LaTeira Owens, a pre-season All-Sun Belt second team pick. She is the only WKU player scoring in double figures at 12.5 points per game and also is in double figures in rebounds with 10.2 per contest. … Senior center Jasmine Johnson is Western Kentucky's second-leading rebounder with 6.5 rpg. She is averaging 5.2 ppg. … Freshman guard Danay Fothergill is the Hilltoppers' second-leading scorer even though she isn't a starter. Fothergill averages 8.7 ppg. … The rest of the starting lineup for Western Kentucky is expected to be senior Vanessa Obafemi (3.3 ppg) and freshman Alexis Govan (5.5 ppg) at guard, and senior Teranie Thomas (3.7 ppg) joining Owens at forward along with Johnson at center. ... The Hilltoppers have struggled with their shooting, making just 35.6 percent from the field (although they have the same percentage on 3-pointers). WKU also has turned the ball over 131 times in its first six contests.

BG KEYS TO VICTORY: 1. Take 'em and make 'em. The Falcons need to shoot better than the 31.5 percent mark they bring into the contest. This group is just too talented offensively to miss this many shots. 2. Status quo. Western Kentucky also is shooting poorly and committing a lot of turnovers, something BG has forced its first four opponents to do. The Falcons need to continue to do both of those things to have success against WKU. 3. No status quo. On thing that has to change is the rebounding. The Falcons are getting outrebounded by more than eight boards per game, and Western Kentucky is outrebounding opponents by exactly eight boards per game. BG needs to stay close in rebounding to limit WKU's second chances and create extra opportunities for itself.

GAME NOTES: Tipoff is at 7 p.m. ... This game will be televised on BCSN and can be heard on 88.1 FM. … The Falcons are looking for their second regular-season victory at the Stroh Center and third straight win overall. ... New university president Mary Ellen Mazey will serve as a "guest" coach for the contest. ... The next game for BG is at home against Butler on Saturday, Dec. 3 starting at 2 p.m.

Your questions, my answers – Nov. 29

“Puckman” e-mailed me: I was excited about the Falcons’ big win over Miami a few weeks back. Then they came home and played badly to lose twice the Alaska. Which of those games showed who the real Falcons are?

Dear Puckman: The simple answer is this: they both did.

First, let’s make sure we’re on the same page about the Miami game: It was a tie, and the Falcons won in a shootout. It’s not really a victory, but it sure was better than a slap in the face, right?

BG coach Chris Bergeron said Saturday’s performance was important not only because it showed the Falcons could compete with a national power, but it showed BG was able to bounce back from a disappointing effort Friday that could have easily snowballed in two losses.

“We were disappointed about what happened Friday, and it wasn’t because of the mistakes or the loss,” he said. “It was about the unwillingness to compete, and how exposed we got by a team that was willing to compete – and wanted it more. We won’t stand for that.

“And here we were on Saturday: we gave up the first goal, but the shoulders didn’t drop –- and we scored a goal to tie it. We gave up the second goal, but the shoulders didn’t drop -– and we scored a goal to tie it. We stuck with it. We kept fighting and kept fighting. Yes, we got outshot 2-to-1 and our ‘process’ was just OK. But we hung in there. I thought we were resilient, and we deserved [the positive result].”

I asked Bergeron if getting the points and hanging with Miami helped both players and coaches see that there may be light at the end of the tunnel.

“I will speak for myself with that –- this year I’ve struggled more with that,” he admitted. “I’ve questioned what I’m doing, just to make sure I’m thinking about all the things I can think of. … It was nice to see the guys were buying in to what we’re talking about: That if you give that kind of effort and focus, and compete at that level, you can get rewarded, even if you aren’t as talented as your opponent.”

So then the Falcons hosted Alaska, a team that entered the weekend series tied with BG at the bottom of the league standings with five points each.

“They don’t deserve their record,” Bergeron said before the series. “They are a team that keeps coming – they throw pucks at the net. They don’t care if they are at home or on the road – they just play. I feel these are going to be two close, tight-checking games.”

I was at Friday’s game, and it was a disappointment. The Nanooks outshot BG 21-5 in the first period, and only an outstanding effort by Andrew Hammond in goal allowed the Falcons to trail just 1-0. By game’s end, the final was 3-0, and after a 2-0 loss Saturday Bowling Green sits alone at the bottom of the CCHA standings.

Yes, it was a small home crowd, and the game was played during the holidays. But those are excuses, not explanations, for sub-standard play Friday night. Last weekend’s effort came in stark contrast to the previous weekend, when the Falcons found a way to lift their effort level to give themselves a chance to win.

Bowling Green is a young, inexperienced team that is learning what it takes to win games. The Miami win shows the Falcons know how to do it. The Alaska losses show BG is still learning how to do it consistently.

Thanks for writing, John.

Have a question you would like me to answer? Post it as a comment (click on the "comments" link below) or send me an e-mail to jwagner@theblade.com. I will edit for clarity, length and style, but I promise you will recognize your question when you read it. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Your questions, my answers – Nov. 28

Jeff e-mailed me: When does the MAC announce its football awards? Do you think any Falcons will be honored? Who did you vote for?

Dear Jeff: Wednesday. Yes. And I believe in the sanctity of the secret ballot.

Thanks for writ … what? You want more? OK, here goes ...

The Mid-American Conference is expected to announce the All-MAC teams on Wednesday, along with its major awards. To refresh your memory, the MAC’s major awards go to the coach of the year, offensive and defensive players of the year, special teams player of the year, and freshman of the year.

The coaches vote for the All-MAC team, while a collection of sportswriters, broadcasters and other know-it-alls vote for the other awards.

Personally, I do not think any Bowling Green players will receive the specialty awards, but several Falcons should be named to the All-MAC team. I would suspect Chris Jones, Dwayne Woods, Brian Schmiedebusch and Kamar Jorden will be honored, and it wouldn’t surprise me if some other Falcons are honored as well.

And this gives me an opportunity to visit a pet peeve: people who bang on “uninformed” voters, especially sportswriters. The chant that sportswriters are biased and don’t know what they’re talking about gets tossed about, when the truth of the matter is that people’s opinions are just different, not wrong.

Don’t believe me? Explain that to the fan I was talking to last week who was certain – “This is obvious,” the fan said – that Toledo’s Eric Page was the MAC’s offensive player of the year.

Obvious? Really? Man, I’m not certain he’s even the best receiver in the MAC (actually, I am certain. He's not. Western Michigan's Jordan White is).

So, would you please help me prove this ain’t as easy as it looks. Take a moment and tell me you YOU would vote for if you could vote for the awards. If you want to take a look at the major candidates, click here to read the MAC stats for the season, and click here if you’re really into it and want to read the MAC-games-only stats for the season.

Then take a second and use the "comments" section below this post to cast your votes for the five different awards (they are in paragraph three, in case you forget them). Then others can see -- and comment on -- your choices.

I promise I'll make my vote public -- after the awards are announced. After all, it is a secret ballot, right?

Thanks for writing – and voting, John.

Have a question you would like me to answer? Post it as a comment (click on the "comments" link below) or send me an e-mail to jwagner@theblade.com. I will edit for clarity, length and style, but I promise you will recognize your question when you read it. Looking forward to hearing from you!