BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Led by 33 points from fifth-year senior Justin Turner, the Bowling Green State University men's basketball team opened Mid-American Conference play on Sunday (Dec. 6) evening with an 86-78 victory over the University at Buffalo. The league opener for both schools was played inside the friendly confines of the Stroh Center.
 
The Falcons have now won four-straight games to improve to 4-1 in 2020-21. Buffalo, picked fourth in the MAC's preseason poll, falls to 1-2 on the young season.
 
BGSU led by two at the break, but needed to overcome a six-point deficit with just 6:26 left in regulation. Turner scored 20 of his 33 points in the final seven minutes, including 13 of Bowling Green's final 15 points.
 
Along with Turner, freshman guard Kaden Metheny and senior forward Trey Diggs each scored in double figures with 11 points and 10 points, respectively. Senior forward Daeqwon Plowden added eight points and a game-high 10 rebounds.

Athens, Ohio - Sophomore guard Lunden McDay (Akron, Ohio) scored a career-high 20 points and senior forward Dwight Wilson III's (Tallahassee, Fla.) first half double-double led the way for Ohio as the Ohio men's basketball team (3-1) defeated Cleveland State (0-2), 101-46, at the Convocation Center Sunday afternoon (Dec. 6). 

"I'm really proud of our guys for bringing the energy and effort level for 40 minutes," second year head coach Jeff Boals said. "It was one big thing coming into the game we were really concerned about with Cleveland State. They couldn't come in here and exceed our energy or effort level. I thought we got off to a great start, the first couple wars of the game. Even at halftime we talked about being a mature team, being a disciplined team. We wrote zero zero on the board at halftime. Even though we were up 26, we're just really proud of the way our guys came out and extended that lead. Even when you get as big of a lead that we got, sometimes the second, third guys come in and it can get a little sloppy. I thought our guys did a great job of really trying to execute and do what we do. I'm just proud of them."

The Bobcats set a NCAA record for scoring run against a Division I opponent with a 40-0 run to open the second half beginning at 43 seconds remaining in the first half and ending at 8:03 in the second half. The previous record was a 39-0 run in a game between Oklahoma and Weber State on December 22, 2014. Oklahoma led 10-4 with 13:23 left in the first half and the run ended at 49-4 at 1:53. 

McDay would end the day with 20 points, shooting 7-of-10 from the field, 3-of-5 from three-point range and going 3-4 from the line. Senior Dwight Wilson III (Tallahassee, Fla.) posted a double-double in the first half, ending the day with 18 points and 14 rebounds. Junior Jason Preston (Orlando, Fla.) scored 12 points, grabbing seven rebounds and eight assists. Off the bench, junior Rifen Miguel (Luanda, Angola) scored a career-high 10 points going 7-of-8 from the free-throw line while freshman guard Mark Sears (Muscle Shoals, Ala.) had a career-high nine points. 

McDay set a career high in points scored with 20, field goals made with seven, and tied both his three-point made at three and three-point attempts at five. Wilson III set a career high in free-throws attempted with seven. Redshirt junior forward Ben Vander Plas (Ripon, Wis.) tied his career best in blocks with two and Sears set a career record in points with nine and assists with four.

The last time Ohio scored over 100 points was on December 1, 2018 against Marshall.

For Cleveland State, Deante Johnson led the team with seven points, six rebounds, and an assist, while Jayson Woodrich added seven points and one rebound. 

Ohio went 59.3 percent from the field, 33.3 percent from three-point range, and 64.9 percent from the free-throw line. Cleveland State shot 22.8 percent from the field, 13 percent from the three-point range, and 81 percent from the free-throw line. Ohio grabbed 50 rebounds and dished out 23 assists in the win.

Ohio won the tip and opened the game with a bang with a dunk from Wilson III. Ohio led the way with a 23-9 run to get things started in the first 9:39 of the game. The Bobcats were ahead by as many as 23 points with two minutes remaining in the first half. McDay ended the first half with a three at the buzzer, sending Ohio to the locker room with a 51-25 lead at halftime. 

At the half, Ohio shot 57.6 percent from the field, 27.3 percent from the three-point range and 58.8 percent from the free-throw line. Cleveland State shot 31.3 percent from the field, 27.3 percent from the three-point range and 66.7 percent from the free-throw line. Ohio grabbed out 27 rebounds to Cleveland State's 13. The Vikings served up 15 points off the bench compared to Ohio's eight. 

Wilson III paved the way for the Bobcats in the first half, notching 15 points, 11 rebounds and two assists. McDay added another 15 points for Ohio, shooting 2-of-4 from downtown and 3-of-4 from the free-throw line. 

Vander Plas started the second half with a three, kicking off a 40-0 run that ended with 8:03 remaining. Cleveland State scored a pair of free throws to stop the run. Aside from three field goals, all of the Vikings' second-half points came from free throws. 

The Bobcats return to action on Sunday, December 13 with a trip to Marshall University. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. at the Cam Henderson Center. 

MACOMB, Ill. – True, they all count one, be it a win or a loss. But sometimes, they can feel so much bigger.
 
Freshman Aundre Polk scored 19 points and the Central Michigan men's basketball team outscored Western Illinois, 48-35, in the second half on Sunday as the Chippewas posted a 79-73 nonconference win at the Leathernecks' Western Hall.
 
It was the first win of the season for CMU (1-3) and it came in a game in which the Chippewas were shorthanded in the post, battled foul trouble throughout, and trailed by seven points at halftime.
 
"That's not exactly how you draw up success, but I credit our guys," CMU coach Keno Davis said. "We've got all these new guys and they found a way to be able to adapt, and to change, which is a tough thing with so many new players.
 
"Credit those guys; when things were going against them, they kept a really good attitude, believed in what they were doing, and got a much-needed road win."

EAST LANSING, Mich. – The sophomore duo of B. Artis White and Titus Wright combined to score 35 points with Wright earning his first career double-double as Western Michigan men's basketball fell to No.8 Michigan State, 79-61 on Sunday afternoon inside the Breslin Center.

Wright registered his first career double-double against the Spartans with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field. Wright's 16 points matched his career-high with 12 of his 16 coming in the first half. The Thomasville, Ga., native recorded 10 rebounds, one shy of his career-high with five coming on the offense glass.

Leading the way for the Broncos was fellow sophomore B. Artis White with 19 points, one shy of his career-high set back on Nov. 6, 2019 against McNeese State. White was 5-of-11 from the field and 3-of-6 from long distance. White also corralled six rebounds to go along with three assists in 35 minutes of action.

In his first start of the season senior Rafael Cruz Jr. was 4-of-10 from the field for nine points in 20 minutes of action. In his first collegiate start freshman Josiah Freeman scored seven points on 3-of-6 shooting from the field with one three-pointer. Freeman also had one rebound and two assists. Senior Greg Lee recorded six points and ranked second on the team with six rebounds. Lee also dished out a team-high four assists.

The starting five for the Broncos scored 57 of the team's 61 points with redshirt sophomore Jaylon Holmes scoring the lone points off the bench with four. Holmes had two rebounds and one assists on 2-of-4 shooting from the field.

It's a quick turnaround for Western Michigan as the Broncos prepare for their home opener on Monday, Dec. 7 against Adrian College. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. inside
University Arena. It will be the first home game for first-year head coach Clayton Bates.

Western Michigan got off to a fast start against the nationally ranked Spartans making four of their first five shots. After going on a scoring drought of nearly three minutes, WMU rattled off four straight points highlighted by a lay-up from Cruz Jr. high off the glass that gave the Brown & Gold a 13-12 lead.

The Cruz Jr. lay-up sparked an 8-0 run for the Broncos as WMU gained a 17-12 lead at the 12:10 mark of the first half. WMU grew the lead to 20-15 midway through the first half after a White three-pointer from straight on. Michigan State responded with a 14-2 run to regain the lead and jump out to a 37-27 lead with three minutes remaining in the half.

However, the Broncos rallied back at the end of the half, embarking on a 6-0 run and holding the Spartans scoreless the final 3:30. Western Michigan trailed 39-35 heading into the locker room.

In the second half after an early run by the Spartans, the Broncos battled back with a 9-0 run of their own to trim the Michigan State lead down to two. During its run WMU forced Michigan State to commit five turnovers in a three-minute span. Trailing 52-50 at the midway point of the second half, the Broncos went cold from the field missing its next four field goals as the Spartans extended their lead to double digits with 6:35 remaining.  

Michigan State pulled away late in the second half using a 14-2 run to secure the 79-61 victory.