The Eagles cut the BGSU lead to four points at 60-56 with 5:17 to go in the ballgame, but the Falcons closed the game on a 15-4 run to close out the 15-point victory. Bowling Green used a 10-0 run midway through the first half to take a 14-point lead into the intermission.
QUOTE OF THE NIGHT
"I thought our guys stuck together and played really solid defense," said head coach Michael Huger. "We let it slip a little bit and they cut into the lead, and made it a game, but we were able to pick it back up defensively. That was the difference in the game for us.
FALCON FACTS
• The victory for BGSU is the program's first over a school that made the previous season's NCAA Tournament since an 83-80 win over Florida Gulf Coast on Nov. 18, 2017. FGCU entered the 2017-18 season fresh off an appearance in the 2017 NCAA Tournament.
• Bowling Green is now 1-0 versus N.C. Central all-time.
• With the victory, Bowling Green moves to 2-0 at the Stroh Center in 2018-19. The Falcons last started 2-0 at home in 2014-15.
• The Falcons are 28-21 at the Stroh Center under head coach Michael Huger.
• BGSU is 26-17 in non-conference games under head coach Michael Huger.
• By holding N.C. Central to 42.1 percent (24-of-57) shooting for the game, BGSU opponents are now shooting 38.5 percent on the season. BGSU's field goal percentage defense ranks second in the MAC.
• The Falcons committed a season-low six turnovers, while dishing out a season-high 16 assists.
• Bowling Green shot 50.9 percent (29-of-57) for the ballgame, marking the second time this season that the Falcons have shot at least 50.0 percent from the floor. BGSU went 25-for-50 at St. John's on Nov. 9.
• Bowling Green scored 26 points off 14 N.C. Central turnovers.
• Bowling Green dominated in the paint, outscoring the Eagles, 38-24.
• Out of the 40-minute contest, the Falcons had a lead for 37:44.
• With Demajeo Wiggins (22 points) and Justin Turner (20 points) each scoring 20-plus points, BGSU had two 20-point scorers in the same game for the first time since Dec. 21, 2017 at Green Bay.
PLAYER NOTES
• Senior forward Demajeo Wiggins notched a double-double for the fourth-straight game to open the 2018-19 season, finishing with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Wiggins went 10-for-11 from the floor, tying a career high with 10 made field goals (at Akron on Jan. 3, 2017).
• Wiggins has recorded a double-double in 11 of his last 12 games dating back to 2017-18. He now has 26 double-doubles for his career.
• By scoring 22 points, Wiggins notched his fifth-career 20-point game. He last scored at least 20 points on Jan. 16, 2018. On that night, he dropped 22 points at Miami.
• Wiggins is also now just 44 points shy of becoming the 45th player in school history to eclipse 1,000 career points.
• Redshirt-sophomore guard Justin Turner scored 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting. He's now scored 20-plus points 12 times in his career.
• Junior guard Dylan Frye added eight points and a career-high eight assists.
• Frye went 2-for-6 from downtown, and has now made multiple triples in every game this season. Frye is shooting 53.8 percent (14-for-26) on the season from downtown.
• By hitting two more three-balls to push his total to 14 on the season, Frye became the first Falcon since John Reimold in 2002-03 to have made at least 13 three-pointers through BGSU's first four games of a season.
• Redshirt-senior forward Jeffrey Uju scored a career-high 13 points, while also adding four rebounds. Uju is now shooting 64.3 percent (9-for-14) on the season. By scoring 13 points, Uju earned the first double-digit scoring game of his Falcon career.
• Junior guard Antwon Lillard added seven points and six rebounds. On the floor, Lillard was a team-best +19 in regards to +/-.
• Junior guard Michael Laster scored five points for the Falcons, and also racked up four assists. Laster has now recorded four-plus assists in two games in 2018-19.
UP NEXT
• Bowling Green is set to close out the Legends Classic with a pair of games at Calihan Hall in Detroit, Michigan over Nov. 19-20.
• The Falcons take on Hampton at 5 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 19. Depending on the results from the day, BGSU will either play Detroit Mercy or Loyola Maryland on Tuesday, Nov. 20. The Tuesday game time will be at 5 p.m. or 7:30 p.m.