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The MAC played a bunch of teams that they should probably beat, and they did. The teams are rounding into form as conference season is just around the corner.
Bowling Green Falcons 74, Alabama A&M Bulldogs 61
Both teams started the game slow, before the Falcons started to pull away in the first half.
They continued the run in the second half, and won easily.
Dylan Frye came off the bench to lead the Falcons in scoring with 16. Moving into conference play, the Falcons need scoring. The Freshman from Pembroke Pines has scored in double digits the last three games, a very encouraging sign.
Wes Alcegaire added 15, and Zack Denny scored 11. Demajeo Wiggins had a double double, with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Quinterian McConico led the Bulldogs with 18 points and 11 rebounds while coming off a 30 point, 10 rebound game in his last outing
The 5-7 Falcons take on the 3-10 Norfolk State Spartans in the Stroh Center Friday, December 30th. Bowling Green begins MAC play January 3rd, on the road, against the Zips.
Eastern Michigan Eagles 101, Marygrove Mustangs 48
After getting hammered by the ‘cuse Monday, EMU was on a mission. They utterly destroyed the Mustangs after a slow start by both teams. EMU dominated on the glass 60-42, without the services of James Thompson IV.
Ray Lee led the Eagles with 25, and Willie Mangum IV added 24 off the bench. Quaran Jones scored 13 and grabbed 13 boards.
The 7-5 Eagles take on the 5-9 Long Beach State 49ers on 12/29. EMU begin MAC play on January 3rd, hosting CMU.
Ball State Cardinals 73, Alabama State Hornets 48
A trey Moses dunk sparked an 8-1 run to end the first half, putting the Cardinals up by 11.
The Hornets never really contested after that.
The Cardinals out rebounded the Hornets, 46-34.
Franko House had 15 points, to lead the 10 Cardinals that scored in the game.
Tony Armstrong had 13 points to lead the Hornets. He also pulled down 9 boards.
The Cardinals take their talents to North Florida to take on the Ospreys Thursday, the 29th. The Cardinals start MAC play January 3rd at Kent State.
Miami Redhawks 66, Tennessee Tech 58
In the closest game of the day, Miami pulled out the win behind a great run by Michael Weathers. You can read the full recap here.
The RedHawks begin MAC play January 3rd, hosting Northern Illinois.
Akron Zips 76, Maryland-Eastern Shore Hawks 60
The Zips ended their non conference schedule winning the 2016 WestStar Bank Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational.
It was a surprisingly close game, at least for the first 25 minutes. Akron showed their muscle, out rebounding the Hawks 45-25, and powered their way to a second half blowout.
Isaiah Johnson led the way with 15 point and 13 boards. Antino Jackson added 13 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists.
The 10-3 Zips open MAC play on January 3rd against the Falcons, in Akron.
A couple of freshmen were the story of the day for me. Dylan Frye out of Bowling Green, and Michael Weathers out of Miami.
The Falcons are struggling to score right now. It’s the biggest thing they need to work on if they are going to compete in the MAC EAST. Frye was an all-state player out of Florida, and averaged 26 points a game his senior season. He has scored in double digits in each of the last 3 games off the bench. That could be a sign of things to come, and would help shore up the Falcons biggest weakness.
Michael Weathers, if he can keep it up through league play, is a legitimate player of the year candidate. He is currently averaging 19.5 points, 5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. His final 10 points last night showed amazing heart. I cannot wait to see what this kid can do in MAC play.