2023–24 Bowling Green Falcons men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Bowling Green Falcons men's basketball team represented Bowling Green State University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Falcons, led by Todd Simon in his first year as head coach, played their home games at the Stroh Center in Bowling Green, Ohio as members of the Mid-American Conference.^[1][2][3] They finished the regular season 19–12, 10–8 in MAC play to finish in 5th place. They defeated Central Michigan in the first round of the MAC tournament before losing to Kent State in the second round. The Falcons received an invitation to play in the CIT where they were defeated by Purdue Fort Wayne in the opening round, bringing their final record to 20–14.^[4][5][6]

2023–24 Bowling Green Falcons men's basketball
CIT, Quarterfinals
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Record	20–14 (10–8 MAC)
Head coach	Todd Simon (1st season)
Assistant coaches	Bryce Martin (1st season) Lourawls Nairn Jr. (1st season) German Srulovich (1st season) Bob Gallager (1st season)
Home arena	Stroh Center
Seasons ← 2022–23 2024–25 →

2023–24 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Toledo	14	–	4		.778			20	–	12		.625
Akron †	13	–	5		.722			24	–	11		.686
Ohio	13	–	5		.722			20	–	13		.606
Central Michigan	12	–	6		.667			18	–	14		.563
Bowling Green	10	–	8		.556			20	–	14		.588
Western Michigan	9	–	9		.500			12	–	20		.375
Miami (OH)	9	–	9		.500			15	–	17		.469
Kent State	8	–	10		.444			17	–	17		.500
Ball State	7	–	11		.389			15	–	16		.484
Eastern Michigan	6	–	12		.333			13	–	18		.419
Northern Illinois	5	–	13		.278			11	–	20		.355
Buffalo	2	–	16		.111			4	–	27		.129
† 2024 MAC tournament winner

Previous season

Main article: 2021–22 Bowling Green Falcons men's basketball team

The Falcons finished the season 11–20, 5–13 in MAC play to finish in a three-way tie for ninth place. They failed to qualify for the MAC tournament.^[7] On March 5, 2023, the school fired head coach Michael Huger.^[8] On March 15, the school hired Southern Utah Todd Simon the team's new coach.^[9]

Offseason

Departures

Departures

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Ubong Abasi Etim	F	6'9"	210	RS-Freshman	Richmond, California	Transferred to Central Arkansas
Brenton Mills	G	6'3"	185	Senior	Allen, Texas	Transferred to Vermont
Leon Ayers	G	6'5"	185	Senior	Troy, Michigan	Exhausted Eligibility
Kaden Metheny	G	5'11"	180	Sophomore	Morgantown, West Virginia	Transferred to Liberty
Willie Lightfoot	G	6'0"	170	Freshman	Niagara Falls, New York	Transferred to Odessa College
Isaac Elsasser	G	6'4"	185	Senior	Bowling Green, Ohio
Chandler Turner	G/F	6'7"	210	Senior	Detroit, Michigan	Transferred to Radford
Samari Curtis	G	6'4"	190	Senior	Xenia, Ohio
Madini Diarra	F	6'11"	260	Senior	Bamako, Mali
Gabe O'Neal	F	6'7"	240	Senior	Cincinnati, Ohio
Jackson Watson	G	6'1"	180	Sophomore	Libertyville, Illinois	Entered Transfer Portal

^[10][11][12]

Incoming transfers

Transfers

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous school
Marcus Hill	G	6'4"	185	Junior	Rockford, Illinois	Southern Union State Community College
Trey Thomas	G	6'0"	160	Senior	Durham, Ontario	Vanderbilt
DJ Smith	G	6'0"	160	Junior	North Little Rock, Arkansas	Little Rock
DaJion Humphrey	G	6'4"	185	Senior	Detroit, Michigan	Garden City Community College
PJ Edwards	G	6'4"	200	Sophomore	Springfield, Illinois	UCF
Da'Shawn Phillip	G	6'6"	180	Senior	Baltimore, Maryland	Maryland Eastern Shore
Jason Spurgin	C	6'11"	250	Senior	Toowoomba, Australia	Southern Utah
Greg Spurgin	F	6'7"	210	Sophomore	Toowoomba, Australia	Westminster
JZ Zaher	G	6'0"	170	Sophomore	Fenton, Michigan	Eastern Michigan

^[10][11]

Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
EJay Greer G	Lansdowne, Pennsylvania	Rocktop Academy	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	170 lb (77 kg)
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster

2023–24 Bowling Green Falcons men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown G 0 Marcus Hill 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Rockford, Illinois G 1 Trey Thomas 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Sr Durham, Ontario G 2 DJ Smith 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Jr North Little Rock, Arkansas G 3 DaJion Humphrey 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Detroit, Michigan G 4 PJ Edwards 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Springfield, Illinois G 5 Da'Shawn Phillip 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Baltimore, Maryland C 7 Jason Spurgin 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Sr Toowoomba, Australia F 8 Greg Spurgin 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Toowoomba, Australia G 10 Anthony McComb III 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Dayton, Ohio F 11 Jamai Felt 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Fr Boston, Massachusetts F 12 Rashaun Agee 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Sr Chicago, Illinois G 13 EJay Greer 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Fr Lansdowne, Pennsylvania F 14 Sam Towns 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr Columbus, Ohio G 17 JZ Zaher 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Fenton, Michigan	Head coach Todd Simon (Central Michigan) Assistant coach(es) Bryce Martin (Boise State) Lourawls Nairn Jr. (Michigan State) German Srulovich Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt Roster Last update: September 29, 2023

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 6, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Chicago State	W 70–41	1–0	18 – Hill	4 – Edwards	10 – Phillip	Stroh Center (1,776) Bowling Green, OH
November 11, 2023* 12:00 p.m., ESPN+		Arkansas State MAC-SBC Challenge	W 81–75	2–0	26 – Hill	7 – Towns	4 – Hill	Stroh Center (1,513) Bowling Green, OH
November 14, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Oakland	L 62–81	2–1	17 – J. Spurgin	10 – J. Spurgin	3 – Hill	Athletics Center O'rena (2,384) Rochester, MI
November 17, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Bellarmine	L 67–85	2–2	15 – McComb	6 – Tied	4 – J. Spurgin	Stroh Center (1,775) Bowling Green, OH
November 24, 2023* 7:00 p.m.		vs. Western Kentucky Northern Classic	L 65–72	2–3	29 – Hill	9 – Phillip	2 – Phillip	Place Bell  Laval, QC
November 25, 2023* 7:00 p.m.		vs. Lipscomb Northern Classic	W 82–61	3–3	33 – Hill	9 – Agee	5 – Hill	Place Bell  Montreal, QC
November 26, 2023* 4:00 p.m.		vs. Canisius Northern Classic	W 77–73	4–3	26 – Hill	8 – Agee	4 – Hill	Place Bell  Montreal, QC
December 2, 2023* 4:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Southern Indiana	W 54–52	5–3	15 – Hill	11 – Towns	3 – Thomas	Screaming Eagles Arena (1,539) Evansville, IN
December 10, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		Ohio Dominican	W 97–49	6–3	17 – Agee	12 – Edwards	3 – Tied	Stroh Center (1,338) Bowling Green, OH
December 16, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		Kansas City	W 79–69	7–3	29 – Hill	12 – Agee	4 – Thomas	Stroh Center (1,561) Bowling Green, OH
December 19, 2023* 11:00 a.m., ESPN+		Hampton	W 75–65	8–3	25 – Thomas	12 – Agee	3 – Tied	Stroh Center (2,995) Bowling Green, OH
December 22, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		Siena Heights	W 79–58	9–3	19 – Thomas	9 – Agee	3 – Tied	Stroh Center (1,117) Bowling Green, OH
MAC regular season
January 2, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Eastern Michigan	W 92–90 ^OT	10–3 (1–0)	35 – Hill	11 – Agee	6 – Thomas	Stroh Center (2,439) Bowling Green, OH
January 5, 2024 9:00 p.m., CBSSN		at Akron	L 67–83	10–4 (1–1)	19 – Hill	6 – Agee	4 – Spurgin	James A. Rhodes Arena (2,394) Akron, OH
January 9, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Ohio	W 83–78	11–4 (2–1)	20 – Thomas	15 – Agee	6 – Agee	Stroh Center (1,982) Bowling Green, OH
January 13, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Northern Illinois	W 83–72	12–4 (3–1)	24 – Agee	10 – Spurgin	4 – Agee	Convocation Center (1,041) DeKalb, IL
January 16, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Miami (OH)	W 78–73	13–4 (4–1)	23 – Hill	12 – Agee	3 – Tied	Millett Hall (813) Oxford, OH
January 20, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		Western Michigan	W 84–79	14–4 (5–1)	28 – Hill	14 – Agee	3 – Thomas	Stroh Center (2,232) Bowling Green, OH
January 23, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Kent State	L 84–90 ^OT	14–5 (5–2)	21 – Hill	10 – Agee	3 – Hill	Stroh Center (2,099) Bowling Green, OH
January 27, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Toledo	L 72–88	14–6 (5–3)	25 – Hill	6 – Phillip	3 – Hill	Savage Arena (7,318) Toledo, OH
January 30, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Ball State	W 81–72	15–6 (6–3)	28 – Hill	10 – Agee	4 – Thomas	Worthen Arena (3,488) Muncie, IN
February 3, 2024 5:00 p.m., ESPN+		Central Michigan	L 76–77 ^2OT	15–7 (6–4)	22 – Hill	14 – Agee	7 – Hill	Stroh Center (2,230) Bowling Green, OH
February 6, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Buffalo	W 87–73	16–7 (7–4)	27 – Hill	10 – Agee	6 – Thomas	Stroh Center (1,704) Bowling Green, OH
February 11, 2024* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Louisiana MAC-SBC Challenge	L 60–86	16–8	22 – Hill	7 – Agee	2 – Tied	Cajundome (914) Lafayette, LA
February 17, 2024 3:30 p.m., ESPN+		at Eastern Michigan	L 60–69	16–9 (7–5)	19 – Hill	13 – Agee	3 – Tied	George Gervin GameAbove Center (3,304) Ypsilanti, MI
February 20, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Central Michigan	L 60–62 ^OT	16–10 (7–6)	18 – Agee	11 – Tied	2 – Hill	McGuirk Arena (1,525) Mount Pleasant, MI
February 23, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Toledo	W 76–68	17–10 (8–6)	31 – Hill	11 – Agee	2 – Phillip	Stroh Center (4,032) Bowling Green, OH
February 27, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Miami (OH)	L 58–66	17–11 (8–7)	20 – Agee	14 – Agee	3 – Tied	Stroh Center (1,825) Bowling Green, OH
March 2, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Ohio	L 59–66	17–12 (8–8)	17 – Agee	11 – Agee	3 – Spurgin	Convocation Center (6,134) Athens, OH
March 5, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Western Michigan	W 73–65	18–12 (9–8)	17 – Agee	15 – Agee	5 – Hill	University Arena (1,243) Kalamazoo, MI
March 8, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Ball State	W 80–70	19–12 (10–8)	24 – Hill	7 – Towns	5 – Hill	Stroh Center (1,926) Bowling Green, OH
MAC Tournament
March 14, 2024 1:30 p.m., ESPN+	(5)	vs. (4) Central Michigan Quarterfinals	W 66–56	20–12	20 – Thomas	17 – Agee	3 – Hill	Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse  Cleveland, OH
March 15, 2024 5:00 p.m., CBSSN	(5)	vs. (8) Kent State Semifinals	L 60–73	20–13	22 – Hill	7 – Agee	2 – Tied	Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse  Cleveland, OH
CIT
March 20, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Purdue Fort Wayne Quarterfinals - Jim Phelan Classic	L 75–77	20–14	26 – Hill	8 – Spurgin	5 – Spurgin	Stroh Center (1,219) Bowling Green, OH
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

Source^[13][14]

References

1. "Todd Simon". Bowling Green Athletics. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
2. "MAC Men's College Basketball Standings - 2023-24". ESPN. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
3. "Stroh Center". Bowling Green State University. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
4. "MAC basketball tournament bracket set; Miami RedHawks face Akron in first round". Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
5. "Bowling Green 66, Central Michigan 59". ESPN. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
6. "Kent State 67, Bowling Green 60". ESPN. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
7. "MAC Basketball Standings - 2022-23". ESPN. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
8. "BGSU men's basketball head coach fired, search for replacement announced". WTOL. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
9. Jimenez, James H. (March 15, 2023). "Bowling Green hires Southern Utah head coach Todd Simon to same position". Hustle Belt. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
10. "2023-24 Men's Basketball Roster". Bowling Green Athletics. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
11. "2023 D1 Basketball Transfers". Verbal Commits. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
12. "2022-23 Men's Basketball Roster". Bowling Green Athletics. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
13. "2023-24 Men's Basketball Schedule". Bowling Green Athletics.
14. "Bowling Green Falcons Schedule 2023-24". ESPN.