CLEVELAND — To say that Javontae Campbell got dealt a tough hand this season doesn’t quite do enough justice as to what the Bowling Green State University men’s basketball standout has gone through.
He was dealt two.
BGSU head coach Todd Simon said after the Falcons’ 96-67 Mid-American Conference tournament loss to Akron on Thursday that Campbell broke his left hand two weeks ago. The 6-foot-2, 155-pound junior guard had been playing with a broken right hand since Jan. 7.
That’s two significant injuries for a player who has the ball in his hands most of the game, especially when point guard Trey Thomas suffered a season-ending leg injury on Feb. 18. What Campbell has done this season when his hands have been wrapped up and fingers taped together has been nothing short of remarkable, and he was plenty motivated to push through for his teammates.
“This team was everything. This is family,” Campbell said. “I don’t think any other coach in the country would just let you sit, believe in you, just let you sit on the sideline during practice and put you into the game.
“That’s everything. We fought all year. This team just means everything to me.”
Campbell, a third-team All-MAC selection and a member of the MAC All-Defensive team in his first year with the Falcons, broke his left hand in BGSU’s 61-52 win over Ball State on March 1. That game, he led the Falcons with 26 points and three steals while tying for the team lead in assists with three.
In three games since, Campbell either led or tied for the team lead in assists in all three contests, led or tied in steals in two, and led in scoring in one.
In a season full of setbacks for the Falcons, players like Campbell and senior DaJion Humphrey were critical in determining the makeup of a tough and gritty squad.
“[Campbell and Humphrey] are two of the toughest guys around. DaJion misses three months with an injury and when most guys in college basketball or college sports shut it down, he chose to come back and fight,” Simon said. “That’s where that leadership turned us around.
“And Javontae, who was playing with a broken right hand since Jan. 5, breaks his left hand two weeks ago and says ‘I’m still playing.’ Just spectacular stories of resilience and just couldn’t be more proud of these guys with their fight to keep going.”
Although BGSU’s season came to an end, it will be one that Campbell, his teammates, and the Falcons’ community will likely remember for a long time. Campbell, a junior college All-American at Northern Oklahoma last season, shattered the program record for steals in a season with 90. That mark ranks fifth in MAC history as well.
His 2.81 steals per game will likely rank among the nation’s best when the 2024-25 campaign ends; he was fourth in steals per game (2.77) entering Thursday.
“He’s tailor made for the position in our web defense, we call it. We kind of put him in a spot where he can make plays in the middle of this thing and his matchup,” Simon said. “He’s got great instincts for it. Some guys have it and some guys don’t, and he has it, for sure.”
Along with his elite ability as a defender, Campbell finished the season averaging 14.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in playing all 32 games (31 starts). The game he didn’t start? He still had 23 points on 10 of 18 shooting, including the game-winning basket in the final seconds, as BGSU stunned Toledo 69-68 at Savage Arena.
Simon said he’s never experienced a season like this where his squad had so many physical setbacks — starters Sam Towns and Youssef Khayat were sidelined most of the year — or where one player like Campbell had to go through so much just to be out on the court.
“Especially if you’re an elite ball handler and the whole thing when Trey went down, that was very impactful because now we knew it was like we’re relying on Javontae in a big way,” Simon said. “Then about a week later, he breaks his other hand.
“I thought it was like April 1, I thought it was a joke. I thought we were kidding and said there’s no way. But no, I have never seen that and I haven’t been through a season like that either where it’s like you come in every day and it’s like when did this injury even happen? Just got to keep figuring it out and try to get better from it, but I think it’s a lot of fluke and being dealt a tough hand. But they fought through it.”
First Published March 13, 2025, 9:07 p.m.
