Box Score
Season Stats
KALAMAZOO -- Bubba Walther scored 10 points in overtime and stole an outlet pass with eight seconds remaining to seal the victory for Ohio, 78-73, in overtime over Western Michigan in front of 2,987 fans at University Arena.
Junior Derek Fracalossi and freshman David Kool each had a chance to win the game for the Broncos (10-13, 5-5 MAC) in regulation but their shots fell short, sending it into overtime.
The Bobcats (16-7, 7-3 MAC) opened the first half on a 14-2 run, holding the Broncos to just one basket in the first 5:24.
WMU answered with a 13-2 run to close the gap to 16-15 with 9:01 remaining in the half. The Broncos would take their first lead of the ball game at the 5:37 point when Michael Redell found Derek Drews for an open three pointer, making the score 22-21.
Western Michigan would extend its lead to four after a jumper by Andre Ricks, but Ohio countered with a 7-0 run to put themselves back up by four, 28-24. Thanks to solid free throw shooting (6-of-8) down the stretch, the Broncos were able to go into the locker room tied with Ohio 30-30.
The Broncos were able to hold Ohio to just 36.7% (11-30) and just 20.0% (3-15) from behind the arc in the opening stanza.
WMU and Ohio went back and forth in the second half. The Broncos had their largest lead of the game with 8:11 remaining, 55-47, after a tip-in by Andrew Hershberger.
Ohio answered on a 10-1 run and took the lead, 57-56, on a pair of Jerome Tillman free throws with 4:08 to go.
WMU took the lead back twice, but Walther sank a three-pointer with 2:07 remaining to put Ohio up two, 62-60, before Redell scored on a backdoor lay up to tie the ball game at 62 with 1:29 on the clock.
Ohio missed a go ahead three-pointer on the next possession, but corralled the offensive rebound only to turn the ball over on a steal by Redell. The Broncos had two chances to win the game but Fracalossi and Kool could not connect with seven seconds and one second remaining on the clock.
Shawntes Gary quickly scored on a lay up to put the Broncos up, 64-62, but Walther connected on a deep three to give Ohio the lead, 65-64. Fracalossi would hit a pair of free throws to put the Broncos up two, but Ohio went on a 7-0 run to go up 72-66.
The Broncos would turn the ball over five times in overtime but had a chance to tie with eight seconds remaining after Drews rebounded a missed free throw, but Walther stole the ball and made two free throws to ice the game.
The Broncos were led by Kool who finished with 20 points, while Drews contributed 12 points and a career-high eight rebounds. Gary finished with 10 points, with Joe Reitz also contributing 11 points and seven rebounds.
Walther led the Bobcats with 20 points, while Sonny Troutman contributed 12 points and a game-high nine assists. Junior Leon Williams scored 15 points and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds for Ohio.
The Broncos next game will be at home on Sunday, Feb. 11 at noon at University Arena. The matchup with defending 2006 MAC Champion Kent State (15-8, 8-2 MAC) is the MAC Game of the Week and can be seen on Fox Sports Net Ohio, Comcast Local, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, and Time Warner Cable in western New York.
QUOTES
WMU head coach Steve Hawkins
(On the game) "I was nervous before the game, it just didn't feel like we had a lot of pep in our step. We just appeared to be a step slow all night. It's been a while since we had a day off because of the way the work week fell. The long trip to Miami, we came back and we just appeared to be in a fog the last two days. We just were a step slow in practice, not really mentally sharp and that's the way we took the floor tonight. Obviously, that's my responsibility. That's my fault when that happens.
"We showed some resilience and fought back and I was really proud of that part of things, but it wasn't enough and it finally jumped up and got us.
"We weren't in sync all night. We just appeared all night long to be running with plows attached to the back of us. We looked heavy-legged out there. It's the way it is this time of year, but if David Kool hits the shot (at the end of regulation), I'd still mention the fact we looked fatigue, but I'd feel a lot better about it. We really need a day off, but the approach will be very different getting out legs back under us for Kent."
(On not picking a game up on Toledo after they lost at Kent State) "You guys (the media) make a lot of the race. Do we want to win first place? Sure. What does it all amount to? We're going to play the best that we can play. We're going to continue to try, continue to compete. We've got a bunch of kids who fight, scratch, claw, represent the university well. We do all that great, we'll do it again. When we get to the end of the season, we'll turn around and look at the standings and see who we will play in Cleveland.
"We're in second place in the West and if you look at the programs over the past four years who have been able to compete in the top two of their division every season, we're right there. It's been a while since we've done that (WMU's streak of five straight top three division finishes is the best in school history, the next longest was four seasons from 1949-52) and that's something I'm proud of.
"Ohio beat us tonight in overtime, Miami throws a shot in at the buzzer on Saturday. I mean, we're losing some tough games. All those games, it's tough to continually get up off the mat and our kids do it and they come out and compete every night. I'll take them over anybody."
WMU center Joe Reitz
(On being a step slow after short turnaround from the Miami game) "I think we're all feeling a little fatigued, but on the other hand, that's no excuse for not going out and being able to compete and fight for 40 minutes. I thought we did for stretches, but we didn't do it for the whole game and that's the reason we let Ohio back in the game in the second half. They executed down the stretch and we didn't. You have to give the credit to them because they came in and played better than we did tonight."
(On being resilient after tough losses) "We've had a lot of really close losses, but we've always bounced back. We just got to keep battling and keep fighting and know that things are going to turn for us at one point or the other. We've just got to keep battle through this rough stretch and get better as a team."
WMU guard David Kool
(On his final shot in regulation) "Yeah, it was a good look. You can't complain that late in the game, especially with two seconds left on an out-of-bounds play. You're not going to get a much better shot than that. I'd do the same thing again if I had to."
WMU guard/forward Derek Drews
(On his performance) "We couldn't get the offense going as well as we could have tonight. We just couldn't get inside, couldn't get anything outside. Just another slow offensive night for us. I was able to make a couple shots, but that doesn't enlighten the fact that we had a bad offensive night overall."
(On bouncing back from a loss like this) "You lose one like this and right after the game you are going to be sad and down, but we'll bounce back. We have another tough game against Kent State at home and that's the next thing we're looking forward to. We're not going to hang our head for the rest of the week and pout about it. It's just positive thinking from when we hit the floor on Tuesday."
