KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Western Michigan University's men's basketball team won a back-and-forth tilt with Ohio University, prevailing 85-83 in front of 3,565 fans at University Arena Saturday afternoon. The Broncos broke the single-game school record for blocks with 11 against the Bobcats.
The Broncos blocked a school-record 11 shots and shot 64.3 percent (12-of-21) from three-point range to improve to 13-10 overall and 6-4 in the MAC. For the second consecutive game, Flenard Whitfield and Demetrius Ward gave the Broncos an inside-outside scoring punch. Whitfield recorded his first double-double of the season, with a career-high 27 points on 11-of-22 shooting and 12 rebounds to go along with a career-high three blocks. Ward added 22 points, including a career-high six threes in eight attempts, and handed out a career-high seven assists. The victory ensures WMU a winning percentage of .500 or better against the MAC East this season.
While Whitfield and Ward paced the offense, Juwan Howard Jr. anchored the Broncos defensively with a career-high six blocks, one shy of the school record. Howard also scored 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting. Mike Douglas rounded out the Broncos who scored in double figures, with 10 points on an efficient 4-of-5 shooting.
Ohio was paced by five scorers in double figures, led by D.J. Cooper with 17 points. DeVaughn Washington (16), Ivo Baltic (14), Tommy Freeman (11), and Ricardo Johnson (10) also reached double figures for the Bobcats, who fell to 12-13 overall and 5-6 in the MAC.
The Broncos appeared to take control of the contest early in the second half. Whitfield helped stake WMU to a seven-point lead, scoring the Broncos first seven points of the half. However, a 9-3 Bobcat surge turned the contest around and set the stage for a second half that featured five ties and eight lead changes.
As seems to be the trend with this year's Bronco team, the game came down to the final minutes. The last of Ward's threes gave WMU a 74-69 lead with 3:57 to play, but the Bobcats responded by pounding the ball inside. Reggie Keely scored on a turnaround in the lane and Johnson scored on a tip-in as he was falling to the ground to cut the Bronco lead to 74-73 with 3:06 to play. A driving lay-up by Douglas gave the Broncos a little breathing room, but Johnson responded with another short jumper to cut the lead back to one with 2:24 to play.
WMU responded by pounding the ball inside to Whitfield, who drew the foul and converted both free throws for a 78-75 Bronco lead with 1:33 to play. Those points were the last in a big second half for the junior, who recorded 19 of his points after halftime. Whitfield shot 7-of-12 from the field and made all five of his free throw attempts in the half. Whitfield was a workhorse on the afternoon for the Broncos, playing in a season-high 39 minutes.
D.J. Cooper responded with a pair of free throws to cut the Bronco lead to 78-77 with 1:24 to play. The Bobcats dialed up the full-court press and forced a WMU turnover, but Howard answered the bell defensively for the Broncos with his final blocked shot on a Baltic lay-up attempt. After a Bronco timeout, Howard came up big again for the Brown & Gold, hitting a clutch three from the top of the key to make it a two-possession game, 81-77, with 47 seconds to play.
Cooper drew a foul on the Broncos and converted the first free throw. Cooper missed the second free throw, but the ball was tipped out-of-bounds by a Bronco. Once again, WMU made a big defensive play when they had to, with Nate Hutcheson stealing the inbounds and getting the ball to Ward, who was fouled. Ward converted both free throws, with Cooper answering to make it 83-80 WMU with 10 seconds left.
Ward was fouled again on the in-bounds play and converted both free throws, which appeared to put the game out of reach. However, Cooper converted to pull the Bobcats within 85-83 with six seconds to play and the Broncos going to the line. Douglas was unable to convert either of the free throws, but Freeman's three-point attempt clanged off the back of the rim at the buzzer for the Bronco victory. WMU is now 6-3 in games decided by a possession or less this season.
Ward paced the Broncos early, hitting four of his first five attempts from beyond the arc on his way to scoring 12 first half points. Ward also dished out five assists in the half, helping distribute to the Broncos outside shooters. Five different Broncos connected from beyond the arc on the afternoon, paced by Ward's six treys. Howard (2), Alex Wolf (2), Douglas and Brandon Pokley also connected from long-distance for WMU. Nine of the Broncos 12 threes came in the first half, while the Bobcats were held to just 5-of-14 from long range on the afternoon.
Neither team led by more than seven, with the two teams changing leads 11 times. Both teams connected on nearly half of their shots, with WMU shooting 47.6 percent (30-of-63) and Ohio shooting 47 percent (31-of-66).
Next up for the Broncos is a trip to West Division foe Northern Illinois for an 8 p.m. tip-off Tuesday, Feb. 15. Live coverage will be provided by the Bronco Radio Network.
Flenard Whitfield's dunk vs. Ohio
