KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Western Michigan basketball team came back from a three-point deficit with 2:10 remaining in regulation to win their sixth straight game, as a late 9-3 run gave the Broncos a 76-72 win over Oakland at University Arena. With the win, the Broncos improve to 6-1 on the season.
The Broncos trailed 70-67 with 2:10 remaining in the game, but
Austin Richie continued his string of big shots late in games to cut the gap. Richie notched a three-pointer from the right corner at the 1:48 mark to tie the score at 70, and
Dan Loney grabbed a defensive rebound on the ensuing possesion to stop the Golden Grizzlies from gaining any momentum.
Nate Hutcheson down a pair of free throws to give the Broncos a 72-70 lead with just over a minute remaining, and Loney would score on a put-back as the shot clock wound down to give the Broncos a 74-70 advantage with 22 seconds remaining. Richie made a pair of free throws down the stretch to seal the 76-72 win.
Shayne Whittington finished as the Broncos' leading scorer with 14 points, and contributed eight rebounds and a career-high six blocks before fouling out with just over two minutes to play. Hutcheson had 13 points, and
Darius Paul contributed 12 points for his sixth straight double-digit scoring performance. Paul's streak is the longest for a freshman since Ben Reed reached double-digits in 13 consecutive games as a freshman in 2001-02.
Connar Tava extended the Broncos' lead to seven points midway through the second half, with the Broncos'55-48 advantage at the 12:31 mark their largest of the night. Paul would grab an offensive rebound and put it back with a dunk at the 11:21 mark to maintain the margin, but the Golden Grizzlies cut away at the lead.
Taylor Perry scored on a fast-break lay-up to make it 63-58, and Paul would score another tip-in buck at the 5:28 mark to give make it 65-50, but Oakland went on a 10-2 run to take a 70-67 lead with 2:10 on the clock. Richie drilled a three-pointer to get the rally going, and the Broncos followed through for their sixth straight win.
The Broncos opened the game on a 5-2 run, with Pokley driving home an NBA-range three-pointer to break an early tie. WMU built the lead to 7-4 on a Whittington lay-up, but the Golden Grizzlies pushed back and eventually took an 18-15 lead at 12:10 mark. The Grizzlies would hold that lead for a good portion of the half, going up 26-21 on a Ryan Bass jumper, and stretching the lead to six points on a Travis bader three-pointer at the 5:46 mark.
Hutcheson would begin to chip away at that lead, however, knocking down a jumper in the paint at the 5:21 mark to cut Oakland's lead to 29-25.
Jared Klein would drive baseline and make a reverse lay-up to cut the lead to two points, and Paul slipped under a defender for a lay-up at the 3:28 mark to tie the score at 31. The Golden Grizzlies briefly took a 34-33 lead, but the Broncos embarked on a 7-0 run to get back on top;
Dan Loney re-took the lead for the Broncos with a pair of free throws, and Klein and Pokley would each add a pair to make it 40-34 with 43 seconds remaining. A pair of Oakland free throws down the stretch would cut the Broncos' lead to four points, as the Broncos entered the locker room at the break up 40-36.
