KALAMAZOO, Mich. - A double-digit deficit eventually turned into a wild finish at University Arena, as the Western Michigan men's basketball team fell 89-85 to the red-hot Ball State Cardinals on Tuesday.  With the loss, the Broncos fall to 18-11 on the season, 9-6 in Mid-American Conference play.

Despite the loss, the Broncos still received a bit of good news at the end of the night; due to Central Michigan's victory over Eastern Michigan, the Broncos clinch their seventh MAC West division title in program history, and their sixth under head coach Steve Hawkins.  The Broncos also clinch the third seed in the upcoming 2013 First Energy MAC Tournament, and will proceed directly to the quarterfinal round of the tournament.  The Broncos' first tournament game is slated for Thursday, March 14 at 9 p.m. at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.

Shayne Whittington set a new career-high with 28 points, and also added 12 rebounds for his MAC-leading 10th double-double of the season.  Whittington also added three blocks to reach a season total of 47 blocked shots, tying him with Matt Van Abbema and Donald Lawson for third on the single-season list at Western Michigan.

Austin Richie posted a season-high 15 points in the game, including a perfect 3-of-3 night from behind the three-point arc, and also registered four assists.  David Brown came off the bench for 11 points, two rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a block.

WMU trailed by as many as 19 points in the second half of the game, but the Broncos out-scored the Cardinals 41-26 over the final 9:05 to bring the final deficit to within two possessions.  In particular, the Broncos entered a 25-13 run in the final 2:46 of regulation, with Richie sparking the outing with a long three-pointer from the center of the floor.  Whittington threw down a two-handed dunk on a feed from Richie at the 2:24 mark, and Richie cut the Cardinals' lead to single digits with a pair of free throw makes 23 seconds later.

Richie would be the one to cut the deficit to two possessions less than a minute later, this time burying a three-point try from the left wing to make it 78-73.  The sophomore guard pulled hte Broncos to within three points with 17 seconds remaining when he drove the lane and laid the ball in, but the Cardinals wank three of four free throws down the stretch to keep the Broncos at bay.

The Broncos opened the game on a 6-2 run, with Darius Paul scoring four of the team's first six points, and Shayne Whittington adding a putback lay-up as well.  The run was capped when Hutcheson drove the lane and threw a slick no-look bounce pass to Paul, who buried a jumper from the head of the key to make it 6-2 with 17:04 remaining.

Ball State recovered, however, using a 5-0 run of their own to take the one-point lead on the Broncos at the 16:10 mark of the period.  Neither team would gain more than a possession's lead for the next 10 minutes of play, but the Cardinals began to separate themselves at the 5:49 mark when Jesse Berry's three-pointer gave Ball State a 30-25 advantage.  The Cardinals used that basket as part of a 14-0 run, turning what had been a 25-23 Western Michigan lead to a 37-25 edge for Ball State.

The Broncos started to cut into the lead late in the half, with Darius Paul making it just 37-28 with 1:19 remaining, but Berry drained a three-pointer in the waning seconds of the half to set the halftime deficit at 12 points.

Ball State went on a 7-1 run to open the second half and built their lead to 18 points, and eventually led 49-31 with 16:37 remaining in regulation.  The Broncos began to chip away, though, embarking on a 6-0 run of their own to cut into the lead; Whittington dropped a left-handed lay-up at the 16:11 mark to make it a five-point game, and then made a pair of free throws at the 14:57 mark to make it 49-37.

Connar Tava went on a 6-2 run against the Cardinals on his own midway through the half, driving to the hoop and pulling the Broncos to within 11 points.  Tava spun around Majok Majok at the 13:03 mark and laid it in with the left hand to make it 52-39, and drove the baseline at 12:16 and dropped the ball in the hoop.  Tava capped the run when he went to the hole at the 11:48 mark, drawing the foul from Tyler Koch but putting the ball away anyway to make it 54-43.

The Cardinals put their foot on the gas pedal, eventually taking a 63-44 lead at the 9:05 mark when Berry made a pair of free throws.  WMU went on a 9-1 run, though, which was sparked when Whittington made a pair of free throws at the 6:57 mark.  Berry was whistled for a travel on the ensuing possession, which the Broncos turned into a Nate Hutcheson lay-up off the inbounds play.  The Broncos then stole the inbounds pass from the Cardinals, with Brown drilling a three-pointer from the head of the key to make it 65-54 with 6:35 remaining.

Whittington drained a step-back jumper from 13 feet back to cut the BSU lead to single digits, making it 65-59, and then scored at the 5:30 mark to make it just a seven-point game.  Brown drained a pair of free throws at the 4:18 mark to make it 69-60.