KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Western Michigan men's basketball team withstood a three-point barrage in the first half to record a comeback victory against their arch-rival, defeating the Central Michigan Chippewas 71-68 at University Arena. With the win, the Broncos sweep the season series with CMU, and improve to 19-11 overall, 10-6 in Mid-American Conference play.
All three of the Broncos' seniors were inserted into the starting line-up at the beginning of the game, and each played his role in helping the team earn victory.
Brandon Pokley went 5-of-7 from three-point range to post 15 points;
Nate Hutcheson scored five of the team's final six points down the stretch run; and
Dan Loney contributed quality minutes in his first career start, aiding the Broncos in their best offensive run of the game.
Shayne Whittington finished with 16 points and 14 rebounds, posting his 11th double-double of the season to finish the 2012-13 regular season with the MAC lead in the category. Whittington had the stat locked up in the first half, posting 12 points and 11 rebounds in the opening 20 minutes.
Darius Paul and
Connar Tava paced a bench effort for the Broncos that outscored the Chippewas 29-8, finishing with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Central Michigan led by as many as nine points in the second half, holding a 43-34 advantage at the 18:59 mark when Kyle Randall hit a runner in the paint. Whittington cut into the lead with a hook shot at 18:04, and
Austin Richie notched one of his game-high seven assists on the next trip down the floor, finding Paul in stride on the fast break for the lay-up. Pokley cut the Chips' lead to 43-41 with a three-pointer from the left corner, and
David Brown pulled the Broncos to within one point when his trey made it 47-46 at the 13:36 mark.
The Broncos faced a five-point defcit with 11:05 remaining in regulation when Randall made another shot in the paint, but Pokley immediately responded with a three-pointer from the deep right corner to make it 53-51. Tava finished a baseline drive with a lay-up at the 10:09 mark to tie the game, and added another on a dish from Pokley to give the Broncos their first lead of the second half.
Western Michigan's lead reached eight points at the 8:05 mark, when Pokley buried another triple try from the right corner to make it 61-53, but the Chippewas pulled all the way back, and trailed just 65-63 with 2:39 remaining. Hutcheson drained a three-pointer from just beyond the head of the key to make it 68-63 with 1:17 remaining, and he made a pair of free throws with 12 seconds remaining to dash the Chips' chances of hitting a game-winner. Randall's three-pointer at the buzzer missed, and the Broncos escaped with the win.
The Broncos opened the game on a 6-3 run, with Whittington dominating the opening minutes of play. The junior center posted the first 10 points of the game for the Broncos, who led 10-9 at the 14:36 mark of the first half. The Chippewas took the lead briefly, but Tava put the Broncos back ahead with an and-1 finish at the 12:44 mark.
Darius Paul gave the Broncos their largest lead of the day at the 8:14 mark, finishing a lay-up on a dish from Richie to make it 23-13. The Chippewas responded with a flurry of three-pointers, taking a 33-32 lead at the 1:53 mark on a Randall three-pointer. CMU led by as many as six in the final minutes of the half, but Paul made a pair of free throws with 34 seconds remaining to cut the deficit to four points.
