Box Score KALAMAZOO, Mich.- A free throw by Miami's Rod Mills with 5.4 seconds remaining was the deciding point as Western Michigan fell to the RedHawks, 45-44, Tuesday at University Arena.
With the game tied at 44-apiece and 36 seconds to go, Western Michigan looked to get a stop defensively. The RedHawks worked the clock down before attacking the basket and in a flurry of the shot clock horn expiring and a scramble for a loose ball, it was decided that WMU's
Tucker Haymond committed a foul.
Mills stepped to the free throw line for two shots and made his first for the go-ahead point and missed the second. WMU's
Anthony Avery Jr. snagged the rebound and kicked the ball out to
Thomas Wilder who drove the length of the floor. Wilder's contested runner in a pack of RedHawks didn't go, giving Miami the one-point victory.
In a game where both offenses struggled, free throws were a critical factor. Miami had 28 attempts at the line and connected on 21. Western Michigan was 11-for-18 from the stripe.
Miami shot just 33.3 percent from the floor and was 2-for-15 from behind the arc. WMU was slightly lower from the field at 31.1 percent and was 5-for-23 from three.
“Incredibly disappointing night, both teams struggled to shoot the ball,” said WMU head coach
Steve Hawkins. “We just couldn't get to the free-throw line. We've had these types of games this year and we have talked to our guys that when we are not shooting well we have to drive and get points in the paint or get to the line. We didn't do that enough tonight.”
Western Michigan trailed 24-18 at the half and faced a seven-point deficit with 3:48 remaining before putting together a 7-0 run to knot the score at 42-42 with two minutes left. Wilder came up with a steal but was unable to knock down a three with a minute to go. Miami's Eric Washington converted a layup with 45 seconds and Wilder offset the points with a pair of free throws on WMU's next possession before Mills hit the game-winning free throw.
“It just seemed like whenever we started to catch a rhythm something would happen that would throw us back out of rhythm,” Hawkins said. “We didn't do a good enough job with the things we had in our control and we didn't overcome the things out of our control. That is how you end up with another one-point loss.”
The Broncos battled foul trouble as Haymond,
Drake LaMont and
Kellen McCormick each picked up two first half fouls. Wilder spent a chunk of time in the second half on the bench with three fouls.
Wilder was the leading scorer for Western Michigan, recording 13 points. Avery finished with nine points and Haymond had eight. Freshman
Seth Dugan led the Broncos on the glass with eight rebounds.
WMU committed just nine turnovers against Miami's defense which threw several different looks at the Broncos throughout the night. Miami coughed the ball up 15 times.
Geovonie McKnight had a game-high 15 points for the RedHawks (9-15, 3-8 MAC). Washington tallied 13 points.
Western Michigan (9-15, 3-8 MAC) is on the road for its next two games, traveling to Bowling Green Saturday and Kent State on Tuesday. Saturday's tip is scheduled for 2 p.m. at BGSU.
