KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Western Michigan women's basketball team defeated Ohio 73-72 with a thrilling shot in the final seconds from Leighah-Amori Wool on Wednesday, Jan. 18 at University Arena. 

With the Bobcats up 72-71 with 12 seconds remaining, the Broncos brought the ball in-bounds to Wool, who hooked a layup in the paint as the game wound down to give the Broncos the victory seconds away from the buzzer.

"It was a slugfest, no question about it… we just made one play more than they did and came up with a big win at the end," Head Coach Shane Clipfell commented. "We held on just long enough and made enough plays- we ran into a perfect situation as Leighah got the ball, and she made a tough shot."

WMU was led by the double-digit performances from four of the team's five starters. Wool led the team with 17 points off a 50 percent (5-of-10) shooting mark with two made baskets from long range. She added seven rebounds, four assists, and a team-high two blocks to her numbers on the night. Redshirt senior Breanna Mobley earned her 12^th double-double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds, paced by 6-of-10 shooting. Kamrin Reed tallied 12 points while Jordan Walker had 11 and tied for a team-high five assists with graduate transfer Chelayne Bailey.  

The Broncos shot 44.6 percent from the field (25-of-56) and 38.2 percent from long-range (13-34), tying a season-high. WMU out-rebounded their opponents 39-31, bringing in 11 points off the bench and 20 points in the paint. Reed, Walker, and Maddie Watters each had three made three-pointers, Watters leading from the bench in scoring with nine points total.

Wednesday's contest saw 17 lead changes and nine ties in 40 minutes of play, with the score being held at a tie for at least six total minutes of the game.
The Bobcats started out with the advantage, shooting 52.9 percent in the first quarter with six points scored off Bronco turnovers. WMU fought back with back-to-back threes from Watters and Reed, but Ohio had the upper hand 21-15 at the end of the quarter after a 6-0 scoring run.

WMU brought some fire into the second quarter, outscoring the Bobcats 14-11. Maddie Watters sunk her second three-pointer after Walker's three to tie the game at 21-21. Another three, this time from Reed, kept the Broncos at pace with their opponent until the final minute of the half, with Ohio scoring five straight points to head into the locker room with a 32-29 advantage.

The Broncos re-tied the game straight out of the gate with another three from Reed and a layup by Mobley. Ohio strung together an 8-0 run for their biggest lead of the game a few minutes into the third quarter, but WMU made up the deficit after back-to-back threes from Walker and Wool, her first of the game. On her next possession, Wool sunk another shot behind the arc to put the Broncos behind by a single point heading into the final frame.

Ohio took a four-point advantage into the first seconds of the quarter with a made layup and extra foul shot. Chelayne Bailey came in clutch with her first three-point shot of the game and another on her next scoring possession to put WMU up by two. Capping off a 7-0 run for the Broncos was wool with an and-one to take a 69-67 lead. Ohio eventually re-tied the game at 71-71 with a minute left to play, taking the upper hand after a made foul shot by Cierra Hooks. Wool nabbed the rebound off the second shot attempt, leading to the game-winning layup for the Brown & Gold.

"If someone had told me we'd be 3-1 going into our fifth game, having had to play two on the road and two at home… I'd take it," Clipfell said. "This is a conference that is going to continue to be very difficult every night you step on the court."
 
The  Broncos are back at home on Saturday (Jan. 18) to take on Central Michigan University, the last undefeated team in the conference with a 4-0 mark. Tipoff inside University Arena is set for 2:00 p.m.