KALAMAZOO, Mich. – In a battle until the final whistle against one of the top teams in the Mid-American Conference the Western Michigan men's basketball team dropped a 71-67 decision to Akron on Tuesday night inside University Arena.

The Broncos outshot the Zips on Tuesday night, shooting 46.2 percent from the field compared to Akron's 37.9 percent. However, the Zips dominated at the free-throw line going 19-of-27 compared to WMU's 2-of-4. From distance, WMU was 5-of-22 (.227) while Akron was 8-of-24 (.333).

WMU was led offensively by junior guard Michael Flowers with 22 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the field. Flowers also corralled six rebounds to go along with five assists and two steals. With the five assists against Akron the Southfield, Mich., native became just the 12th player in school history to reach 1000 career points, 200 rebounds, 200 assists and 2000 minutes.

Behind Flowers redshirt junior Brandon Johnson scored in double figures with 14 points and 10 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. It was the first double-double for the Broncos since Johnson had 15 points and 11 rebounds back on Dec. 14 at Manhattan. Johnson was 6-of-14 from the field and 2-of-3 from the free-throw line with one steal and one block.

WMU scored 18 points off the bench with redshirt junior Rafael Cruz Jr. leading the way with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field. Cruz Jr. also registered three rebounds and three assists in 22 minutes.

The freshman duo of Titus Wright and B. Artis White combined for 11 points and eight rebounds on Tuesday night. Wright was 3-of-5 from the field for six points with six rebounds while White scored five points on 2-of-8 shooting from the field with one three-pointer.

Sophomore Patrick Emilien and freshman Chase Barrs each had four points on the night while sophomore William Boyer-Richard and redshirt sophomore Jason Whitens rounded out the Bronco scoring with two points each.

Akron narrowly outrebounded WMU, 40-37 with each team registering double-digit offensive rebounds. The Broncos scored 46 of its 67 points in the paint to go along with 13 second-chance points and 15 points in transition.

With the loss WMU now has an overall record of 11-15 and 4-9 in conference play. The Broncos continue play at home on Saturday, Feb. 22 against MAC West foe Toledo. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m. inside University Arena.

WMU jumped out to a 6-5 lead early in the first half as Flowers knocked down the first of two threes' on the night to give the Brown & Gold a one-point lead at the 14:30 mark. Akron rallied back and embarked on an 11-4 run midway through the first half to gain a 17-10 advantage.

The Broncos ramped up the defense late in the first half, forcing Akron to commit five turnovers in four minutes to cut its deficit down to four at the 2:56 mark. The two teams traded baskets to end the half as the Zips took a 36-29 lead into the locker room.
In the second half Western Michigan continued to battle and cut the Akron lead down to 44-37 with 14:52 remaining after a floater found the bottom of the net from Flowers. The lay-up from Flowers sparked WMU to make four of its next five field goals to trim its deficit down to five with 11:28 to play.

The Bronco defense came to life midway through the second half, holding Akron scoreless for over three minutes to slim the Zips lead down to 51-48 with 9:50 remaining. Forward Patrick Emilien converted a tough lay-up to cut Akron's lead down to one before the Zips responded with four straight points to extend their lead back to 56-50.

Western Michigan got to within two at the 7:46 mark of the second half thanks to a 5-1 run highlighted by a high-arching three-pointer from guard Rafael Cruz Jr. However, Akron once again rallied back embarking on a 7-0 run in less than a minute to widen its lead to 64-55 with 6:40 left.

Both teams struggled to score during the late stages of the game as WMU and Akron went a combined 0-of-8 from the field en route to a 65-59 lead for the Zips. Trailing by six with a minute remaining, Flowers knocked down a fade away jumper off an inbounds play to cut the Zips lead down to 69-65.

After Akron made 1-of-2 from the free-throw line the Broncos raced up the court and registered a tip-in lay-up from Johnson to slim Akron's lead down to 70-67 with 12.6 seconds remaining. On the ensuing possession the Broncos forced a trap in the corner that ultimately resulted in a foul sending Akron's Loren Cristian Jackson to the line.  Jackson made 1-of-2 at the free-throw line late to secure the 71-67 victory for the Zips.