KALAMAZOO, Mich. – In his team debut, Lamar Norman Jr. scored a game-high 23 points to lead the Western Michigan men's basketball team to a season-opening 76-58 win over Hope College on Wednesday night at University Arena.
 
Norman netted a career-best 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting, which included making five of his eight three-point attempts. Fellow WMU debutant Markeese Hastings nearly posted a double-double, scoring seven points to go with a career-high 10 rebounds. Hastings also nabbed a team-high three steals.
 
All 11 Broncos who saw action on Wednesday scored at least three points and grabbed at least one rebound. Of those 11, seven saw their first action in a WMU uniform, including true freshmen Gus Etchison (5), Cameron Kimble (3) and Owen Lobsinger (5) who made their collegiate debuts and scored the first points of their collegiate careers.
 
Senior transfer Mack Smith made Western Michigan's first basket of the season, a three-pointer 21 seconds into the contest, to spark a 10-2 start for the Broncos. In front 23-16, WMU ripped off a 10-0 run, which was capped by an Etchison three-point play, to build the advantage to 33-16 with 3:54 remaining in the half. During the run, the Broncos held the Flying Dutchmen without a field goal for nearly six-and-a-half minutes.
 
In the final minute of the opening period, Danny Kolp threw down a dunk to give Western Michigan its biggest lead of the half, 39-20, which was the margin the Broncos took into the locker room. WMU shot an even 50.0 percent (15-for-30) from the floor in the opening 20 minutes while holding Hope College to 23.5 percent (8-for-34) shooting.
 
A pair of Norman triples in the opening three minutes of the second stanza helped Western Michigan extend its advantage to 26, 50-24, with 17:20 remaining. At the 9:27 mark, B. Artis White completed a three-point play to cap a 7-0 run which gave the Broncos their biggest lead of the evening, 64-34.
 
Hope College responded with an extended 21-4 surge to draw back to within 13, 68-55, with just under three minutes left to play. The Flying Dutchmen could get no closer, as Josiah Freeman helped Western Michigan seal the victory with six points over the final two-and-a-half minutes.
 
For the game, WMU shot 46.7 percent from the field (28-of-60), and made eight three-pointers on 23 attempts (34.8 percent). Hope College shot 32.4 percent (22-of-68) on field goals and netted just four triples on 29 attempts (13.8 percent).
 
Western Michigan won the rebounding battle, 46-38, was plus-six (34-28) on points in the paint, and got 31 points from its bench, compared to 19 for the Flying Dutchmen.

WMU hits the road on Friday night, Nov. 12, as it travels to East Lansing to take on Michigan State. The Broncos and Spartans are set to tip off at 6:30 pm. The game will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network and the Bronco Radio Network.