KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan men's basketball team returns to University Arena on Saturday afternoon for a doubleheader with the WMU women's team. On the women's side, the Broncos take on NIU at noon, while the men's team is set to face Miami at approximately 2:30 pm.
GAME INFO
Matchup: Western Michigan (7-17, 4-7 MAC) vs Miami RedHawks (19-5, 10-1)
Date/Time: Saturday, Feb. 15 – 2:30 pm
Site: University Arena (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
Tickets: wmubroncos.com/tickets
Video: ESPN+
Radio: Bronco Media Network
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
OPENING TIP
- Western Michigan returns to Kalamazoo on Saturday afternoon as it welcomes Miami to University Arena.
- The Broncos are coming off of a 105-92 loss at first-place Akron on Tuesday night.
- Chansey Willis Jr. tied his career high with 28 points to lead WMU in scoring for the 10th time this season.
- Willis added seven rebounds, five steals and four assists in the contest.
- He was joined in double-figures by JaVaughn Hannah, Donovan Williams, Markhi Strickland and Brandon Muntu.
- Western Michigan tied its season high with 11 three-pointers on Tuesday.
- WMU also secured 21 offensive rebounds, its third-highest total of the year.
- Miami owns an 89-52 advantage in the all-time series between the two teams.
- The Broncos are 38-31 against the RedHawks in Kalamazoo.
- Miami won this season's first meeting, 91-71, on Jan. 11 in Oxford.
SECOND TIME AROUND
Western Michigan returns home on Saturday as it hosts Miami at University Arena. The RedHawks are the first opponent in WMU's second trip around the conference. MU won the first meeting, 91-71, on Jan. 11 in Oxford.
LAST TIME OUT
The Broncos are coming off of a 105-92 loss on Tuesday night at first-place Akron. Five players scored in double-figures for Western Michigan, led by
Chansey Willis Jr., who tied his career high with 28 points. WMU tied its season high with 11 three-pointers.
BALANCED BRONCOS
WMU had five players score in double-figures for the seventh time this season on Tuesday at Akron.
Chansey Willis Jr. paced the Brown and Gold with a career-high tying 28. Joining him in double-figures were
JaVaughn Hannah (15),
Donovan Williams (13),
Markhi Strickland (12) and
Brandon Muntu (11). Seven different Broncos have led the team in scoring at least once this season.
THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT, WILLIS
Chansey Willis Jr. tied his career high with 28 points at Akron, the most scored by a Bronco in a game this season. The Detroit native also collected seven rebounds, five steals and four assists. In conference play, he is averaging 16.4 points (T-8 MAC), 5.2 assists (T-4), 1.8 steals (T-4) and has a 1.7 assist-to-turnover ratio (6th).
MAKING HIS MARK
Markhi Strickland had 12 points on Tuesday at Akron, the team-leading 17th double-digit scoring performance of the campaign for the junior, who hadn't scored in double-figures in 26 career games at the NCAA DI level prior to this season. Strickland has been efficient with his scoring, ranking 12th in the MAC with a .494 field goal percentage.
CLEANING THE GLASS
The Broncos continue to rank among the league's best in rebounding, leading the MAC in offensive rebounding (13.5), ranking second in overall rebounding (37.6) and fourth in rebounding margin (+2.8). Western Michigan is also leading the way in offensive rebounding in conference play (14.2) and is second in overall rebounding (37.3) in MAC contests. The WMU trio of
Owen Lobsinger (7.0, 4th),
Max Burton (5.5, T-14) and
Donovan Williams (5.4, 16th) are all among the league's top-20 rebounders this season.
GETTING OFFENSIVE
After leading the conference in offensive rebounding each of the last two seasons, Western Michigan is atop the MAC once again in 2024-25. WMU pulled down 21 offensive rebounds on Tuesday at Akron, the third game with 20+ offensive boards this season for the Brown and Gold, who are averaging 13.5 per contest (24th in NCAA DI). Four Broncos rank in the league's top-15 on the offensive glass;
Owen Lobsinger (2.1, 9th),
Max Burton (2.0, 12th),
Donovan Williams (1.9, 14th) and
JaVaughn Hannah (1.7, 15th). WMU is averaging a league-best 14.2 offensive boards in MAC play.
OWEN-ING THE BOARDS
Owen Lobsinger has been the top rebounder for WMU all season, and ranks fourth in the league at 7.0 rebounds per game. In MAC play, he is up to 7.8 per contest.
PROTECTING THE ROCK
Western Michigan has had 10 or fewer turnovers 11 times this season, including eight games with single-digit miscues. At 11.0 per contest, WMU is committing the second-fewest turnovers in the conference.
SERIES HISTORY
Miami comes into Saturday's matchup with an 89-52 lead in the all-time series between the two programs. The Broncos have had the upperhand in Kalamazoo, 38-31, including a 77-58 victory last year, which gave Western Michigan its first season sweep of the RedHawks since the 2017-18 campaign.
WHEN LAST WE MET
These two teams met in Oxford back on Jan. 11, with the RedHawks claiming a 91-71 victory. Kam Craft netted a game-high 23 points to lead the way for Miami, who shot 54.1 percent from the field for the afternoon.
Markhi Strickland led the four Broncos in double-figures with 14 points.
THE ROAD AHEAD
Western Michigan hits the road on Tuesday night for a rematch with Buffalo.
