Western Michigan nearly . . .
Leading the way for the Broncos was the duo of sophomore B. Artis White and senior Greg Lee with 16 points each. Lee also earned his third double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds. The senior forward was 7-of-12 from the field, while also recording four assists and one block in 31 minutes.
White collected 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field with three from long distance. He also had three rebounds with three assists and one steal.
Rounding out the double digit scoring was junior Adrian Martin with a career-high 13 points. In his fifth start of the season Martin was 3-of-6 from the field with three three-pointers. Martin was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line, including two clutch free-throws with 12 seconds left to extend the Bronco lead to four.
As a team, the Broncos shot 48.2 percent from the field and matched their season-high point total (76). WMU was a stellar 12-of-26 from long distance and shot 76.9 percent from the free-throw line. WMU outrebounded BGSU, 42-32 with the Broncos registering 17 assists on 27 made shots.
The win snapped WMU’s nine-game losing streak on the road and is the first road MAC win for the Brown & Gold since Feb. 4, 2020. The victory improves Western Michigan’s overall record to 3-11 and 2-7 in conference play.
FIRST HALF
Bowling Green scored the first basket of the game and led for 20 seconds before WMU knocked down back-to-back three-pointers to take an early 6-2 lead. It was the only lead for BGSU on the night as WMU’s Daylan Hamilton connected on a three to give WMU a 12-6 advantage at the 15-minute mark of the first half.
After the two teams traded baskets, sophomore guard B. Artis Whit scored five straight points to give WMU a double-digit lead at 25-15 midway through the first half. The Broncos extended their lead to 30-16 with 8:14 remaining after embarking on a 13-3 run, highlighted by a fast break dunk from sophomore Titus Wright. The Falcons responded connecting on three of their next four field goals to trim the Bronco lead down to 34-25 with 4:30 left.
BGSU cut the lead down to single digits late in the first half as WMU went scoreless from the field for over three minutes. Down the stretch of the first, BGSU went scoreless from the field the final 2:07 as the Broncos held a 40-29 advantage at halftime.
SECOND HALF
It was a furious pace to begin the final 20 minutes of action as both WMU and BGSU made three of their first four field goals to start the half. The Falcons went on a 7-0 run to get to within six of the Bronco lead before WMU went on a 5-0 run to earn a 53-42 lead with 13 minutes left to play.
Western Michigan held a 10-point lead at the halfway point of the second half before both teams traded baskets the next five minutes of play. The Bronco offense went scoreless from the field for over two minutes late as BGSU clawed its way back and trailed 65-50 with four minutes remaining.
Late in the second, WMU led 70-65 before BGSU’s Justin Turner knocked down a three with 48 seconds remaining to trim the Bronco lead down to two. On the ensuing WMU possession, senior forward Greg Lee came through with a clutch jumper from the free-throw line to propel the Broncos back in front, 72-68 with 27 seconds left.
BGSU once again cut the lead down to two after a pair of made free-throws from Turner. Junior guard Adrian Martin stepped to the free-throw line with 12 seconds remaining and connected a pair of clutch free-throws to give WMU a 74-70 advantage. BGSU missed its next field goal attempt and committed a foul with three seconds remaining. Lee knocked down his only two free-throws of the night to secure the 76-70 road win for the Broncos.
(Courtesy WMU Athletics/MRO Edit)