WESTERN MICHIGAN 61, AKRON 57 (OT)
KENT STATE 72, TOLEDO 59
EASTERN MICHIGAN 75, CENTRAL MICHIGAN 70
NORTHERN ILLINOIS 64, BALL STATE 58
BUFFALO 112, BOWLING GREEN 85
MRO STAFF
ATHENS, OH -- Ohio picked up its third straight win and 22nd victory of the season with a 91-78 verdict over Miami (11-4, 5-9 MAC) Tuesday night at the Convention Center. Now 13-2 in conference play, the Bobcats are atop the Mid-American Conference standings.
As in their first meeting with MU, 6-8 senior Ben Vander Plas had a big game. He registered 23 points Jan. 15 in Oxford. This time, he had 18 by halftime and finished with 30 while making 9 of 12 from the field overall, 3 of 6 on treys and 9 of 10 at the line.
Ohio (22-4, 13-2 MAC) thrived at the line, hitting 22 of 24 free throw opportunities. That was more than enough to overcome Miami's 31-29 advantage in made field goals. Mark Sears tallied 23 points for the Bobcats - most in the second half as Ohio grabbed the lead and pulled away. Miles Brown and Tommy Schmock hit back-to-back treys starting at 12:34 to kick-start a 10-0 run that left the hosts in front 68-56. Schmock, who hit 6 of 9 overall and 4 of 7 triples, contributed 18 points off the bench for the 'Cats.
Dae Dae Grant topped Miami with 22 points, followed by Mekhi Lairy (18), Isaiah Coleman-Lands (12) and Myja White (18).
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Western Michigan scored the final six points of regulation to force overtime, then outscored Akron 11-7 in the extra session to take down the Zips, 71-67, on Tuesday evening at University Arena.
Trailing 40-34, Western Michigan (6-20, 2-13) rattled off seven in a row, taking the lead on a Titus Wright layup with 6:47 remaining. During the run, the Broncos kept Akron (16-8, 9-5) without a point for nearly six minutes, and without a field goal for more than seven minutes.
The Zips briefly regained a three-point edge, 44-41, but Josiah Freeman canned a three-pointer to even the contest with five minutes to play. Akron tallied the next six points to regain a 50-44 advantage with 2:07 remaining. Mileek McMillan made four free throws over WMU’s next two possessions, and after another defensive stop, Lamar Norman Jr. drove to the basket for the game-tying layup in the final minute to force the game into overtime, even at 50-50.
With the contest tied at 52-52, Norman buried a triple to put Western Michigan back on top, 55-52, with two minutes remaining in the extra session. Akron drew back within a point, 55-54, but Norman went 6-for-6 from the free throw line in the final minute of the game to seal the WMU victory, and snap a six-game slide for the Broncos against the Zips.
Norman netted a game-high 19 points for Western Michigan to extend his double-digit scoring streak to 23 consecutive games. McMillan was in double-figures for the fifth straight game and came just shy of a double-double, as the senior posted 14 points and nine rebounds. Markeese Hastings chipped in eight points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
The Broncos started out hot, connecting on their first five field goal attempts and six of their first seven to open up a 15-5 advantage at the 15:44 mark of the first half. Akron netted six straight points to close the gap to 15-11, but a 7-2 WMU response upped the margin back to 22-13 with 7:45 remaining in the first half.
With Western Michigan in front 24-15, the Zips rattled off a 12-0 run to move in front for the first time, and the visitors used that surge to take a 29-26 edge into the halftime locker room.
WMU got back within one on a Norman three-pointer at the 15:31 mark, but the Zips netted the next five points to match their largest lead of the evening, 40-34, with 12:14 to play.
Both teams struggled from the field, as Western Michigan hit 32.3 percent (21-of-65), and Akron connected on 32.8 percent (19-of-58) from the floor. The Broncos were plus-four on the glass, securing a season-high 48 rebounds, including a season-high tying 17 offensive boards. WMU owned a 12-8 advantage in second-chance points and 16-6 edge in points scored off of turnovers.
Akron was led by Enrique Freeman with 16 points. Xavier Castaneda (11) was the only other Zip in double figures.
TOLEDO, Ohio – Kent State picked up its seventh win in a row as it ended Toldoe's (206, 12-3 MAC) 13-game home winning home winning streak on Tuesday night inside Savage Arena.
KSU stifled the Rockets all night, holding Toledo to a season-low 59 points. Toledo has been held under 75 points in Mid-American Conference play just twice this year, both times by the Flashes' defense. Kent State has won seven games in a row for the first time since Rob Senderoff's first season.
The bench was the story of the night, outscoring the Rockets 52-1. Sincere Carry led the way for the Flashes' bench with a game-high 23 points. Malique Jacobs added 14 points and six rebounds off the bench as well.
Kent State held Toledo to just 20 first-half points and led by 16 heading into the locker room. The Golden Flashes went on to pull away in convincing fashion as the Rockets never got within 10 points of the Flashes in the second half.
VonCameron Davis and Andrew Garcia each scored nine points for the Flashes. Garcia added eight rebounds. Justyn Hamilton recorded eight points and eight boards, while Tervell Beck added seven points off the bench.
RayJ Dennis led UT with 21 points, followed by Ra'Heim Moss (11) and Ryan Rollins (10).
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- Eastern Michigan topped Central Michigan University, 75-70, Tuesday to win the Michigan MAC trophy for the first-time since the 2019-20 campaign. Additionally, it is Eastern's fourth time (2017, 2018, 2020, and 2022) earning the award since its inception in 2005.
Eastern (9-16, 4-10 MAC) had three players score in double figures, led by Noah Farrakhan, who had 24 points and four assists. Nate Scott and freshman Mo Njie both helped out with 10 points. The team shared the ball effectively, totaling 14 assists for the fourth time this season. The Eastern Michigan offense was very productive from three-point land, making nine threes on 24 attempts. Senior Thomas Binelli was the most prolific shooter for the Eagles, draining three treys in the contest.
Defensively, senior Axel Okongo paced the Eagles with two blocks, as the team finished with three. The team also only allowed one three-point make in the first half, holding Central to 1-of-7.
CMU's Kevin Miller led all scorers with 23 points. Harrison Henderson tallied 14, while Cameron Healy also reached double figures with 12 points.
How It Happened
After jumping out to a 37-30 advantage, Eastern Michigan went on a 6-0 run with 1:09 left in the first half, culminating in a three from senior Monty Scott, to increase its lead to 43-30, a score that would hold until halftime. Eastern relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down seven shots to account for 21 of its 43 points.
Eastern Michigan kept its lead intact before going on a 6-0 run, finished off by senior Darion Spottsville layup, to grow the advantage to 59-49 with 8:35 to go in the contest. The Chippewas narrowed the margin before the game was over, but the Eagles still held on for the 75-70 win. Eastern took care of business in the paint, recording 16 of its 32 points in the lane.
MUNCIE, Ind. – Trendon Hankerson and Keshawn Williams each scored 19 points as Northern Illinois won on the road at Ball State, 64-58, on Tuesday night in Worthen Arena.
Tied at the half, the Huskies shot 50 percent (11-of-22) from the field in the second 20 minutes, while holding the Cardinals to just 34.5 percent (10-of-29) to earn the road victory.
Chinedu Kingsley Okanu added 10 points in less than 10 minutes while dealing with foul trouble. Darweshi Hunter and Adong Makuoi each had a team-high seven rebounds.
Tied at 27 at the intermission, Kaleb Thornton opened the second half with a triple from the wing. Hankerson and Williams each added trifectas in the opening five minutes of the second stanza, helping NIU to a 38-33 lead.
Okanu scored eight-straight Huskie points to help NIU maintain its lead and, when Thornton knocked in a 15-foot jumper, the Huskies were in front 48-39 just past the midway point of the second half, forcing a Cardinal timeout.
The Huskie lead was five, 54-49, with five minutes remaining and Hankerson made a free-throw to help the NIU advantage grow to a half-dozen.
An old-fashioned three-point play from Williams gave the Huskies a 58-51 lead with 2:26 left. Ball State trimmed the visitors advantage back to just four with a minute to play, but Williams made a pair of free throws on the next possession and the Huskies went 5-of-6 from the stripe in the final minute to secure the road win.
Payton Sparks scored a team-high 16 points for Ball State, Miryne Thomas added 11 and Demarius Jacobs chipped in 10 points for the Cardinals.
Early in the contest, Hankerson made a pair of triples to give the Huskies a lead. After the second Hankerson trifecta, Ball State scored the next half-dozen as the Cardinals moved in front, 11-6, with 14:35 to play in the opening half.
NIU answered back with the next six as Makuoi and Hunter each made free throws, followed by a bucket from Makuoi and a finish by Williams as the Huskies took a 12-11 advantage just before the midway point of the first half.
Williams extended the Huskie advantage to three with another basket before Ball State scored the next six to move back in front, 17-14, with just over six minutes to play before the break.
An old-fashioned three-point play by Williams brought NIU back even at 17. Tied at 24, Hankerson made his fourth triple of the half to give the Huskies a three-point lead. Ball State scored the final three points of the half to pull even at 27 at the intermission.
Sparks paced Ball State with 16 points. Miryne Thomas netted 11, while Demarius Jacobs added 10.
BOWLING GREEN, OH – Buffalo scored the first 10 points on Tuesday evening and never looked back as the Bulls won their fourth straight game with a wire-to-wire victory at Bowling Green, 112-85. The win improves Buffalo's record to 14-8 on the year and 8-4 in league play.
Over the first three minutes, senior Jeenathan Williams scored eight of Buffalo's first 10 points, forcing Bowling Green into the early timeout. The Falcons would keep it within eight with 9:08 left, but the Bulls responded with an 11-0 run, opening a 40-21 lead. The 19-point advantage would be Buffalo's largest for much of the game until another run at the end. Senior Josh Mballa had five points during the run, while Ronaldo Segu added another four. The Bulls led by double figures for the rest of the half, taking a 51-38 lead into the break.
The Bulls got out to a 17-point lead early in the second half, but the Falcons would fight their way back to down just 11 with 12:12 left before a Tra'von Fagan basket ended the run. Holding on to a 12-point lead, a three-pointer from Fagan ignited a 13-2 run as a dunk from Mballa put the Bulls ahead 83-60 with 7:08 left.
A driving layup from Segu gave the Bulls their largest lead of the game at 31 points with a 103-72 advantage with just under three minutes left. A three from freshman Kidtrell Blocker tied the school record for points in a road game and a layup from the Rochester, NY native set a new school record.
The 112 points on the road surpass the old mark of 106, which was set twice, most recently at Niagara during the 2017-18 season. It also happed during the 1973-74 season against Rochester. Overall, the 112 points fifth in school history and the most since UB scored 114 against Ohio in the 2018-19 season.
The Bulls dominated the glass with a 55-32 edge, including 21 offensive rebounds.
12 different Bulls found the scoring column on Tuesday evening, led by 20 points and 11 boards from Mballa, who was a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line. Williams added 19 points and four assists, and Segu finished with 19 points, six rebounds, and six assists.
Freshman Curtis Jones had his second straight double figure scoring performance against Bowling Green as he finished with 11 points, including three triples.
Samari Curtis led Bowling Green with 19 points. Myron Gordon tallied 15, followed by Trey Diggs (14) and Daeqwon Plowden (10).