KALAMAZOO, Mich. – With five seconds remaining, senior guard Jared Printy knocked down a corner three-pointer to lift Western Michigan past Mid-American Conference west division leader Northern Illinois, 72-69, on Saturday inside University Arena.
With the game tied at 69 and . . .
With the game tied at 69 and . . .
. . . four seconds left on the shot clock, freshman B. Artis White used a screen from junior Michael Flowers to get away from his defender and found Printy for a corner three to give WMU a three-point lead with 5.8 seconds remaining.
On the ensuing inbound, Northern Illinois guard Eugene German hoisted a shot to tie from near half court that bounced off the rim to seal the verdict. It was the second game-winning three-pointer for Printy this season, who connected on a go-ahead three with six seconds left at Manhattan back on Dec. 14.
Offensively the Broncos were led by the junior duo of Brandon Johnson and Michael Flowers, each of whom scored 20 points against the Huskies. Flowers scored 10 of his 20 points in the second half while going 8-of-13 from the field and was 4-of-5 from long distance.
Redshirt junior Brandon Johnson matched Flowers with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field and was 3-of-4 from three-point range. Johnson also led the team with seven rebounds to go along with two assists and one block. .
The freshman trio of B. Artis White, Titus Wright and Chase Barrs each had six points against the Huskies, with White matching his career-high with six rebounds. White was 2-of-4 from the field with two three-pointers and led the team with four assists. Off the bench, Barrs was 1-of-2 from the field and 4-of-6 from the free-throw line with five rebounds and two assists in 18 minutes.
As a team the Broncos shot a staggering 54.2 percent from the field and matched its season-high with 12 three-pointers. Over the past two games the Broncos are shooting 63.2 percent (24-of-39) from behind the three-point line.
It was a hot start for the Broncos in the first half as the Brown & Gold connected on five of their first eight shots to grab a 11-7 lead at the 14:55 mark. After the two teams traded baskets, the Broncos widened their lead to 18-9 at the 12-minute mark thanks to WMU hitting four of its next five field goal attempts.
Brandon Johnson knocked down the first of his three three-pointers on the night to extend the Bronco lead to double digits at 21-11 with nine minutes remaining in the first half. The Bronco defense held NIU scoreless for nearly four minutes during the later stages of the first half and gained a 26-15 advantage with three minutes to play.
NIU rallied back with a 7-0 run to cut the WMU lead down to single digits before Michael Flowers scored five straight points to propel the Broncos to a 32-22 lead. The Huskies knocked down a 15-foot jumper to end the first half as WMU held a 32-24 lead at halftime.
Western Michigan continued to hold on to a double digit lead early in the second half, highlighted by an and-one from Johnson to give the Brown & Gold a 42-32 advantage. The Broncos jumped out to an 18-point lead with 8:41 remaining after White knocked down back-to-back threes That forced NIU to call a timeout, trailing 61-43. White's two from long distance highlighted a 13-2 run for WMU.
The Huskies, however, rallied back and embarked on a 16-1 run to trim the Bronco lead down to 62-59 with three minutes left to play. During NIU's run, the Broncos were held scoreless from the field for nearly five minutes.
NIU made six of its next eight field goals to tie the game at 64 with two minutes left before Johnson drilled a corner three to propel the Broncos back in front. The lead didn't last long, though, as NIU's Eugene German converted an "and-one" to tie the game back up at 67 with 1:42 remaining.
On the next possession, junior Michael Flowers drove the lane for a bucket to give WMU a 69-67 lead with 1:20 remaining. The game stayed at at that score prior to German connecting on a reverse lay-up to tie the game at 69 with a little over 30 seconds left.
White's bucket in the closing seconds provided the game winner.
On the ensuing inbound, Northern Illinois guard Eugene German hoisted a shot to tie from near half court that bounced off the rim to seal the verdict. It was the second game-winning three-pointer for Printy this season, who connected on a go-ahead three with six seconds left at Manhattan back on Dec. 14.
Offensively the Broncos were led by the junior duo of Brandon Johnson and Michael Flowers, each of whom scored 20 points against the Huskies. Flowers scored 10 of his 20 points in the second half while going 8-of-13 from the field and was 4-of-5 from long distance.
Redshirt junior Brandon Johnson matched Flowers with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field and was 3-of-4 from three-point range. Johnson also led the team with seven rebounds to go along with two assists and one block. .
The freshman trio of B. Artis White, Titus Wright and Chase Barrs each had six points against the Huskies, with White matching his career-high with six rebounds. White was 2-of-4 from the field with two three-pointers and led the team with four assists. Off the bench, Barrs was 1-of-2 from the field and 4-of-6 from the free-throw line with five rebounds and two assists in 18 minutes.
As a team the Broncos shot a staggering 54.2 percent from the field and matched its season-high with 12 three-pointers. Over the past two games the Broncos are shooting 63.2 percent (24-of-39) from behind the three-point line.
It was a hot start for the Broncos in the first half as the Brown & Gold connected on five of their first eight shots to grab a 11-7 lead at the 14:55 mark. After the two teams traded baskets, the Broncos widened their lead to 18-9 at the 12-minute mark thanks to WMU hitting four of its next five field goal attempts.
Brandon Johnson knocked down the first of his three three-pointers on the night to extend the Bronco lead to double digits at 21-11 with nine minutes remaining in the first half. The Bronco defense held NIU scoreless for nearly four minutes during the later stages of the first half and gained a 26-15 advantage with three minutes to play.
NIU rallied back with a 7-0 run to cut the WMU lead down to single digits before Michael Flowers scored five straight points to propel the Broncos to a 32-22 lead. The Huskies knocked down a 15-foot jumper to end the first half as WMU held a 32-24 lead at halftime.
Western Michigan continued to hold on to a double digit lead early in the second half, highlighted by an and-one from Johnson to give the Brown & Gold a 42-32 advantage. The Broncos jumped out to an 18-point lead with 8:41 remaining after White knocked down back-to-back threes That forced NIU to call a timeout, trailing 61-43. White's two from long distance highlighted a 13-2 run for WMU.
The Huskies, however, rallied back and embarked on a 16-1 run to trim the Bronco lead down to 62-59 with three minutes left to play. During NIU's run, the Broncos were held scoreless from the field for nearly five minutes.
NIU made six of its next eight field goals to tie the game at 64 with two minutes left before Johnson drilled a corner three to propel the Broncos back in front. The lead didn't last long, though, as NIU's Eugene German converted an "and-one" to tie the game back up at 67 with 1:42 remaining.
On the next possession, junior Michael Flowers drove the lane for a bucket to give WMU a 69-67 lead with 1:20 remaining. The game stayed at at that score prior to German connecting on a reverse lay-up to tie the game at 69 with a little over 30 seconds left.
White's bucket in the closing seconds provided the game winner.
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