KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Trailing by as many as 17 late in the first half on Friday evening, the Western Michigan University men’s basketball team rallied to outscore Akron 59-39 in the second half and claim a 90-84 victory on its Senior Night at University Arena.
The win sealed a berth for WMU in next week’s Mid-American Conference Tournament in Cleveland for the first time since the 2019-20 season.
Trailing 53-40 four minutes into the second half, Western Michigan (12-19, 9-9 MAC) used an 18-4 surge to storm back and take its first lead of the evening, 58-57, with 11:11 on the clock. Moments later with the game even at 61-61, Javonte Brown made a layup to begin a 7-0 run to put the Broncos in front, 68-61, as the clock ticked into the final six minutes.
Akron (21-10, 13-5) closed the gap to 68-64, but WMU answered with another eight consecutive points, including back-to-back dunks by Titus Wright and Anthony Crump, to boost the margin to 76-64. The Zips inched a little bit closer with some three-pointers while the Broncos made their free throws at the other end, but the visitors drew no closer than six for the remainder of the contest.
B. Artis White paced the five Western Michigan players in double-figures with 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including 5-of-8 on three-pointers. Brown totaled 16 points on 7-of-9 from the floor, Wright and Seth Hubbard tallied 13 points apiece, and JaVaughn Hannah added 12.
The Broncos had a healthy 39-28 rebounding advantage in the contest, with Owen Lobsinger’s nine boards leading the charge. Jefferson De La Cruz Monegro collected seven rebounds and Crump added six for WMU.
Before the game, Western Michigan honored Alika Edmonds, Anthony Crump, Titus Wright and B. Artis White as a part of its Senior Night celebration.
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