UT Martin bounces CMU in first round of CIT, Chippewas end season 17-16
For the second straight postseason game, the Central Michigan men's basketball team trailed by three with a chance to tie in the final seconds.
Senior forward John Simons caught the inbounds pass from senior guard Chris Fowler and shot the ball with less than three seconds left. He watched it bounce off the rim as the clock hit zero.
The Chippewas' season — and the college careers of Simons, Fowler, and guards Rayshawn Simmons and Austin Stewart — was over.
CMU fell to Tennessee-Martin 76-73 on Wednesday in a CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament opening-round game at McGuirk Arena.
The Chippewas fell out of the first round of a postseason for the second consecutive season. In front of 832 fans, CMU lost its third straight game to end its season with a 17-16 record (10-8 in the Mid-American Conference). It was the lowest-attended game since Nov. 30, 2013.
CMU lost 62-59 to Bowling Green in the MAC Tournament Quarterfinals after it turned the ball over on the last possession.
“Some games we can close it out, some games we can’t," said junior guard Braylon Rayson. "Games like this, they hurt. You know you’re just one possession away from winning the ball game. For the future, it’s something we need to work on.”
CMU led 73-71 before the Skyhawks' Alex Anderson hit a 3-pointer to give them a one-point lead with 45 seconds to play. Anderson hit two free throws with 15 seconds left to extend the lead to three, 76-73.
UT Martin had inbounded the ball with three seconds left but turned it over. CMU then called its final timeout of the game.
Head Coach Keno Davis drew up a play so either Simons would shoot, hand it off to Fowler or pass it to Rayson or sophomore guard Josh Kozinski.
Simons, the all-time leader in 3-pointers at CMU, took his final three at McGuirk Arena. He, Fowler and senior guards Rayshawn Simmons and Austin Stewart walked off the court for the final time.
The Chippewas shot 15-of-43 from 3-point range, and Rayson, Simons and Kozinski took 11 attempts each. The 43 attempts is the most 3-point attempts in a single game in program history. Davis said it was not a part of the game plan.
“I don’t think it’s ideal, unless you’re making them," Davis said.
Rayson led the Chippewas with 24 points — six away from his career high — and had eight rebounds.
“I’m not going to say that I can do that every night, but I’ve done it before," Rayson said. "Some days my shots aren’t falling and people have to step up. When my teammates are not capable of doing something they normally do, I feel like I have to (step) in their shoes and do that for them.”
Simons was a point away from a double-double and grabbed 10 rebounds. Simmons had six points, Stewart added two and Fowler finished with 10. He only took one shot in the first half, which he made.
“It was just one of those games and one of those seasons where Chris is going to try and do everything that he can to help his team win," Davis said. "If Braylon Rayson’s got a hot hand or Josh Kozinski’s got a hot hand, he’s going to defer to them. I wouldn’t second-guess him for a second. The decisions he’s made have won us a lot of games.”
Rayson hit back-to-back threes in the first half to put CMU up 33-28 when Rayson was called for a technical foul with 1:04 left in the half. In the next 64 seconds, UT Martin would score six points to take a 34-33 lead into the break. Anderson picked up a technical early in the second half.
“Teams like that, they’re going to try to punk you, basically," Rayson said. "They are going to try and come in your house and talk to you. That’s why I got a tech. I got a tech for saying something back to the dude. The ref didn’t see him but he saw me. Basically, it’s just whoever gets caught, and I’m the one that got caught.”
Anderson led UT Martin (20-14) with 21 points. The Skyhawks outscored CMU 28-14 in the paint and 17-3 on fast breaks.
“They’re a pretty athletic team," Kozinski said. "Towards the end of the season, guys get run down and they did a good job of just pushing the ball. We like to run as well, but I think it was us pushing on offense and them also pushing it. It was tough.”
Kozinski said he believes the team will get two weeks off before they return to the weight room. Rayson said he needs to relax after the long season.
“Mentally, I’m alright," Rayson said. "Physically, I’m beat up. We got to the postseason. Some teams, they didn’t even get to do that. I definitely need some rest, and I know everybody else feels the same way.”
