Chippewas hang on late, defeat Herd
The men’s basketball knocked off one of the MAC’s top teams, playing strong Tuesday in the final minutes of a 81-78 victory at Marshall.
Marshall came into the game with a 4-0 conference record. The Thundering Herd’s loss, coupled with an earlier Bowling Green loss leaves the MAC with no unbeaten teams.
Central improves to 10-3 overall, and 3-1 in conference play.
After Marshall (8-4) went on a 6-0 run to tie the game at 78-78 with more than a minute left, the Chippewas capitalized on offensive rebounds, and sophomore Tony Bowne was fouled with 25 seconds remaining.
Bowne hit both of his foul shots, giving CMU the lead. Marshall got the ball to leading scorer Ronald Blackshear, who was called for traveling with eight seconds left.
Senior J.R. Wallace was fouled, and stepped to the line for a one-and-one. Wallace missed the front end, but Marshall’s Ardo Armpalu was called for a line violation. Wallace then made one of two, giving Central a three-point lead.
The Thundering Herd had one last chance, but Blackshear’s last-second three point attempt missed.
Junior center Chris Kaman had another strong inside game, scoring 23 points. Senior guard Whitney Robinson added 16 points, while Wallace and senior forward Mike Manciel scored 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Blackshear scored 27 points to lead Marshall, despite his late-game failures. Armpalu added 15 points, while Ronny Dawn chipped in 10.
The Chippewas opened the game with a 14-5 run, and held a 45-41 lead at halftime. Marshall came back in the second half, as the lead shifted between the two teams.
Central went on a late-game 7-2 run to regain a 78-72 lead on a Robinson basket.
CMU will return home against Buffalo Saturday.
