CMU men's basketball falls short of comeback to Kent State
With three minutes remaining in the game, Central Michigan men's basketball had possession of the ball, trailing Kent State by six after erasing the 15-point deficit the Chippewas had faced at halftime.
CMU guard Anthony Pritchard caught a pass from guard Jakobi Heady and immediately drove to the basket, hitting a layup to make the score 83-79, with the four-point deficit being the smallest of the second half for Central Michigan.
However, with only 2:53 left to play in the game, the Golden Flashes were able to bleed the rest of the clock out, handing CMU a 91-83 loss.
The Chippewas fall to 11-13 on the season and 4-7 in Mid-American Conference play. With tonight's loss, Central Michigan notably falls to 0-9 when trailing at halftime.
The first quarter started with four of the first five baskets for Kent State coming from beyond arc, putting CMU in a hole early as it trailed 14-4 only four minutes into the game.
The Chippewas briefly found success on offense, cutting the deficit to five and making the score 24-19 with 11 minutes remaining in the half.
However, the success was short-lived as the Golden Flashes dominated the rest of the half, outscoring Central Michigan 24-14 in the final ten minutes, forcing the squad from Mount Pleasant to go into the locker room down 48-31.
KSU took the 15-point lead into halftime utilizing 55.2 percent shooting from the field with nine threes made in the first half.
Kent State came out of halftime hot with back-to-back threes, giving itself a 21-point lead in the opening minute of the second half.
CMU battled back, trimming the lead to 10 with 8:43 remaining in the game, with forward Ugnius Jarusevicius doing a lot of the heavy lifting as he dominated the paint, forcing the Golden Flashes to foul him multiple times in the second half.
The team from Mount Pleasant further closed the gap, coming within two possessions with three minutes remaining in the game after a Pritchard layup cut the deficit to four.
However, it was too late for Central Michigan, and Kent State was able to let the clock tick away on the Chippewas comeback hopes, forcing it to leave with a 91-83 loss.
Jarusevicius led the team in scoring with a career high 32 points, 10 rebounds, and two steals, posting yet another double-double for the junior.
Pritchard finished with 18 points and eight assists, going 8-12 from the field.
Central Michigan continued its dominance in the post, outscoring Kent State 48-28 in the paint.
Kent State's three-point shooting was on display as the school from Ohio shot 16-30 from beyond the arc, with senior Marquis Barnett scoring 28 points coming off the bench, shooting 6-8 from three.
CMU men's basketball has a chance to bounce back at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 15, as it prepares to host MAC front-runner Akron.
