Kalamazoo, Michigan -- The Bulldog basketball team nearly defeated the Western Michigan Broncos in a close four-point game at University Arena on the campus of Western Michigan University.
After 40 minutes of action, A&M found themselves on the losing end of a 73-69 contest.
The Maroon & White came out of their locker room with a great energy and asserted themselves early. Tyler Davis opened the scoring with a long range three on A&M's first shot of the game. The Bulldogs did the same on the defensive side of the ball, forcing WMU into turnovers. After four minutes of play, the teams were tied at eight.
The home team would take the lead on the next play starting an eight-nil scoring run. The run was cut by a two-point bucket by Demarquelle Tabb. Although the run was broken and the lead cut to within three-points, the Broncos would not look back. WMU went on to dominate first half play and took a 14 point lead into the break after leading by as many as 17 in the first period.
The Bulldogs shot 34 percent from the field and were one of four from the charity stripe; a 41.7 three-point percentage on 5-12 shooting wasn't enough to tame the home team. The Broncos shot 42 percent from the field, 50 percent behind the arc (6-12), and 63 percent from the free throw line to outscore the Bulldogs 40-26.
The second half began where the first left off. The Broncos stretched their lead to 20 points and held A&M scoreless for the first 3:01 of action. For the next four minutes, The Bulldogs slowly tried to cut into the lead but Head Coach Willie Hayes was forced to call a time out after an alley-oop dunk by WMU's Shayne Whittington had the scoreboard read 51-36.
Coming out of the time out, the Maroon & White dialed up the defensive pressure and increased their offensive efficiency. Defensively things began with a monster block from Demarquelle Tabb, while the offense was lead by the lights out shooting of Arthur Caper who came off the bench. Caper sunk consecutive three pointers cutting the deficit too seven points at 58-51 forcing a timeout from the Western Michigan head coach with just under nine minutes left to play.
As time elapsed, the Bulldogs would see their deficit even further. With just 1:37 left on the clock, the Maroon & White were within in one point of the home team at 67-66. Down the stretch, A&M didn't have enough to edge the Broncos. After a David Brown layup and two clutch free throws with just 26 seconds left, the Broncos went on to win the contest 73-69.
Tabb tallied a double double (10 points & 13 rebounds), while Capers scored a game high 23 points to lead the Bulldogs. The Maroon & White outscored the Broncos 43-33 in the second half and 47-13 in points off the bench during 40 minutes of action.
The Bulldogs will return to the hardwood, Tuesday, November 19, when they visit Eastern Kentucky University for a 7 p..m contest.
Box Score
COURTESY ALABAMA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
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