Nate Hutcheson scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds, and Western Michigan survived a late Central Michigan rally to hold on for a 64-61 win Saturday.
Hutcheson was 6 of 11 from the field and hit three 3-pointers. Mike Douglas added 13 points and Flenard Whitfield had 12 for the Broncos (9-10, 3-2 Mid-American).
Trey Zeigler scored 19 points, including a layup with 2:21 to play that pulled the Chippewas (7-11, 2-3) within 64-61. Unfortunately for Central Michigan, those were the last two points of the game. Olivier Mbaigoto missed a game-tying 3-pointer with 47 seconds left, and Zeigler missed another with 5 seconds remaining. Whitfield grabbed the rebound to secure the win.
Western Michigan led 61-50 with 4:49 left, but back-to-back 3s by Austin Keel and another by Zeigler fueled the Chippewas' comeback.
Central Michigan shot just 34 percent from the field, including 28 percent in the second half.
