MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) Connar Tava had 13 points, David Brown added 12 and A.J. Avery came off the bench to score 11 as Western Michigan held on to beat Ball State 53-48 in a defensive battle on Tuesday night.
Western Michigan (17-11, 8-7 Mid-American Conference) led throughout the second half but the Cardinals stayed close, trailing 50-44 with 29 seconds left when Sean Sellers banked in a 3-pointer to close to 50-47. Western Michigan was up 51-48 when Sellers got the ball again and posted up for a trey, but Brown forced him out of bounds. Austin Richie then made two straight free throws to seal the win.
The Broncos picked up 17 points off of 15 forced turnovers and scored 20 in the paint.
Bo Calhoun had 15 points, Sellers had 13 and Franko House added 10 for Ball State (7-19, 2-13).
