Central Michigan University Athletics
Central Michigan University
Bradley
Chippewas Trip Bradley, 74-71
12/18/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 18, 2002
PEORIA, Ill. - Mike Manciel nailed three clutch free throws in the final 2:20 to lead the Central Michigan University men's basketball team to a 74-71 non-conference win over Bradley University here Wednesday night.
The Chippewas played the final 2:39 without the services of 7-0 junior center Chris Kaman who fouled out on a controversial call. CMU was leading 71-68 at the time.
However, Manciel nailed one-of-two free throws with 2:20 to play to put CMU ahead by a 72-69 margin, and then iced it with 12 seconds to go with two more charity tosses.
While Manciel did the damage at the stripe, Tony Bowne did much of the rest in the final minutes. The 6-3 sophomore forced a five-second call, took a charge with 17 seconds to play and the Chippewas holding a 72-71 lead, and grabbed the final rebound of the game after a desperation three-point attempt by the Braves.
CMU ups its record to 6-1 entering another road tilt at Valparaiso on Monday, Dec. 23, while Bradley falls to 2-5. The 6-1 start is the Chippewas' best since the 1980-81 season.
A crowd of 8,082 in Carver Arena saw the Chippewas capture a 37-27 lead at the half. Bradley came racing back in the final 20 minutes to tie the game and eventually take the lead on a couple of occasions.
"It was a solid team effort," said CMU head coach Jay Smith. "Tony Bowne made some big plays at the end when Kaman was out. I also felt we got a big lift from Kevin Nelson."
The 6-3 Nelson played only nine minutes but scored 11 points, nailing three-of-four three-pointers.
For the second straight game senior guard J.R. Wallace registered a career-high. The springy six-footer had 23 points and added four assists.He made his first eight shots from the floor, meshing 14 by halftime.
Kaman managed his sixth double-double of the season before fouling out, bagging 15 points and snatching 16 rebounds. He also blocked five Bradley shots. Manciel chipped in with 13. T.J. Meerman added a career-high eight assists.
Thanks to Kaman's efforts on the boards, the Chippewas held a 36-28 edge in rebounding. CMU hit 54.9 percent from the field on 28-of-51 compared to the Braves' 42.9 percent on 24-of-56.
One negative stat for CMU was the 22 turnovers.
Bradley was led by James Gillingham with 25 and Marcello Robinson with 11. Gillingham scored 23 of his 25 points in the second half including his team's first nine points. The Braves' top scorer, Phillip Gilbert, was held to just six points on two-of-13 from the floor. He was averaging 23.2 points per game.
