Central Michigan University
Louisiana Tech
CMU Falls to Louisiana Tech 89-79 in NIT
3/17/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
RUSTON, La. - A resurgent season for the Central Michigan men's basketball team came to an end Tuesday as the Chippewas fell, 89-79, to Louisiana Tech in a National Invitational Tournament opener at the Bulldogs' Thomas Assembly Center.
The Chippewas finished 23-9 and wrapped up a season during which they:
• Won their first Mid-American Conference regular-season championship since 2003.
• Made their first post-season appearance since 2003.
• Reached the MAC Tournament championship game.
• Raised the level of excitement in Mount Pleasant for men's basketball to a plane not seen in more than a decade, and set the program on an extremely promising course.
"I'm extremely happy for this year's team," third-year coach Keno Davis said. "For the juniors, and for the seniors, that they were able to have this kind of success, and for the staff, for the administration, and for the fans to see our team and how they improved and that we were able to win a MAC championship, and we were able to play in the post-season are things that I'm proud of."
The Chippewas more than doubled their win total from the previous two seasons combined, and finished MAC play 12-6, a nine-win improvement over last season. "I think we not only believe we're moving in the right direction, but that we can be competitive and that we can compete for championships in the foreseeable future," Davis said. "We've got the foundation built that we can have success each year. We can go into the season knowing we have a competitive team on the court and know that we can compete with the best in the conference."
Raheem Appleby scored 22 points as Conference USA regular-season champ Louisiana Tech (26-8) made 11 of its 19 three-point attempts (57.9 percent) and shot 56.9 percent from the floor overall in winning its 30th consecutive home game.
The Bulldogs entered the game averaging 6.7 triples per game and shooting 32 percent from beyond the arc. They outrebounded the Chippewas, 39-31.
Chris Fowler scored 21 points, Braylon Rayson had 20 points and eight rebounds, and Rayshawn Simmons added 18 points for the Chippewas, who finished 6-for-23 (26.1 percent) from three-point range. The Chippewas entered the game averaging 10.2 triples per game.
"Three things," Davis said. "One, they were the most athletic team that we played all year; it was the best environment that we played in all year. It was their biggest crowed of the season, they had 6,500 people there and they were right on top of you all game, going nuts; and three, they played very, very well in that game. they got up and down the court, they finished at the rim, and they shot better than they had from the three all year."
Louisiana Tech built a double-digit lead with about five minutes remaining in the first half, and held a 45-33 halftime advantage.
The Bulldogs led by 10, 59-49, with just over 12 minutes to play before CMU clawed back to within four, 62-58, on a short Simmons jumper with 10:04 remaining.
But the Bulldogs re-established control with a 13-4 spurt to go up 13, 75-62, with 7:00 left. The Chippewas never got closer than 10 the rest of the way.
"I give our guys credit for battling back in the second half to cut the lead to four and to give themselves a chance," Davis said. "It would have surprised me if we hadn't kept fighting because that's really been the MO all year for this group, to keep battling, and how we stay together for 40 minutes."
