CLEVELAND — Jordan Bitzer spent the final seconds of his collegiate basketball career on the bench after fouling out with 47 seconds remaining in CMU’s 69-60 loss on Thursday.

The senior guard could only watch as his team’s biggest rival, Western Michigan, put the finishing touches on a 14-point comeback to advance to the semifinals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament.

Bitzer, surrounded by teammates, didn’t speak. Neither did senior backcourt mate Robbie Harman after he missed the final shot attempt of his career from 3-point range with 19 seconds remaining.

“Those kids are in there bawling their eyes out,” said CMU coach Ernie Zeigler after the game. “They have exemplified what we’ve been building in this program. It’s a sad ending for it, but I’m really proud of those two.”

The pair did not speak to reporters after the game. Zeigler said he wanted to protect his highly-regarded duo.

“I love those two,” Zeigler said. “I’m really struggling coming to the realization that you’re not going to have them on your team. That’s something that will definitely resonate here in the next couple of days.”

Second half struggles

Bitzer, who scored 15 points, and Harman, who led CMU with 20, were unable to get their team, seeded No. 2 after winning the MAC West Division, past the quarterfinals for the third consecutive season despite a 47-33 lead with 13:42 remaining in the game. The No. 7 Broncos outscored CMU 13-1 in the next 4 minutes, led by senior guard and MAC Player of the Year David Kool.

Overall, WMU outscored CMU 34-12 in the game's final 12:49.

It was the fifth time the Chippewas lost a second-half lead of four or more in their past six losses.

“This game summed up our season from beginning to end,” Zeigler said. “We just could not match or sustain any level of physicality.”

Kool, who scored two points and did not record a field goal in the first half, scored 24 points in the second half by finding his way through seams in the CMU defense. The Broncos (18-14) outscored the Chippewas (15-15) 34-14 in the post.

“We saw a lot of lanes and we got me working into space,” Kool said. “Drawing handchecks — we were doing anything we could to get to the free-throw line, too.”

Plenty of the foul calls drew the ire of Zeigler, who threw his hands in the air after multiple calls went against the Chippewas. He campaigned for fouls each time Kool landed his forearm into a CMU defender.

CMU was whistled for 17 fouls in the second half, most of which came after WMU had been called for eight team fouls 8 minutes into the half. At that point, CMU had two team fouls.

Zeigler was not shy about sarcastically alluding to his distate for the officiating after the game, either.

“There was a juncture there where (Kool) just strapped them on his back like he always does,” Zeigler said. “Unfortunately for us, we had such a great officiated game that he was able to force the issue there and do some things there. He did a great job — it was probably one of the best officiated games I’ve ever been a part of.”

Coming out strong

Zeigler said he was happy with CMU’s first-half effort, as it led 31-22 at the break. But he said it turned out to be ‘fool’s gold.’ The Chippewas were outrebounded by seven, 19-12, but made five 3-pointers, including three by Harman.

WMU coach Steve Hawkins said some of the shots Harman made, including a step-back 3-pointer from the left corner of the basket, were worrisome.

“What I was worried about was that the pace of play could continue,” said WMU coach Steve Hawkins. “Robbie Harman looked like an NBA player on an NBA court. I thought we were in real trouble. I thought it could be one of those days. But our kids just played a consistent and persistent basketball game.”

Kool was smothered by CMU defenders nearly every time he touched the ball and attempted only four field goals. WMU shot only 30.4 percent in the first half, but started 8-of-10 in the second half and ended the half shooting 56.5 percent.

“We knew we were capable of it,” Hawkins said. “It was just a matter of letting them know there was a lot of basketball still to be played.”

Notes

One of the surprise performers for CMU was junior point guard Amir Rashid, who finished with 14 points. It was the first time a player other than Bitzer or Harman scored double figures against a MAC opponent since Feb. 6 against Kent State, when Jalin Thomas and Antonio Weary each did it. “It was definitely one of the small positives for us in this game,” Zeigler said. “He didn’t play first five games of year because he had his knee scoped. Here in the last few weeks, you’ve seen his assist-to-turnover ration improve and his confidence improve. It’s definitely something we can look forward to in the spring, summer and fall.”
Weary started the game, but exited 23 seconds later after collecting two fouls. He spent the rest of the half on the bench. He didn’t last much longer in the second half, being called for his third foul just more than 2 minutes into it. He didn’t score in 7 minutes of play.
Seniors Brandon Ford, who didn’t play, and Chris Kellermann, who played 10 minutes and didn’t score for the third consecutive game, also finished their careers Thursday.

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