Team earns second title in three years
Greg Burghardt
After defeating Northern Illinois 73-57 March 5 in Rose Arena, the Chippewas left no dispute as to who is the conference’s best team.
“It’s a beautiful feeling,” said senior guard Whitney Robinson during CMU’s net-cutting ceremony. “This being my last year and all, I saved my best for last.”
With the victory, CMU clinched the No. 1 seed in this weekend’s MAC Tournament at Cleveland's Gund Arena. The team is 21-6 overall, including a 14-4 MAC record.
“We proved to some people about the character of this team,” said Head Coach Jay Smith.
After suffering through a disappointing 9-19 during the 2001-02 season, Central has won its second MAC title in three seasons.
“This team has good chemistry like that one,” Smith said. “We live and die with each other. We hang out off the court.”
CMU 106, Eastern Michigan 89 (March 1)
“Coming out of a loss, we were tested as to how we were going to rebound,” Smith said. “I was hoping that we would come out like we did.”
Kaman led the way with 29 points and 13 rebounds. Seniors Mike Manciel and J.R. Wallace stepped up on Senior Day, putting up 25 and 17 points, respectively.
CMU 73, Northern Illinois 57 (March 5)
The team defeated NIU for the second time this season to clinch the MAC Title.
Kaman and Wallace each scored 19 points in a balanced CMU attack, while Manciel had 16 points, including hitting 12-of-12 shots from the free-throw line.
“Everybody's been focusing on Chris, but the complementary players that go with it are so important,” Smith said.
CMU 86, Ball State 66 (March 8)
CMU suffered no letdown, winning its first game ever at Ball State’s Worthen Arena.
Kaman had one of his most impressive games of the season, scoring 39 points and grabbing 22 rebounds.
Manciel added 11 points and Wallace 10 in the victory.
“It feels good,” Wallace said. “But this is just a stepping stone on our mission. We want to win the conference tournament, and then we’re trying to get a bid into the NCAA Tournament.”
