Sluggish start by men's basketball results in loss to EMU
Chicago freshman Kevin Miller shoots a free throw in the game against Eastern Michigan on Tuesday, Feb. 15 in McGuirk Arena.
Looking to take down Eastern Michigan in McGuirk Arena after losing the previous meeting, Central Michigan hosted the rematch Tuesday.
The Chippewas (6-17, 5-7) once again fell to the Eagles (9-16, 4-10) 75-70.
“The biggest thing is this, is two games in a row that we get off to a sluggish start in terms of our effort and energy,'' said head coach Tony Barbee. “They are playing harder; they are playing tougher than us to start the game and then in the second half in this game and the last game now we decide that we got a sense of desperation and a sense of urgency and then we play harder than them.”
For the second straight game, the Chippewas slow start hindered their ending results. Although the Chippewas had a slow start, they were able to keep up with the Eagles until shots from the 3-point line became gold for the Eagles but kryptonite for the Chippewas. The Eagles shot 7-for-14 from the three-point line as CMU went 1-for-7 in the first half.
The success from the 3-point line and from the free throw line for Noah Farrakhan put the Chippewas down by 11 with less than five minutes remaining in the half. The Chippewas slipped into multiple droughts of scoring allowing the Eagles to soar with a lead of 13 sending the teams to the locker room.
The Chippewas were in a game of catch-up coming on to the court for the second half. Although the Chippewas couldn't find their footing beyond the arc, they shined in free throws. The Chippewas went 7-for-8 from the line bringing them back into the game.
After multiple trips to the line, the Chippewas were back within four after a 10-0 run. The Eagles leading scorers found themselves heading into foul trouble but that didn't stop them from pulling ahead of the Chippewas once again.
The Eagles went on a 6-0 run as CMU went into another scoreless drought. With time dwindling, the Chippewas looked for another spark.
Down 10 with 2:14 left and desperately looking for some momentum, Cameron Healy took a chance from beyond the arc and ended the Chippewas scoring drought. Healy started a rally for the Chippewas, as they made their last 4-of-5 shots from beyond the arc in under three minutes.
The Chippewas three-point streak brought them within three with less than 30 seconds to play. Farrakhan was sent to the free throw line with seven seconds remaining and made both his shots securing the deal for the Eagles at 75-70.
Freshman Kevin Miller led the Chippewas with 23 points for his third straight game with more than 20 points. Harrison Henderson had 14 points and Brian Taylor led the way with seven rebounds for the Chippewas.
Noah Farrakhan led the Eagles with 24 points. Mo Njie and Nate Scott both had 10 points.
The Chippewas will head to Toledo to take on the Rockets on Saturday at 7 p.m.
