KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Vance Johnson scored the go-ahead basket with 6.2 seconds remaining and the Milwaukee men's basketball team held Western Michigan scoreless over the final 2:25 of the contest to claim a 67-66 comeback victory Saturday afternoon at University Arena.
"This was a really nice road win against a very good Western Michigan team," head coach
Pat Baldwin said. "We understood that they are very tough on their home court; for our guys to pull this off and do such a great job at the end was really remarkable and I am very happy for our guys."
The Panthers (5-8) scored the final six points of the day to edge the Broncos (5-7), with Johnson's late rebound and putback giving Milwaukee its only lead of the second half.
"Similar to UMKC (where Milwaukee scored the final 12 to win), we had to make all of the right plays," Baldwin said. "Leading into that, you had to get stops as well. We made some really big free throws in that stretch and then, towards the end, Vance was in the right place at the right time to put that shot back in and the rest is history after that."
Johnson finished with 14 points and five rebounds, going a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. His tosses from the charity stripe with 42.3 seconds left brought the Panthers back within one and continued the late surge.
Darius Roy led the offense with 18 points, adding six rebounds on an afternoon where he hit 4-of-5 from three-point range.
Bryce Barnes continues to play well, joining them in double-figures with 12 points while also adding six rebounds, three assists, three steals and a block.
Michael Flowers paced Western Michigan with 13 points, one of five different players in double-figures for the home team.
The second-half deficit never went beyond five, which included the point it was at when MKE flipped the switch. Trailing, 66-61, with 2:25 to go, Roy's layup on the next possession made it a one-possession game.
From there, Johnson played the hero role. His free throws with under a minute to play made it 66-65 and he was there to win it, grabbing an offensive rebound of a blocked shot before laying it in with his right hand to put Milwaukee back ahead. A final defensive stand wrapped up the victory.
It was a slow start for both teams, with just one make in their first seven attempts both ways to open the day. The Panthers warmed up first, making four shots in a row to jump ahead, 18-13. WMU pushed back to draw even and it was back-and-forth for most of the opening period.
Milwaukee took its final lead of the first half with 1:31 remaining, grabbing a 27-25 advantage of a pair of free throws by Barnes. From there, it was the Broncos turn, scoring the final six points of the first half to head into the locker room up, 31-27
The Panthers finished the contest at 41.7 percent (20-of-48) from the floor, making 42.9 percent (9-of-21) of three's and an impressive 90 percent (18-of-20) from the free throw line – the fifth game in a row the team has connected on 85 percent or better from the line.
The defense held WMU to 41.8 percent (23-of-55) field-goal shooting overall and dropped the rebounding battle by a slim 32-30 margin.
Up next, the Panthers are off for the week, returning to the court to open Horizon League play at home. Milwaukee welcomes Green Bay to UWM Panther Arena Dec. 29, set for a 7 p.m. tip.
