Salt Lake City, UT (Sports Network) - A jumper by Kyle Randall with time
running out made all the difference as the Central Michigan Chippewas captured
a thrilling 54-52 win over the Idaho State Bengals as part of the Basketball
Travelers Classic at the Huntsman Center.
Randall made just two of his nine field goal attempts in the meeting,
finishing with eight points for the Chippewas (3-2) in the victory. Blake
Hibbitts and Olivier Mbaigoto made a significant impact off the bench as they
tallied 12 and 11 points, respectively, followed by John Simons with 10 points
as he made good on 3-of-5 from three-point range.
The Bengals (0-5) were paced by Chris Hansen who posted 12 points, the only
player to score in double figures for winless ISU. Tomas Sanchez and Melvin
Morgan contributed with nine points apiece and while they combined for nine of
the team's 11 assists, they also accounted for seven of their 11 turnovers as
well.
Idaho State moved out to a 5-0 lead early in the first half and led by as many
as seven in the period, but CMU put together a 12-0 run midway through the
frame to assume the lead which turned into a 26-25 edge at the break. Hibbitts
led the way in the first half as he recorded nine points on 3-of-4 shooting
from beyond the arc.
In the second half the Chippewas made good on a mere 8-of-23 shots from the
floor, but Randall stepped up when it counted the most in order to bring home
the win.
Central Michigan survived despite shooting only 10-of-22 at the charity
stripe. The hosts did defend the glass rather well though, winning the battle
of the boards by a 38-23 margin and allowing just two offensive rebounds to
the Bengals.
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