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The nation’s leading scorer added another outstanding performance to his great season so far, as Marcus Keene led all scorers with 44 points, and Central Michigan came away with the victory against the Montana State Bobcats, 106-103 on Wednesday night. With the win, Central Michigan moves to 9-3 on the season, and Montana State falls to 5-8.
As well as his 44 points, Keene led the Chippewas in assists and rebounds. He dished out six assists and grabbed nine rebounds. Four other Chippewas scored in double digits, as Braylon Rayson had 16 points, Cecil Williams had 16 points, David DiLeo had 11 points, and Luke Meyer had 10 points.
Tyler Hall led the way for Montana State, as he scored 29 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Benson Osayande added 21 points, Harald Frey added 17 points, and Zach Green added 16 points, but it wasn’t enough to outscore the Chippewas.
This game went back and forth throughout the duration, as the Chippewas only held a two point lead at halftime. With 25 seconds remaining, Keene made two free throws to make the Chippewa lead 104-95. Tyler Hall came back and made a three pointer, then forced a steal and converted on a dunk to make the game, 104-100 with 15 seconds to go. Braylon Rayson converted on one of two free throws, and Tyler Hall once again came up big and made a three pointer to bring Montana State to within two, 105-103. Marcus Keene then split his free throws, and Tyler Hall tried to make it a third time, but missed the three pointer to tie the game, and Central Michigan emerged victorious.
Central Michigan shot 50% from the field, converting on 31 of 62 attempts. The Chippewas made 15 of 36 from beyond the arc, good for a 41.7% clip. The Bobcats were able to keep up with the Chippewas, as they converted on 34 out of 75 attempts, which is about 45% from the field. Montana State wasn’t able to keep pace from beyond the arc, as they converted on 10 of 35 from deep, which is 28.6%.
Central Michigan return home for one more game of the 2016 year, as they will host the Chicago State Cougars on December 30th. Tip is set for 5:30 p.m. and will be aired on ESPN3.