KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Kalamazoo College men's basketball team continued MIAA play with a home game against Olivet on Wednesday (Jan. 17). The Hornets and the Comets battled all game long, and with the score tied with two seconds left, Lukas Broadsword hit the game-winning three-pointer for the 78-75 win.
Kalamazoo built a quick lead against Olivet by leading 17-8 with 13:32 on the clock. Then, the Comets slowly chipped into the Hornets' lead until they took a 24-22 advantage with 7:14 until halftime. After UO stretched its lead to five, K went on a 9-0 run to finish the half and head into the locker room with a 34-30 lead.
The Hornets gained another nine-point advantage within the first minute of the second half, but the Comets just as quickly cut it back to four. A 13-5 run by Kalamazoo meant the scoreboard read 52-40 with 12:37 remaining for the game's largest lead. Then, Olivet scored 25 of the following 36 points to gain a 65-63 advantage with 4:50 on the clock. For five straight possessions, both teams traded baskets as the game was now tied at 70 with three minutes remaining.
Three straight free throws gave K a three-point lead, but then UO made a layup at 1:26 to cut the lead back to one. After a Hornet layup stretched the lead back out to three, the Comets made three free throws to tie the game at 75 with 39 seconds left in regulation. Both teams had an opportunity to take the lead but failed until Kalamazoo got a timeout with two seconds left. With the ball out of bounds at the opposite free throw line, Carter Bandemer found an open Lukas Broadsword, who took one dribble and made his first career three-point bucket as time expired for the 78-75 victory.
Kalamazoo shot 33.8% overall compared to Olivet's 43.3%. The Hornets made 13 of 34 (38.2%) 3-pointers compared to 13 of 28 (46.4%) by the Comets. Kalamazoo went 19 of 30 (63.3%) from the free throw line compared to 10 of 12 (83.3%) by Olivet. The Hornets had 47 rebounds compared to the Comets' 39, while Kalamazoo had 13 assists on 26 made field goals.
Lukas Broadsword notched his sixth career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Carter Bandemer led the team with 21 points after going 5 of 13 from behind the arc and 6 of 6 from the free throw line while adding six rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Patrick Perez also had 10 rebounds, and Bobby Samples finished with a team-high three assists.
Samples (9), Perez (8), Dougie Blackwood (8), Caleb Caul (5), Lucas Hanifan (5), JJ Stevens (5), and Connor Kouki (1) also contributed to the scoring line.
Kalamazoo will continue conference play with a home game against Albion on Saturday (Jan. 20), beginning at 3 p.m.