Purdue Fort Wayne
Western Illinois
Burrows Lifts 'Dons Past WIU
1/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 9, 2007
Fort Wayne, IN-Many had wondered what IPFW and Western Illinois could do to top the five-overtime game they played previously in the year. Tonight's contest was just as exciting, as IPFW used 23 points from junior forward Jaraun Burrows in topping the Leathernecks 79-77, Tuesday night at the Memorial Coliseum.
Western Illinois got off to a strong start and held the lead for most of the first half. The Leathernecks (4-12) took their biggest margin at the 13:09 mark on a layup by junior guard Xavier Price that made the score 25-16.
IPFW methodically chipped away at the lead and on a triple by junior forward DeWitt Scott had tied the game at 38 with under four minutes remaining.
The teams traded baskets the rest of the way to go into the halftime locker room tied at 45.
In the second half, IPFW grabbed an eight point lead (53-45) on a three-ball from senior forward Justin Hawkins.
However, it was WIU's turn to make a run, and they did so by cutting the 'Dons lead to one on a layup by junior forward Jerryck Owens-Murray, making it 63-62 at the 7:24 mark.
From there it was the Jaraun Burrows show. He scored 12 of the Mastodons' final 15 points of the game.
He started his scoring barrage off with an old-fashioned three-point play on a dunk with 5:53 left.
Sophomore guard Jakari Johnson got in on the act, hitting a huge triple to give IPFW a one-point lead (75-74) with 2:33 remaining in regulation.
Owens-Murrey hit a jumper with 1:24 left giving the Leathernecks a 77-75 lead.
It was all Burrows from that point. "Keno" took a beautiful feed from Hawkins over-top of the WIU defense for a layin, tying it at 77.
On the next trip down the floor, he blocked a shot by Price and a shot by David Jackson. Scott grabbed the rebound, and IPFW looked for the win.
With time running out, Burrows and Jakari Johnson played a two-man game on the right wing, and with two seconds remaining, Burrows went strong to the hoop and got the layup to go.
Western Illinois called timeout with :01.6 left. Knowing how close these two teams play one another, no one would have been surprised if WIU would have won it or sent it to an overtime session.
Jackson took the inbound pass and hoisted up a shot from about 40-feet, that IPFW head coach Dane Fife described as "dead-on" from his angle.
It was "dead-on", however, just a bit strong as it hit the back of the iron and bounced away giving IPFW its sixth win of the season.
Again, Burrows led IPFW with a career-high 23 points. He also had six rebounds.
DeWitt Scott booked 19 points, including five 3-pointers.
Jakari Johnson also tallied in double-figures with 10. He dished out a career-high seven assists. The personal record-breaker was on the final basket of the game.
Owens-Murrey was the high-scorer for Western Illinois with a game-high 26 points. Price added 14, while Sammy Hunter chipped in 11.
With the win, IPFW is 2-0 on its current three-game homestand. They will host New Jersey Tech (NJIT) on Saturday afternoon at 4pm.
~Dons~
