Western Michigan Broncos forward Anthony Crump scored the improbable game-winner. Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Western Michigan defeats Ball State on crazy buzzer-beater

By Adam Gretz | Last updated 3/2/24

The Western Michigan men's basketball team has not had a great season, entering Saturday's game with just 10 wins in the season and sitting near the bottom of the MAC standings. The Broncos got their 11th win of the season at Ball State, 78-76, in one of the wildest ways imaginable.

Let's just call this play a messy, but ultimately a successful failure.

You will see what we mean when you watch it.

UNREAL FINISH

You will NEVER guess how Western Michigan won this game @WMUMBB

(via @MACSports)pic.twitter.com/yDvv2XqpC7
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 2, 2024

Simply put, this is not how that play was drawn up. There is no chance that is how it was planned. But it worked.

With the game tied, 76-76, with 1.8 seconds to play in overtime, Ja'Vaughn Hannah launched a full-court inbounds pass in the hopes that somebody on his side could do something with it. After the ball took a weird bounce and evaded a Ball State defender, it fell right into the hands of a wide-open Anthony Crump was all alone for the buzzer-beating layup.

Crump came off the bench and scored 12 points for the Broncos, and none were more important than those two at the end.

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