NEW:
Central Michigan Life talks with coach Ernie Zeigler, Jalin Thomas about the
season-opening win here:
With the game tied at 67 in the final minute, senior guard Amir Rashid drew a charge against Cal State Fullerton’s Perry Webster, setting up the game-winning play.
“We called a timeout and talked about setting a screen with (Andre) Coimbra,” said CMU head coach Ernie Zeigler. “Trey (Zeigler) and Derek (Jackson) were both in and we told them to go make a play. Jalin stepped up.”
Freshman Zeigler took the ball the length of the court and found Thomas on the right wing, where he hit his third three-pointer of the night to give CMU the win.
Thomas, fighting the flu, went 7-of-18 shooting for the night, also grabbing four rebounds in the best game since playing under Zeigler.
“The emphasis has been starting the season off great,” Thomas said. “That’s something we didn’t do last year. I was really sick but being a senior and captain of this team, I knew I had to step up and show what battling through adversity is.”
