# 2021–22 Western Michigan Broncos men's basketball team

The 2021–22 Western Michigan Broncos men's basketball team represented Western Michigan University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Broncos, led by second-year head coach Clayton Bates, played their home games at University Arena in Kalamazoo, Michigan as members of the Mid-American Conference (MAC). They finished the season 8–23, 4–16 in MAC play, to finish in last place. They failed to qualify for the MAC tournament.
On March 7, 2022, head coach Clayton Bates resigned after only two seasons. On April 5, the school named longtime Michigan State assistant Dwayne Stephens the team's new head coach.

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Broncos finished the 2020–21 season 5–16, 4–12 in MAC play, to finish in ninth place. As a result, they failed to qualify for the MAC tournament.

## Offseason
### Departures

Departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Chase Barrs | 1 | F | 6'9" | 210 | Sophomore | Tampa, FL | Transferred to Florida A&M |
| William Boyer-Richard | 20 | G | 6'1" | 190 | Junior | Drummondville, QC | Graduated; transferred to Brock University |
| Rafael Cruz Jr. | 11 | G | 6'1" | 185 | Senior | Chicago, IL | Graduated |
| Patrick Emilien | 15 | F | 6'6" | 205 | Junior | Toronto, ON | Transferred to St. Francis (NY) |
| Daylan Hamilton | 4 | G | 6'3" | – | Freshman | Houston, TX | Transferred to Triton College |
| Jaylon Holmes | 24 | G | 6'5" | – | RS Sophomore | Gary, IN | |
| Greg Lee | 23 | F | 6'9" | – | Senior | Rockford, IL | Transferred to Penn State |
| Luke Toliver | 10 | G | 6'3" | 190 | Junior | Paw Paw, MI | Transferred to Grand Valley State |
| Jason Whitens | 30 | G | 6'4" | 185 | RS Junior | Powers, MI | Transferred to Michigan State |
| Kawanise Wilkins | 0 | F | 6'5" | 230 | RS Junior | Chicago, IL | Graduated; transferred to Tarleton State |

### Incoming transfers

On April 28, 2021, the NCAA officially adopted a measure that would allow athletes in all sports to transfer once without sitting out a season beginning with the 2021–22 season.
Incoming transfers :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Markeese Hastings | 0 | F | 6'7" | 195 | RS Sophomore | Wyoming, MI | Butler |
| Mileek McMillan | 1 | F | 6'9" | 225 | Senior | Merrillville, IN | Valparaiso |
| Lamar Norman Jr. | 11 | G | 6'1" | 175 | Junior | Grand Rapids, MI | Duquesne |
| Mack Smith | 32 | G | 6'2" | 210 | Junior | Indianapolis, IN | Eastern Illinois |

### Recruiting class
#### 2021 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Gus Etchison G | Arcadia, IN | Hamilton Heights High School | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 145 lb (66 kg) | Jul 16, 2019 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Shemani Fuller F | The Bronx, NY | Woodstock Academy | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | N/A | Aug 19, 2021 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Cameron Kimble G | Las Vegas, NV | Clark High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | May 25, 2021 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Owen Lobsinger F | Flint, MI | Flint Powers Catholic | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | Jun 14, 2020 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Jack Stefanski F | Frankfort, MI | Frankfort High School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | May 24, 2021 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2021 Western Michigan Basketball Commits". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 14, 2021. "2021 Western Michigan Basketball Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved October 14, 2021. "2021 Western Michigan Basketball Commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 14, 2021. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved October 14, 2021. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 14, 2021. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| November 6, 2021* 1:00 p.m. | Kalamazoo | W 77–47 | – | 16 – Etchison | 6 – McMillan | 3 – tied | University Arena (1,185) Kalamazoo, MI |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 10, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | Hope | W 76–58 | 1–0 | 23 – Norman Jr. | 10 – Hastings | 3 – Norman Jr. | University Arena (1,442) Kalamazoo, MI |
| November 12, 2021* 6:30 p.m., BTN | at Michigan State | L 46–90 | 1–1 | 13 – Smith | 8 – Hastings | 3 – Etchison | Breslin Center (14,797) East Lansing, MI |
| November 18, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3/ESPN+ | Saginaw Valley State | L 63–80 | 1–2 | 25 – Norman Jr. | 7 – tied | 5 – Martin | University Arena (1,208) Kalamazoo, MI |
| November 22, 2021* 8:30 p.m., BTN | at Iowa | L 61–109 | 1–3 | 19 – Norman Jr. | 7 – Wright | 5 – Smith | Carver-Hawkeye Arena (10,044) Iowa City, IA |
| November 26, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | at Florida Gulf Coast Hilton Garden Inn FGCU Invitational | L 67–77 | 1–4 | 24 – Norman Jr. | 8 – Hastings | 4 – Norman Jr. | Alico Arena (1,962) Fort Myers, FL |
| November 27, 2021* 4:30 p.m. | vs. Purdue Fort Wayne Hilton Garden Inn FGCU Invitational | W 93–85 $^{OT}$ | 2–4 | 20 – Martin | 8 – McMillan | 5 – Smith | Alico Arena (212) Fort Myers, FL |
| November 28, 2021* 1:30 p.m. | vs. Southeastern Louisiana Hilton Garden Inn FGCU Invitational | W 81–77 $^{OT}$ | 3–4 | 31 – Norman Jr. | 12 – Hastings | 3 – Martin | Alico Arena (212) Fort Myers, FL |
| December 5, 2021* 2:00 p.m., ESPN3/ESPN+ | Valparaiso | L 60–71 | 3–5 | 13 – Norman Jr. | 9 – Smith | 3 – Etchison | University Arena (1,883) Kalamazoo, MI |
| December 11, 2021* 1:00 p.m. | Detroit Mercy | L 64–83 | 3–6 | 13 – Smith | 9 – Wright | 3 – Norman Jr. | University Arena (1,873) Kalamazoo, MI |
| December 17, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3/ESPN+ | Aquinas | W 67–56 | 4–6 | 17 – Norman Jr. | 10 – Smith | 2 – Martin | University Arena (1,408) Kalamazoo, MI |
| December 20, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ACCN | at Notre Dame | L 52–85 | 4–7 | 15 – Norman Jr. | 8 – Hastings | 2 – Smith | Purcell Pavilion (4,903) South Bend, IN |
| MAC regular season |||||||||
| December 29, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | at Toledo | L 56–83 | 4–8 (0–1) | 10 – Norman Jr. | 18 – Hastings | 2 – Hastings | Savage Arena (4,028) Toledo, OH |
| January 1, 2022 3:30 p.m., ESPN3 | Ohio | L 47–59 | 4–9 (0–2) | 21 – Norman Jr. | 14 – Hastings | 2 – Hastings | University Arena (1,353) Kalamazoo, MI |
| January 4, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | Eastern Michigan | L 79–85 | 4–10 (0–3) | 34 – Norman Jr. | 11 – Wright | 4 – Norman Jr. | University Arena (1,119) Kalamazoo, MI |
| January 11, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | Buffalo | L 64–78 | 4–11 (0–4) | 12 – Hastings | 6 – Lobsinger | 4 – Smith | University Arena (1,226) Kalamazoo, MI |
| January 15, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | Miami (OH) | L 62–70 | 4–12 (0–5) | 26 – Norman Jr. | 9 – Hastings | 3 – Freeman | University Arena (1,588) Kalamazoo, MI |
| January 18, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | at Akron | L 73–74 | 4–13 (0–6) | 23 – White | 8 – Hastings | 4 – Norman Jr. | James A. Rhodes Arena (1,611) Akron, OH |
| January 22, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN3 | Bowling Green | L 75–82 | 4–14 (0–7) | 20 – Norman Jr. | 13 – Hastings | 4 – White | University Arena (1,462) Kalamazoo, MI |
| January 25, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | at Kent State | L 64–75 | 4–15 (0–8) | 22 – Norman Jr. | 14 – Hastings | 4 – Smith | MAC Center (2,134) Kent, OH |
| January 29, 2022 3:30 p.m., ESPN3 | at Ball State | L 72–83 | 4–16 (0–9) | 22 – Norman Jr. | 9 – Hastings | 3 – White | Worthen Arena (3,786) Muncie, IN |
| February 1, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | Northern Illinois | L 56–75 | 4–17 (0–10) | 24 – Norman Jr. | 12 – Hastings | 3 – White | University Arena (1,217) Kalamazoo, MI |
| February 3, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | at Central Michigan Rescheduled from January 8 | L 55–65 | 4–18 (0–11) | 18 – Norman Jr. | 10 – Hastings | 1 – 4 tied | McGuirk Arena (1,700) Mount Pleasant, MI |
| February 5, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN3 | at Ohio | L 64–77 | 4–19 (0–12) | 30 – Norman Jr. | 10 – Hastings | 3 – White | Convocation Center (7,588) Athens, OH |
| February 8, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | at Miami (OH) | L 57–62 | 4–20 (0–13) | 12 – Norman Jr. | 8 – Hastings | 2 – 2 tied | Millett Hall (1,285) Oxford, OH |
| February 12, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | Central Michigan | W 77–63 | 5–20 (1–13) | 25 – Norman Jr. | 8 – Hastings | 5 – Etchison | University Arena (2,072) Kalamazoo, MI |
| February 15, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | Akron | W 61–57 $^{OT}$ | 6–20 (2–13) | 19 – Norman Jr. | 11 – Hastings | 4 – White | University Arena (1,269) Kalamazoo, MI |
| February 19, 2022 3:30 p.m., ESPN3 | at Buffalo | L 73–87 | 6–21 (2–14) | 23 – Norman Jr. | 8 – Hastings | 4 – Etchison | Alumni Arena (4,666) Amherst, NY |
| February 22, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | Toledo | L 50–92 | 6–22 (2–15) | 9 – 2 tied | 7 – 2 tied | 3 – Hastings | University Arena (1,660) Kalamazoo, MI |
| February 26, 2022 5:00 p.m., ESPN3 | at Bowling Green | W 78–67 | 7–22 (3–15) | 16 – Norman Jr. | 9 – Hastings | 3 – White | Stroh Center (2,825) Bowling Green, OH |
| March 1, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | at Eastern Michigan | W 71–60 | 8–22 (4–15) | 35 – Norman Jr. | 7 – White | 4 – White | George Gervin GameAbove Center (1,311) Ypsilanti, MI |
| March 4, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | Ball State | L 63–64 | 8–23 (4–16) | 16 – Smith | 12 – Hastings | 4 – Norman Jr. | University Arena (1,570) Kalamazoo, MI |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern. |||||||||
Sources: