Cleveland, OH -- (Sports Network) - David Kool scored 24 points, hitting 15-of-16 free-throw attempts, and second-seeded Western Michigan worked its way past seventh-seeded Eastern Michigan, 70-61, in the quarterfinals of the Mid- American Conference Tournament at Quicken Loans Arena.

Shawntes Gary had 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Broncos (20-11), who will move on to face third-seeded Akron, an 81-60 winner over Central Michigan, in a semifinal matchup Friday. WMU won the MAC's West Division with a 12-4 regular season conference record.

Jesse Bunkley led Eastern Michigan (14-17) with 15 points, while Jarred Axon had 14 and Carlos Medlock added 12. The Eagles threatened during the second half, tying the game briefly but never taking a lead, and ultimately had a two-game win streak snapped.

The Broncos jumped out to an early 14-8 lead, then went on a 13-3 run capped by Andre Ricks' right-wing three, which made it 27-11 just inside the seven- minute mark of the first half. EMU closed within as few as seven, but Western finished the half strong and took a 36-23 lead into the break.

A 15-5 run to begin the second half had the Eagles within three, at 41-38, by the 12-minute mark. Axon tied the game at 44 with a pair of free throws before WMU regained its lead with an 8-2 spurt.

Kool's pair from the line with 6:29 remaining gave the Broncos a 56-48 edge, and Gary drained a key three from the left wing to push the lead to 62-55 with about 3 1/2 to go. Western Michigan hung on from there.