Photo: Green Bay Phoenix Logo
(GREEN BAY PHOENIX ATHLETICS) – A combined 41 turnovers had Green Bay on the losing end of the 71-58 scoreline at UIC on Saturday afternoon, unable to make any run after falling behind by double-digits in the first half at Credit Union 1 Arena in Chicago.
The Phoenix (12-14, 7-6 HL) was seeking its third-straight win and its fifth-straight over the Flames (12-14, 7-6 HL), but too many turnovers and cold shooting from 3 denied them the opportunity. JayQuan McCloud led the Phoenix with 15 points, with 10 of those coming at the free throw line.
Trevian Bell did his best to mount a comeback, scoring 11 points off the bench on 5-for-8 shooting. GB forced a season-high 23 turnovers from UIC, but finished just 4-for-18 from 3-point range and had 18 turnovers of its own.
UIC shot 50 percent in the game. UIC used a 14-2 run that saw GB have five turnovers over that stretch, before scoring the final five points of the first half to go into the break down 40-29.
UIC would score 8 of the first 10 points of the second half and led by as many as 17, while GB never led in the game.
The Phoenix entered the contest having scored 90-plus points and leading the Horizon League in scoring and ranking 6th in the NCAA with 81.9 PPG, but was held to its second-lowest point total this season. GB finished with 57 points in its season-opener at Purdue.
WOMEN
UW-Milwaukee 65, Green Bay 60
At Milwaukee, Green Bay closed a stretch of five-consecutive road games on Saturday afternoon in Milwaukee at the Klotsche Center, falling to the Panthers. Green Bay answered the Panthers’ first basket of the game with a 9-0 run, but Milwaukee wouldn’t let Green Bay’s opening advantage grow from there. Milwaukee finished the frame with a 17-4 run after burying five triples on only nine attempts to lead 19-13 at the end of the first.Frankie Wurtz caught fire early in the second quarter and scored seven points in a span of 36 seconds, a stretch which included a four-point play after Wurtz was fouled on a successful attempt from long range, to put Green Bay back in front 20-19. The Phoenix created separation with an 11-4 run to close the first half, which was capped by back-to-back layups from Karly Murphy to send Green Bay to the locker room leading 33-28. A strong third quarter from Milwaukee gave the Panthers a one-point lead, 46-45, as both programs readied for the fourth quarter. The Panthers’ Jamie Reit scored seven of the host’s 18 points in the frame. Wurtz nearly matched her quarter total with six points of her own after knocking down two triples. Green Bay regained an advantage in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter after layups from Wurtz and Hailey Oskey. The Panthers used a 13-4 run over a span of three minutes, 18 seconds to take control of the game at 59-53. The Panthers were able to stave off all rally attempts from the Phoenix and sink free throws down the stretch to preserve a 65-60 win. Wurtz led all scorers with a game-high 24 points, her seventh game this season where she has scored at least 20 points. The redshirt senior also finished 5-of-6 from long range and pulled down four rebounds in 33 minutes. Oskey joined Wurtz in double figures with 10 points on a 5-for-11 clip in 37 minutes. The Panthers benefitted from five scorers in double digits in the matchup, all of which were led by Reit with 13 points.
