SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The Milwaukee men's basketball team turned to its defense Saturday, setting a school record for fewest points allowed against an NCAA Division I opponent in claiming a 54-37 victory over UC Irvine at the Sanford Pentagon Showcase.
 
The Panthers (2-3) led the Anteaters (3-3) from start to finish with an impressive showing, also holding their opponents to near-record outputs in lowest field-goal percentage allowed and fewest made field goals in a game.
 
"I was proud of the defensive effort," Milwaukee head coach LaVall Jordan said. "We talked last night after the loss about responding defensively and sustaining it. We did a good job in the first half last night, but we had to put two halves together. We had to buckle down, grit our teeth and get it done."
 
Brock Stull led the offense with 11 points, adding four rebounds and three assists. Brett Prahl played a key role down the stretch, ending the afternoon with career-highs when he finished with 10 points and six rebounds.
 
"That is the way we have to do it," Jordan said in regards to the defense. "We have to get stops to be able to do that. Brett Prahl was fabulous – one-on-one in the post, playing the big guy who is 7-feet-2, and Brett did a great job holding his own so we didn't have to help – that was big. Everyone did their job and I am proud of the guys."
 
August Haas had nine points and four steals, finishing with six assists to just one turnover. Cody Wichmann chipped in six points and eight boards.
 
Turnovers played a crucial role in the game. The Panthers forced a season-best 22 turnovers while giving the ball away 12 times themselves. That translated into a 24-10 advantage in points off turnovers.
 
"We had to learn how to win with the lead," Jordan said. "These guys are learning how to win. First thing was learning how to compete and we have been competitive in every game. Now, we had the lead and had to learn how to win. Just proud of the way the guys executed."
 
The defense was terrific. The 18 points allowed in the first half was the lowest since giving up just 15 in the first half against Wright State in January of 2015.
 
The Panthers limited the Anteaters to a 25.6 percent (11-for-43) showing from the floor on the day, the fourth-lowest for a game in program history since UWM went NCAA Division I in 1990-91. UC Irvine made just 11 field goals in the contest, the third-lowest mark in the record book. They also went 1-for-14 from three-point range (7.1 percent).
 
After a slow first half from the field, the Panther offense woke up in second half and scored nine of the first 13 points out of the locker room to force a UCI timeout with the lead growing to 38-22 at the 15:19 mark.
 
Milwaukee kept a firm grip on the game and the lead from there and put it away just later. A 10-2 run grew the lead from 17 to 25 with about five minutes to play. Prahl was huge in the spree, netting six including a tip-in that made in 54-29.
 
From there, the only thing left to determine were UWM's chances at the record books. In fact, the Anteater basket at the 4:05 mark snapped a drought of 9:37 on the clock where the Panthers held them without a made field goal of any kind.
 
The Panthers played an outstanding first half of defense, holding the Anteaters those 18 points on 26.3 percent (5-of-19) shooting from the floor. The lead at the midway point was 29-18 and could have been more, but UWM had numerous shots go in-and-out, shooting under 40 percent (11-of-30) themselves.
 
Milwaukee came out quick on the day, grabbing a 9-2 lead by the first media timeout on the strength of three's by Haas and Stull. Despite a cold start from the floor, UWM pushed its advantage to 11-7 and then used a 7-2 spurt to take the 16-7 at the 10:24 mark.
 
The lead was extended to 22-9 on back-to-back 3's by Stull and, following an 8-2 spurt by UC Irvine, had the advantage back to double-digits on a triple by Haas with just over a minute to go before the halftime horn.
 
Milwaukee's final game in the Sanford Pentagon Showcase will be tomorrow, taking on South Dakota State in a contest that is set to begin at 2:30 p.m. It will also be televised by FS Wisconsin back home with Craig Coshun and Kevin Lynch on the call.