Box Score Dec. 17, 2005
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MILWAUKEE -
Adrian Tigert and Boo Davis scored 15 points apiece to lead the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to an 80-60 win over UW-Green Bay Saturday night at the U.S. Cellular Arena.
The Panthers (5-3, 1-0 Horizon) shot a season-best 52.8 percent from the field and forced 20 turnovers in beating the Phoenix (4-6, 0-1) in the Horizon League opener for both teams.
Joah Tucker added 14 points and Chris Hill 11 for Milwaukee, which has won 13-straight games at home.
Aswan Minatee scored 13 points to lead Green Bay, which has lost eight-straight to the Panthers in Milwaukee.
The Panthers jumped out to a 12-3 lead in the first six minutes and never looked back. UWM led by 10 at halftime and by as many as 24 in the second half.
Milwaukee, coming off a six-point loss at #24 Wisconsin Thursday and in the middle of final exams, looked sharp from start-to-finish, outscoring UWGB 40-18 in the paint while scoring 25 points off of turnovers.
"I'm proud of the guys. They really bounced back, because it would have been easy for us to come out a little flat, especially because of exams," UWM head coach Rob Jeter said. "What I'm even more pleased about are the 40 points in the paint. We're committed to getting the ball inside and playing basketball the way Milwaukee is going to play it, and that's to make people guard us around the basket."
Milwaukee quickly turned its 10-point halftime edge into a 15-point lead by scoring the first five points of the half. The lead grew to 60-42 on a jumper by Hill with 9:31 left and was 71-49 after a Mark Pancratz layin with 5:19 left. From there, the Panthers emptied the bench in going to 41-6 in Horizon League regular home games over the past six-plus seasons.
UWM controlled the game from the start, as the Panthers built a 12-3 lead in the first six minutes following a three-pointer by Tucker. The Phoenix pulled within six two times, the final time at 14-8 with 12:46 left. But UWGB would get no closer in the first 20 minutes, as UWM expanded its lead to 21-10 on a steal and dunk by Davis and then to 23-10 on a jumper in the lane by Hill.
Milwaukee eventually led by as many as 15, building a 32-17 advantage with 5:11 left on a Tucker layin. UWGB, though, scored nine of the final 13 points of the half to pull within 36-26 at the break.
The Panthers shot better than 55 percent in the first half, making 16-of-29 shots from the field.
"In the first half, we turned it over against the press and they did a good job on the offensive boards and they got some easy put-backs on us. We didn't play particularly well but were still in the game," UWGB head coach Tod Kowalczyk said. "But, for whatever particular reason, I just thought we played really slowly and almost looked tired, which is not a good thing when you are playing a team like Milwaukee."
UWM returns to action Wednesday night, hosting Oakland in a non-league matchup at the U.S. Cellular Arena. The game tips off at 7 p.m.
