Nov. 22, 2006

Box Score |  Quotes

MILWAUKEE - Ricky Franklin scored 13 points to lead five players in double figures as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee claimed a 75-58 win over South Dakota State Wednesday night at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

Paige Paulsen added 12 while Marcus Skinner, Avery Smith and Kevin Massiah added 10 apiece for the Panthers (2-4), who snapped a four-game losing streak with the victory.

Matt Cadwell led SDSU (0-5) with 12 points.

The Panthers posted their best defensive effort of the season, holding the Jackrabbits to 43 percent shooting while forcing 30 turnovers. UWM had a season-high 11 steals.

Milwaukee used a pair of stellar runs to claim the win. The Panthers opened the game on a 24-10 burst over the first eight-plus minutes before closing the game on a 21-4 run.

"I'm happy for these guys. We're just trying to get over that hump," UWM head coach Rob Jeter said. "For tonight, to battle through and to fight through some adversity like we did, and come out with a `W,' I'm proud of them."

SDSU actually tied the game at 54 on a Jose Frias layin with 7:08 to play before UWM came alive. The Panthers quickly went up 59-54 on a Skinner layin with 5:58 remaining and led by 11 on a layin by Franklin with two minutes left. Milwaukee then led by as many 19 points in the closing minute in clinching the victory.

"We just hit those lulls. We fight hard, and we fought hard for the first 5-10 minutes. We had them down and then we let them climb back," Paulsen said. "Our intensity dropped off and we have to find a way to keep it high all the time so we can put teams away right away instead of fighting back in the end and beating them handily with five minutes left."

The Panthers bolted to a 14-point lead in the first half before SDSU crawled back in the contest. UWM scored 10 of the first 12 points of the game, sparked by six points from Paulsen. The Panthers then expanded their lead to 17-7 on a layin by Sam Mauldin and eventually led 24-10 after a three-pointer by Roman Gentry with 11:54 remaining in the half.

But Milwaukee fell cold from the field after that, allowing South Dakota State back in the game. A layin by Thomas Bassett pulled the Jacks within 26-19 and a three-pointer by Blake Yackley made it 29-27 with 3:21 left in the half. UWM recovered with a jumper from Smith and a layin by Marcus Skinner to carry at 35-30 lead into the locker room.

UWM wraps up its brief, two-game homestand Sunday night, hosting Tennessee Tech at the U.S. Cellular Arena. The game will tip off at 7 p.m.