Jan. 25, 2007

Box Score |  Quotes |  Notes

DETROIT - Jon Goode scored 18 points off the bench and Detroit scored 13 of its 18 overtime points from the free-throw line to claim a 91-84 win over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Thursday night at Calihan Hall.

Milwaukee's Avery Smith scored 32 points and forced overtime on a jumper with 0.2 seconds remaining in regulation. The Panthers then outscored the Titans, 9-5, from the field in the extra session, but Detroit's foul-line conversions provided the difference in the second overtime game of the season between the two teams.

Allan Hanson added 19 points and Kevin Massiah 14 for Milwaukee (7-15, 4-5 Horizon), which shot a season-best 47.5 percent from the field and overcame nine-point second-half deficit.

Ryvon Covile pitched-in 15 points for Detroit (7-12, 4-4), which also had three players contribute 14 points apiece.

"We just needed some breaks to happen and we just couldn't catch a break," UWM head coach Rob Jeter said. "These guys fought, they did everything they needed to do to help this team win, and we just needed as few breaks to happen and they didn't. Sometimes things bounce your way and sometimes they don't, and it didn't bounce our way."

The Panthers found themselves down nine with 15:24 to play and eight with 12:43 to play before rallying. The Panthers pulled within two on a Massiah layin with just over eight minutes to play and then crawled within a point on a three-pointer by Hanson with 5:12 left.

UWM took its first lead of the second half on a pair of Smith free throws with four minutes to play, only to see the Titans score the next six points for a 73-68 lead. But, a three-pointer by Paulsen and the last-second heroics of Smith forced extra time.

In the extra session, a three-point play by Smith brought Milwaukee to within 80-77 and a layup by Kaylan Anderson off a Roman Gentry steal made it 85-82 with 1:15 left. But, the Titans scored their final six points from the line as the Panthers could muster only a layin by Smith.

Detroit was red-hot from the field in the early going and threatened to run away with the game in the first 20 minutes. The Titans jumped out to a 17-8 lead on a Covile dunk with 13:55 remaining only to see the Panthers rattle off the next 11 points to claim a 19-17 lead. Hanson and Smith combined for all 19 points for Milwaukee, with Smith scoring 10 in a row at one point.

The Panthers still led 21-20 before Detroit scored six-straight to claim a 26-21 lead with 9:07 remaining. The lead eventually hit 33-24 before the Panthers rallied again, pulling within 34-32 on a Smith basket with 4:30 remaining. The Titans ran ahead once more, scoring six-straight points on back-to-back threes by Nemanja Jokic to go up 40-32 and, after the Panthers pulled to within 40-35 on another Hanson three, a layin by Jon Goode in the final minute gave Detroit a 42-35 lead at the break.

The Panthers return to action Saturday afternoon, hosting UW-Green Bay in a 1 p.m. contest at the U.S. Cellular Arena. The game will be televised nationally by ESPN2.