Jan. 5, 2008

Box Score |  Quotes

MILWAUKEE - Paige Paulsen hit a three-pointer with two seconds remaining to give the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee a remarkable 55-53 win over the University of Detroit Mercy Saturday night at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

Paulsen's three came from well beyond the arc at the top of the key. The shot completed a thrilling UWM comeback that saw the Panthers overcome a 48-34 deficit in the final six-and-a-half minutes.

Paulsen wound up leading the Panthers with 17 points while Deion James added 13 off the bench for Milwaukee (7-7, 2-2 Horizon), which won for the fourth-straight time.

Jon Goode led Detroit (4-10, 0-4) with 25 points.

The final shot by Paulsen marked the only time in the second half UWM had the lead.

Milwaukee looked like it was out of the game when Detroit's lead hit 48-34 after two free throws by Goode with 6:43 left. But, the Panthers responded by scoring 11-straight points to pull within 48-45 less than two minutes later.

Detroit rebuilt a 53-49 lead with 1:45 left but would not score again. A pair of free throws by Paulsen cut the lead to 53-51 with 1:31 remaining and a single free throw by Deonte Roberts made it 53-52 with 44 seconds left.

Then, on the ensuing Detroit possession, nearly every Panther dove on the floor for a loose ball before Ricky Franklin eventually forced a tie-up and a UWM possession with 22 seconds left. The Panthers then called timeout and set up Paulsen's final shot.

After Paulsen's shot went in, Detroit called a timeout but Goode's final shot from half court failed at the buzzer.

"The last part of that game really shows how far we have come as a team," UWM head coach Rob Jeter said. "That last little scramble for the ball ... it looked like Ricky (Franklin) dove about 15 feet to finally get to that ball. I'm just so proud of the way they won the game. They went after it and they won it."

Milwaukee claimed the victory despite shooting only 32.1 percent from the field while making just 6-of-27 from three-point range. But, UWM's 13 offensive rebounds, 13 forced turnovers and 15 made free throws helped put the Panthers in position to pull out the stunning win.

"My teammates trust me and give me the confidence to take shots like that," Paulsen said of his game-winner. "I didn't know it was going in until it went through the net and everyone started cheering."

The Panthers posted an extremely sluggish first 20 minutes in finding themselves down three at the break. In fact, UWM shot just 30.4 percent from the field in the first half, including just 2-of-13 from three-point range. That poor shooting led Milwaukee to trail by as many as seven points in the first half, with a layup by Woody Payne giving Detroit a 27-24 lead with 2:20 to play.

UWM did recover slightly before the break. James converted two free throws to pull the Panthers within 27-22 and then knocked in a layup with 36 seconds remaining to bring Milwaukee within 27-24 at the half.

The Panthers eventually pulled within two early in the second half before the Titans built a 48-34 lead with 6:43 to play. UWM went more than four minutes without a basket as Detroit built its big lead, but the Panthers recovered just in time to pull out the win.

The Panthers continue their busy start to the month of January with a Monday contest at Youngstown State. The game tips off at 4:30 p.m. CST and can be seen live in Milwaukee on Time Warner Sports (Channel 32) as well as nationally on ESPN Full Court and ESPN360.com.