Feb. 7, 2009

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Milwaukee Postgame Press Conference

GREEN BAY, Wis. - Ryan Tillema and Troy Cotton hit key three-pointers in the final four minutes as the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay escaped with a 72-68 win over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Saturday night at the sold-out Resch Center.

The Panthers (14-9, 9-4 Horizon) had a chance to tie with under four seconds to play, but Tone Boyle's three-point attempt missed as he fell hard to the floor. Mike Schachtner then hit a free throw to seal the win.

Milwaukee actually led by 10 points early in the game and by five points with just over eight minutes to play. But, four players in double figures combined with a 12-point edge from the foul line for Green Bay (19-6, 11-2) proved too much for the Panthers to overcome.

James Eayrs, making his first start after coming off the bench for the first 22 games of the season, led Milwaukee with 22 points and nine rebounds. Boyle added 15 while Avery Smith had 11 points, six assists and six rebounds.

Terry Evans had 19 points to lead Green Bay, which also got 14 apiece from Tillema and Schachtner and 12 from Rahmon Fletcher.

"It was a very, very hard-fought game with two teams really battling it out," UWM head coach Rob Jeter said. "It was going to come down to who was going to be able to get to the line at the right times. The best thing about technology is you get to see things before you come into a situation like this and not just put your neck on the line or say something that isn't right. But, clearly there was enough contact on that last play that we just don't get and we've got to move on from there."

UWM led 58-53 after a layin by Deonte Roberts with 8:08 remaining. Green Bay countered with eight-straight points for a 61-58 advantage before Milwaukee fought back to tie things at 62. Tillema's three made it 65-62, but Eayrs converted a three-point play of his own to tie the game at 65. Then, Cotton struck from long range on the next possession, giving Green Bay the lead for good with 3:15 left.

The Phoenix lead actually grew to 70-65 with just over two minutes to play, but a three by Eayrs brought Milwaukee within 70-68. After a stop on the defensive end, Boyle saw his driving attempt to tie the game blocked with just under a minute to play. Milwaukee then forced a miss by Evans, but Schachtner grabbed the rebound and was fouled, making a single free throw to push the lead to three.

Milwaukee then wound down the clock in its final possession, using a timeout with 15 seconds left before getting Boyle's attempt from three-point range.

UWM put together a very solid first 20 minutes of basketball. After Green Bay scored the first five points of the game, Milwaukee used an 18-3 run to build an 18-8 advantage. Smith had seven points and Eayrs six during that burst.

The Phoenix countered with seven-straight of its own to pull within 18-15 and eventually closed to gap to 20-18 on a Fletcher layin with 10 minutes remaining. But, GB would get no closer in the first half. A three from Boyle with just under six minutes remaining pushed Milwaukee's lead to 28-22 and the team traded hoops from there, with UWM carrying a 36-30 lead into the locker room.

Green Bay charged out of the locker room, tying the game at 36 before eventually building a 49-45 lead. Then, the two teams traded punches before a final surge by the Phoenix wrapped up the win.

UWM will return to action with a pair of games in Ohio this week. The Panthers play at Cleveland State Thursday and at Youngstown State Saturday.