Feb. 6, 2010

Box Score
Milwaukee Postgame Audio

GREEN BAY, Wis. - Matt Smith and Rahmon Fletcher scored 13 points apiece and the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay limited the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to just seven second-half field goals en route to a 61-54 win Saturday night at the Resch Center.

Anthony Hill and Ja'Rob McCallum each had 13 points for Milwaukee, which shot just 33 percent in the second half after a solid 48.5 percent effort in the first 20 minutes.

In fact, UWM (13-11, 5-7 Horizon) had just two field goals in the first 10 minutes of the second half but still found itself within three points with 2:30 to play.

That was as close as the Panthers would get, though, as Fletcher hit a key three-point basket with 35 seconds remaining to restore a seven-point edge.

Green Bay (16-9, 8-5) wasn't much better on offense in the contest, shooting only 35 percent for the game while making just eight field goals in the second half.

The Phoenix jumped out to an early 13-8 lead over the first eight minutes but the Panthers rallied to tie the game at 14 one minute later and took their first lead on a free throw by Hill with 10:15 remaining. The Phoenix reclaimed a 20-17 lead on a Troy Cotton three and pushed the lead to 23-19 on another Cotton three with 6:34 remaining.

Green Bay eventually led 31-25 with 4:07 left and threatened to make the advantage even larger. But, McCallum and Hill scored on consecutive possessions to get the Panthers back within two and a three-pointer by Ricky Franklin tied things at 34 with 31 seconds left in the half.

The Phoenix carried a 36-34 lead into the locker room after a Smith jumper with two seconds remaining, and then scored the first seven points of the second half to build a 43-34 advantage with 16:08 remaining.

The lead was 50-41 after Rian Pearson followed his own miss but UWM was able to crawl back within 50-47 on a three-pointer by McCallum with 3:10 left. A jumper by McCallum 40 seconds later still had Milwaukee within three at 52-49, but that was as close as the Panthers could get.

UWM heads back on the road next weekend, playing at Wright State Thursday and Detroit Saturday. Thursday's contest starts at 6 p.m. CST and can be seen live in Time Warner Cable's Sports 32.