MILWAUKEE – Rhode Island used a strong defensive showing to hand the Milwaukee men's basketball team an 82-58 defeat Monday night at UWM Panther Arena, using a late scoring run to pull away after building a halftime advantage.
 
Foul trouble plagued the Panthers (2-8) early against the Rams (8-3), with four different players picking up a second foul well before intermission.
 
Rhode Island showed off its tough defense, which came into the night holding opponents to a .364 field-goal percentage - the sixth lowest in the country – while allowing just 62.8 points per game. It used the foul situation to its advantage in building a 13-point halftime lead, fending off any pushes from Milwaukee the rest of the way.
 
DeAndre Gholston led the way with 16 points, while adding seven rebounds. Donovan Newby added 12, while Josh Thomas chipped in nine points and five rebounds.
 
"Tough night shooting and also on the defensive end because we couldn't get over the hump with stops," head coach Pat Baldwin said. "We got the lead down to 10 a couple of times and just never could get a breakthrough. That is a good team we played and a great learning experience for our guys from a standpoint of physicality and what you need to do in order to win."
 
URI was led by 25 from Jeremy Sheppard and a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds from Makhi Mitchell.
 
Milwaukee cut into the Rhode Island lead as the second half started, but the Rams always had an answer. Down 41-26, a pair of free throws and a Gholston 3 from the wing made it 41-31. It was 10 again at 52-42 as well as at 57-47 before the visitors took control with an 11-2 run that pushed the lead to 68-49 with 4:28 remaining.
 
"We get a chance to lick our wounds a little bit and get ready for next opponent (Milwaukee has 10 days off before playing again)," Baldwin said. "There are a lot of things we need to get better at and our guys are going to continue to work and find a way."
 
Rhode Island started strong, but the Panthers had an answer and eventually climbed back to make it a one-possession game. Down 10-0, foul trouble became a quick issue, with Patrick Baldwin Jr. picking up his second at the 11:37 mark, Tafari Simms at the 9:36 mark and Joey St. Pierre with 8:44 remaining in the period, sending all three to the bench.
 
Following that tough start, MKE used a 7-0 run while scoring 11 of the next 15 of the night, pulling within two at 13-11 on Thomas floater with 9:08 left in the first. A Gholston three-pointer trimmed it down to one at 15-14 and it was still two at 18-16 on another Gholston basket – this time a rainbow from the baseline.
 
The Rams controlled the rest of the period, starting with seven straight as part of a 16-5 run to close the half and lead 34-21 at the break.
 
Up next, the Panthers remain at home for one more contest prior to Christmas, tipping off against St. Xavier in a 1 p.m. afternoon tip December 23.