HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – BJ Freeman scored a game-high 23 points and the Milwaukee men's basketball team erased a 23-point deficit to claim an incredible 75-74 victory over Northern Kentucky Saturday afternoon at Truist Arena.
 
"I am just proud of them," head coach Bart Lundy said. "Proud of their fight, proud of their spirit, proud of their ability to not give up. It was a bad first half – they could have folded their tents – and they didn't – they just kept coming."
 
The Panthers (15-7, 9-3 Horizon League) fell behind the Norse (14-9, 9-3 Horizon League) by 23 points just before the halftime horn and still trailed by 20 at the first media timeout of the second half.
 
"We talked about it at halftime," Lundy said. "We couldn't foul. We had to play really clean basketball in the second half to give ourselves a chance. To NKU's credit, they take you out of everything you want to do. We were able to get our guys moving a little bit and they had to go make individual plays – which they did."
 
Down 58-38 at the 15:46 mark, Freeman led a team effort and spurred a 28-4 run, flipping the game on its head and stunning the Norse homecoming crowd of 4,466 in attendance with the third-largest comeback in MKE program history.
 
Freeman posted his sixth consecutive game of 20-plus points – something not done by a Panther since 1994 – but did so in unconventional fashion. He made just three field goals, but put together a school-record 17-for-17 performance from the free throw line while adding four rebounds and a team-high nine assists.
 
Freeman was the only Panther in double-figures, yet contributions came from up-and-down the lineup. In all 11 players saw playing time and each of them scored. Zach Howell and Vin Baker Jr. each finished with seven, with Baker adding with three rebounds. Howell also recorded four boards and a pair of steals.
 
Moses Bol contributed five points, adding three rebounds, three blocks and a 3-of-4 effort from the line in the final 90 seconds to help seal the win. At 9-3, the team is now back tied atop the Horizon League standings with the Norse, but do hold the 2-0 head-to-head tiebreaker after completing the season sweep.
 
"Eleven guys played and 11 guys scored," Lundy said. "And they all scored at crucial moments. They were there when their number was called and they produced."

NKU had five players in double-figures, led by Trey Robinson (career-high 18 points) and Chris Brandon (double-double of 18 points and 17 rebounds).
 
Freeman led the charge in the big scoring run, scoring 12 of Milwaukee's 28 points – including a 10-of-10 showing at the line in the stretch – tying the contest at 62-62 on a fastbreak lay-in from Howell. Freeman then threw an alley-oop to Ahmad Rand to give MKE its first lead at 64-62 and another layup from Howell capped the run and had the scoreboard reading 66-62 in favor of the Panthers.
 
Tied at 67-all, Rand had a huge three-point play when he finished a tough layup and Freeman's drive with 26.1 left looked to be enough at 75-70.
 
NKU wasn't done, however, getting a layup, turnover, and another quick basket to make it 75-74. The Norse also tied up the ball on the next possession and ended with a final opportunity to win with 9.2 second left on the clock.
 
The open look they went with came on a three from the wing, seeing Markeith Browning II come through with a huge block of the attempt. Bol then battled for the rebound and one more desperate NKU attempt from the baseline with the clock hitting zero came up empty.
 
It was another slow start for Milwaukee, however, trailing 7-0 to start the day but was back within a basket at 12-10. From there it was all NKU, seeing the visitors go on a scoreless drought of over six minutes while the Norse built a 35-13 advantage on the strength of 18 points in a row and a total scoring run of 23-3. The biggest deficit was 47-24 and the halftime score was 47-27, setting the stage for the epic comeback.
 
Milwaukee had another strong second half, shooting 54 percent after intermission to end the contest at 43.1 percent (22-of-51) from the field. The team hit just four 3's but connected on 84.4 percent (27-of-32) from the line, led by Freeman's unprecedented 17-of-17 effort. That broke the school record for most makes in a game without a miss, topping Derek Durham's former mark of 13-for-13 against Stetson back in December of 1995. The 17 makes was just one off the school record for made free throws in a game of 18, set by Chad Angeli in January of 2000.
 
Speaking of records, Bol's block midway through the first half broke the school record for blocks in a season, which was 125 set in 2017-18. With six more tonight, the team is now at 130 and counting on the campaign.
 
The defense was impressive in the second half, holding NKU to 27 percent (10-of-37) from the floor to finish at 38.6 percent (27-of-70) for the contest.
 
Up next, Milwaukee spends one more game on the road before returning to Panther Arena, visiting IUPUI Thursday. The matinee tipoff against the Jaguars is set for 10 a.m. CST.