ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Milwaukee men's basketball team used a big second half to cut a 20-point deficit down to what would have been a one-possession game before running out of time in a 75-71 loss to St. Thomas Wednesday night at Shoenecker Arena.
 
The second-half surge by the Panthers (3-6) was fueled by Erik Pratt, who scored all 17 of his career-high point total after intermission. He, along with Elijah Jamison – who battled through foul trouble – combined to score 30 of the team's 49 second-half points. The Tommies (5-4) got a big defensive stop in the closing minute and then went 5-for-6 from the free throw line in the final 21 seconds to seal the victory.
 
Pratt topped his former career-best of 12 points with the team-leading 17 total, connecting on 5-of-9 from beyond the arc while adding a pair of rebounds and a steal.
 
Jamison also did all of his scoring in the second half, finishing with 13 while adding three assists and a pair of rebounds.
 
Angelo Stuart pitched in with 11 and played a key role in the comeback attempt.
 
"I think we've got some confidence issues," head coach Bart Lundy said. "Guys putting pressure on themselves and their approach has not been where it needs to be. Even as a staff I think we overcompensated with our game plan today and then we adjusted. Nobody is going to feel sorry for you, you have to keep plugging away. We are a good team – we just have to find that team."
 
Raheem Anthony led UST with a game-high 23 points, while Parker Bjorklund added 15 points as four of the starting five finished in double-figures.
 
Milwaukee shot 52.9 percent (18-of-34) from the floor after intermission and held St. Thomas to under 40 percent (.370).
 
"I don't know if they are taking pressure off themselves and then just playing at that point or the other team maybe lets down a bit," Lundy said of the second-half efforts. "But our intensity seems to amp up. When you don't see the ball through the hoop, the defensive woes that we have had get exasperated and it compounds itself and snowballs on us."
 
Down by 20 at 53-33, the comeback started in full force. Pratt swished a triple and Jamison added three free throws after drawing a foul. Pratt sank another 3 to make it 55-42 and a three-point play by Learic Davis drew MKE back within 13 at 58-45.
 
The Tommies sank a three of their own to stop momentum, only to see Pratt hit back-to-back from downtown to cut the margin below double-figures for the first time at 60-51 with 9:05 to play.
 
Four free throws by the home team pushed it back to 14 at 67-53. Darius Duffy then provided a big lift with back-to-back buckets and the score read 70-66 with 1:39 to play following a Duffy offensive board and put-back. The team then got a stop on the other end and had a chance to make it a one-possession game but St. Thomas got the play it needed and then iced it from the line.
 
"We had some foul calls that went against us and put them on the free throw line, which stemmed the tide for them a little bit," Lundy said. "And then defensive rebounds. We were playing a smaller lineup because we were trying to score quickly and they hurt us on the offensive glass. Again … it's the deficit that we put ourselves in that was really the story."
 
A slow start hurt the team again, falling behind 13-4 out of the gates and then at 21-8 while opening 1-of-11 from the floor, forcing a timeout.
 
A Duffy slam dunk off a rebound made it 25-10 and Stuart hit a couple of 3's to help the effort, eventually seeing a 38-22 deficit at the halftime horn.
 
Up next, the three-game road trip wraps up with a contest at UC Davis Saturday, set for a 4 p.m. CST start time.