FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Milwaukee men's basketball team scored the final nine points of the evening to cap a thrilling 68-65 comeback victory over Purdue Fort Wayne Thursday night at Memorial Coliseum.
 
Despite leading for the large majority of the contest, the Panthers (11-11, 6-5 Horizon League) found themselves down six points to the Mastodons (14-6, 5-6 Horizon League) at 65-59 with 2:41 to play.
 
"After the double-overtime loss to Oakland, we could have folded and said this is going to be a really tough one on the road – but we didn't," head coach Bart Lundy said. "The group showed the most resilience we have shown and if we can keep building on this, we will be fine."
 
That was when BJ Freeman took over, scoring seven consecutive on a three-pointer, a driving dunk down the lane, and a pair of free throws to give MKE the 66-65 advantage. After a final defensive stand that included a pair of stops, Faizon Fields put the game away by sinking two free throws with just 1.3 seconds remaining.
 
"It's probably the most resilient this group has been this year," Lundy reiterated. "BJ's focus throughout the day and through the game was really good. He came up big with those seven straight points and we got stops when we needed to late. I thought Faizon was huge down the stretch."
 
Freeman led the charge on the evening, finishing with a game-high 26 points to go along with eight rebounds and four assists. He went 8-of-14 from the floor and added two blocks and two steals.
 
"I thought he was engaged all day," Lundy said of Freeman. "He was very focused on what we had to do to win. I told him when you pound the rock long enough, eventually it will break. And he hasn't pounded hard enough on that rock sometimes this year, but tonight he just kept going and it broke for him."
 
Langston Wilson joined him in double-figures, scoring 11 on a very efficient 5-of-7 shooting, adding seven boards. Fields chipped in six points and was in double-figures for the second game in a row on rebounds, finishing with 12 boards.
 
"They got rebounds; they were a presence inside," Lundy said of Wilson and Fields. "We were able to stick a little better to shooters and let them corral things in the lane. They were excellent."
 
Purdue Fort Wayne was led by 17 points from Jalen Jackson. The MKE defense was on full display all night, limiting the 'Dons to just 31.9 percent (22-of-69) shooting, the best effort of the season and lowest for a game since Nov. 27 of last year. Purdue Fort Wayne came into the game averaging 82.6 points and .471 shooting overall.
 
Milwaukee built a first-half lead of as many as 11 on a pair of occasions and still was ahead, 59-55, on a Freeman 3-pointer. That was when the home team went on a run, scoring 10 straight points to flip the scoreboard and lead, 65-59.
 
Freeman took over, hitting a three to stop the run before driving down the lane for a dunk that cut the deficit to one. His free throws edged the Panthers ahead with 37 seconds left and Fields iced the win, playing tough defense on the final stand before making his shots from the stripe to close it out.
 
A great start helped, as Milwaukee scored 11 of the first 15 points of the contest and led 14-6 on a three from Erik Pratt. It was 28-17 on a Freeman layup and back to 10 at 36-26 and still stood at eight at 46-38 after a Learic Davis breakaway dunk.
 
For the evening, the MKE offense connected on 43.4 percent (23-of-53) overall, making 17-of-22 free throws (.773). The Panthers claimed the battle on the boards at 42-37 and also outscored PFW 19-6 in fast break points – a category that the home team came into the game ranked No. 10 in the NCAA at 16.1 ppg.
 
Up next, it's back home Sunday for the squad, playing on campus in the Klotsche Center when it welcomes IUPUI to town. Tip off time is set for a 2 p.m. start.