In the final four minutes of a game last Wednesday, the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Men's Basketball team overcame a 10 point deficit to pull out the victory over the University of Detroit Mercy 72-71. The game capped a 9-2 record since our last publication, with the lone losses coming in state against Green Bay and Madison.

The first of these games came directly after the Post's final paper hit newsstands, during the first round of exams. In Madison, the Panthers lost a close game against Wisconsin, which is covered more in depth by sportswriter Katie Witte.

Just two days later, back in the friendly confines of the U.S. Cellular Arena, the Panthers played a solid team game, downing the Green Bay Phoenix by twenty points. Adrian Tigert and Boo Davis led the balanced Panther offensive by scoring fifteen points each. Aswan Minatee, Green Bay's powerful forward, led the Phoenix with 13 points, despite only playing 21 minutes. The Panthers did a good job of getting Minatee into foul trouble early, thus taking away a great portion of their inside game.

In their third game in six days, Milwaukee hosted an Oakland team that faded quickly. Taking an 18-9 lead early, the Golden Grizzlies looked poised to pull an upset. That obviously did not happen, as UWM went on one of the most dominating runs of the year, answering every shot Oakland made and then some. The Panthers were led by senior guard Boo Davis, who went on a shooting spree, sinking half of his ten three point shots. Every player on UWM logged at least two minutes, and 12 Panthers scored in the contest.

Following Christmas, many Panther fans were worried about the 2 game road swing in the mountains. Two games were lined up, three days apart, against Wyoming and Montana. Wyoming, which is normally unbeatable in its dome, succumbed to the Panthers, 84-69. Leading the Panther charge was Adrian Tigert, who scored 21 points and nabbed 11 rebounds for a double-double. Joah Tucker scored 19 points, and three other Panthers had at least 10. A much closer game came in Montana, where a tough Grizzlies team threatened the Horizon League favorites. The lead changed 10 times, and the Panthers squeaked out a 78-74 win. Boo Davis, who by this game had found consistency in his scoring, led the team with a 20 point effort. Three other Panthers scored in double figures, including a career high 10 for newcomer Tyrone Young.

Back in Milwaukee, the Panthers fought off a surprising effort by Cleveland State University. The Vikings, who looked as though they were trying to make a statement, were led with 23 points by Carlos English. Boo Davis again led the Panthers with 19 points. UWM took an impressive 45 shots from the foul line, converting 31 free throws. To give an idea of how huge that was, CSU only made 5 free throws, a 26 point difference.

In past years, a trip to Chicago to face Jimmy Collins' Flames was a tough nut to crack. This year, however, the Panthers coasted to a 68-45 win at the UIC Pavilion. UWM won by 23 points despite shooting only 39.4% in the game. However, it was a great defensive night for the Panthers, who gave up their least amount of points in a game. Division III Parkside and Division II Platteville each scored more against the Panthers.

Butler came into Milwaukee with a solid 8-5 record, surprising many people, who believed Butler had sunk to the lower depths of the Horizon League. If they were expecting a pushover, they were disappointed. Spearheaded with a double-double by Joah Tucker, the Panthers held off a feisty Bulldog team. The Panthers, who were sent to the line 20 times in the final stretch, sunk 16 charity bombs and pulled out the win.

An extremely stiff test awaited Milwaukee in their next game, as Loyola came striding into town. Picked by many publications to be the second best team in the Horizon League, the Ramblers definitely threatened, only to fall 78-75. Milwaukee's victory was led by Joah Tucker's 20 points, albeit he was outscored by Loyola standout Blake Schilb. Schilb sank in 24 points, followed by J.R. Blount with 18. With time running out in the game, Loyola launched a final offensive, cutting the lead to one point on a trey by Tracy Robinson. Robinson, who was electrifying the entire game, took the breath out of the Klotsche Krazies. However, on the ensuing possession, Chris Hill was fouled, and Clutch hit one of his free throws to extend the lead to 77-75. With only 1.8 seconds left, a desperation bomb by Robinson was well off, and UWM had pulled out another win.

If only the late game heroics came into play last week Saturday. The Resch Center, home of the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay Phoenix, came alive as Green Bay overcame a second half deficit to beat the Panthers, 84-77 on ESPN2. With time winding down, coach Rob Jeter switched the UWM defense to the more familiar press, hoping to force a turnover. Green Bay responded by beating the press three consecutive times, forcing Milwaukee back to a half court set. Milwaukee's star, Joah Tucker, struggled immensely, hitting only one of eight free throws and missing all six three point shots he took.

By the time of publication, UWM will have played a battle for first place in the Horizon League with Wright State University. Unfortunately, because of deadlines and the upcoming semester, the recap of that game will instead appear in next week's issue.

Milwaukee returns to action Thursday, January 26th in Youngstown, Ohio, to play the Youngstown State Penguins. Bill Johnson, WOKY(920 AM)'s excellent broadcaster, will call the game at 6:00 P.M.

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