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Losing the home momentum
But season record guarantees No. 2 seed
By Jimmy Lemke
In the last few weeks, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's basketball team has gone through two major ups and downs.
The road trip gone badly in Wright State and Butler left the Panthers in a bad way, while the total beat downs of Youngstown State and Cleveland State warmed the hearts of fans.
Well, the roller coaster continues.
The valleys of losing have struck again, this time in consecutive home games for the first time this season, after the Panthers built the second-longest home winning streak in the nation at 19.
The first loss came against the Jimmy Collins-led University of Illinois-Chicago Flames. The Flames shot a miraculous 57.4 percent from the field, the highest percentage against UWM this season.
The Flames, which dropped a decision against Milwaukee earlier in the conference season, were led by freshman Josh Mayo, who turned it on in the second half, scoring 21 points. The Flames also attempted 40 free throws, which was a season-high against UWM as well.
The Panthers, who were playing without a full-strength Adrian Tigert, lost the rebound battle, 40-35.
With time running out in regulation, guard Allan Hanson drained two free throws to tie up the game, sending the “Klotsche Krazies” into a frenzy.
The comeback win was not to be, however, as Mayo owned the extra period. Guard Othyus Jeffers racked a double-double for the Flames, which improved to 6-8 in the Horizon League with the 94-86 win.
The Panthers were paced by Boo Davis, who was forced to shoulder the scoring load, gaining 31 points. Joah Tucker tallied 19 points and 10 rebounds for yet another double-double this season.
The second game of the week happened to be in the Bracket Buster competition, televised by ESPN2. Earlier in the season, on the national stage against UW-Green Bay, Milwaukee lost a double-digit lead and fell.
This time around, they had a chance to impress the selection committee as well, and they stumbled. Tigert, who played a limited 17 minutes against UIC, missed the game completely in what coach Rob Jeter called a "precautionary move."
The Panthers, who had two high scorers against UIC, submitted to the team approach against Missouri State University, a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. Jeter's squad had five players in double digits in points, the first time they have achieved that since their non-conference game in Wyoming on Dec. 27.
The story of this game was turnovers. The Panthers coughed up the ball 22 times, the most since they escaped with a win at the Cell against Cleveland State on Jan. 2. Out of the 22 turnovers, 18 were committed by starters.
Terrible shooting was also a culprit, with the Panthers shooting only 33.9 percent in the ball game. Davis scored 10 points, but was two of seven from three-point range. Jason McCoy had 10 points and nine rebounds, but his five turnovers led the team along with Davis.
The Panthers led only once, on a three pointer by Tucker in the first minute in the game. After that, it was all Missouri State, as the Bears took a ton of momentum into the second half.
The Panthers made several comebacks, coming within 63-60 with one minute left in the game. However, it was not meant to be, as poor execution on shots near the end finished the Panthers.
In the end, 18 points by Missouri Valley Conference player of the year candidate Blake Ahearn and 16 points by forward Nathan Bilyeu were too much for UWM, as it lost its second straight decision at home.
The Panthers (18-8 overall, 11-4 Horizon League) will go into the Horizon League Tournament starting Feb. 28. UWM has guaranteed a second-place finish and will not play until March 4 in the tournament.
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