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Panthers rocket past UC Davis
Overcome 24-point halftime deficit
By Matt Capristo
The UW-Milwaukee men’s basketball team scored 54 points in the second half to close out a thrilling come from behind victory over UC- Davis 81-75 Saturday in the World Vision Classic in Ames, Iowa.
The Panthers fell into an early hole in the first half. Foul trouble with their big men and trouble making shots from anywhere on the court, including shots under the net, all contributed to a deficit of 51-27 at half time.
“In the first half we adjusted to them, went small, and had some different combinations that weren't working for us,” said Head Coach Rob Jeter.
“I was struggling in the first half, missing a lot of open shots. I needed to finish and that's what I did in the second half,” said sophomore forward Anthony Hill.
Coming out of the locker room, the Panthers went on a run that lasted the entire 20 minutes. The Panthers did a better job of pounding the ball inside, getting the Aggies into foul trouble and getting easy buckets. Hill only scored three points in the first half but scored 13 in the second half.
Ricky Franklin also recovered from the first half blues scoring 15 of his 18 points in the second half. Deion James also had another big night coming off the bench providing a spark and scoring 12 points.
The Panthers began their comeback quickly, going on a 10-0 run out of the locker room. Bit by bit the Panthers nipped away at the deficit coming within 10 points with 7:20 left and then within one point with 4:22 left.
The Panthers completed the improbable comeback with a Franklin three-pointer with 2:24 left in the half to bring the score to 73-71.
“He got into our butts when we were in the locker room and he said this would reveal our character. We just stuck together and pulled through.” Hill said when asked about Jeter’s halftime speech.
“I just wanted the guys to stick to what we’ve been trying to do since we’ve gotten together and just kind of believe in each other.” said Jeter. “This is more about character right now about how we can play these next 20 minutes.”
The 24-point comeback is the largest in the Panthers history since becoming a Division 1 program.
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