Panthers play from behind
At their best, the UW-Milwaukee Panthers are capable of beating the top teams in the Horizon League.
And at their worst, they’re capable of falling to a lesser opponent.
Both versions showed up Friday night at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, but not enough of the first and too much of the second as IUPUI knocked off UWM, 76-71, in overtime in the team’s final home game of the season.
“IUPUI was doing a really great job of attacking us on the offensive glass and taking control of the game from that standpoint,” UWM coach Pat Baldwin said.
“They initiated all of the effort plays, all of the intensity and all of the toughness that we couldn’t match.”
The Jaguars (9-17, 6-9 Horizon League) built a 13-point lead early, beating the Panthers (14-15, 7-9) in the first 12 minutes with a 9-0 edge in second-chance baskets and an 8-2 advantage on points off turnovers.
In front of a season-high crowd of 2,871, UWM played from behind for 35 of the 40 minutes of regulation.
“But give our guys credit,” Baldwin said. “Toward the end of the first half and middle part of the second half, we battled and fought our way back to get the thing tied up at the end of regulation with an opportunity to finish it.”
Guard Jeremiah Bell led the Panthers with 29 points, and center Brett Prahl, one of two seniors honored on senior night along with his twin brother, Alex, scored a career-high 22 points.
Forward Bryce Nze kept the rebounding numbers close for the Panthers -- the Jaguars edged them 43-39 -- by pulling down 17 to come within one of the school record set by Nathan Schrameyer in 1994. Nze also scored nine points.
The only other Panthers to score were Carson Warren-Newsome (10 points) and Bryce Barnes (1). But scoring wasn’t the issue.
“Like we always say, sometimes you’re not going to have your offense, but you better be able to bring your defense everywhere you go,” Baldwin said. “Tonight we just didn’t have a complete game.”
Bell’s points included a pair of free throws and a layup with 57 seconds left to forge a 64-64 tie and send the game into overtime. But he missed a jumper with 10 seconds left in regulation, and his three-point try to tie the score with 13 seconds left in OT was tipped.
“My teammates and my coaches put me in position to be successful, but that doesn’t tell the story,” Bell said. “I’ve got to be better on the defensive end for my team. Too many turnovers on my part (four), as well.”
The Panthers finish their regular season with games Thursday at Detroit and next Saturday at Oakland, and the Horizon League tournament opens March 2 at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena.
“If we have the team that we’ve been playing with that’s played tough, that’s really guarded teams, that’s really taken care of the defensive end, I feel very good about our chances going on the road,” Baldwin said. “If we play like we did the first part of the first half and into the second half, it’s going to be a long weekend.”