Golden opportunity slips away
Panthers can’t hold a second-half lead
After using a furious comeback to dump second-seeded Wright State and advance in the Horizon League tournament last week, UW-Milwaukee experienced the flip side Monday night.
The Panthers allowed Cleveland State to shoot 56% in the second half and scored just one point over the final 1 minute 54 seconds as they let a prime opportunity to upset the top-seeded VIkings slip through their grasp in a 7165 semifinal loss at Indiana Farmers Coliseum in Indianapolis.
“A disappointing end to our year because we were right on the cusp of doing some really good things,” said coach Pat Baldwin, whose team had beat Cleveland State in overtime after a big second-half rally on the road on Jan. 23.
“We had our opportunities today.”
Eighth-seeded UWM (10-12) led by 11 points with just over 9 minutes remaining before falling apart, with the Vikings using some uncanny threepoint shooting to rally from that double-digit deficit.
Jayson Woodrich was key, as he came off the bench to drain three in a 5½-minute stretch. The third cut UWM’s lead to 58-57, and after a DeAndre Gholston layup Josh Thomas fouled Woodrich on a long three.
He hit 2 of 3 free throws to make it a one-point game with 2:52 left, setting the stage for the Vikings’ closing flurry.
A layup by Gholston with 1:55 remaining left gave the Panthers their final lead at 64-61. Torrey Patton scored on a drive on the other end, leading to a missed three-pointer by Te’Jon Lucas on the other end.
The long rebound led to a breakout by Cleveland State after Courtney Brown Jr. couldn’t chase the ball down. The ball eventually landed in the hands of Trey Gomillion, who threw down a thunderous two-handed dunk while being fouled by Brown.
He hit the free throw as well, giving Cleveland State its first lead since midway through the first half, at 66-64.
UWM managed a lone Thomas free throw the rest of the way – a tough way to end a game that looked like it would
be the springboard for the Panthers' first appearance in the championship game since the 2016-17 season.
“We fought back from going down early, closed the gap at halftime and pushed our lead out in the second half. But there were a lot of plays out there on the floor that escaped us,” said Baldwin. “Where we some that we had to make and we didn't, and Cleveland State did.
“Give them credit.”
Thomas finished with a career-best 25 points on 12-for-19 shooting. Gholston was the only other UWM player in double figures with 10 points, while Amir Allen added eight points and 15 rebounds -- 11 of those coming on the offensive end.
The Panthers shot just 39.1% and hit only 3 of 17 threes (17.6%). They also fell well short at the free throw line, hitting 8 of 13 attempts (61.5%) compared to the Vikings' 15-for-20 effort (75.0%).
“Our guys, every single day we asked so much of them – especially during a pandemic, which is absolutely abnormal to any and everybody – and they've been stellar in the way that they've handled themselves,” said Baldwin. “They passed with flying colors, and I love every single one of our guys. Absolutely proud of them and proud of their effort.”
UWM fell behind eight early before embarking on a huge run.
It began with two baskets by Thomas and then a couple of hustle plays by glue guy Amir Allen, who scored on a put-back and then collected a loose ball on the baseline after a missed Cleveland State three, ran the length of the floor and hammered down a twohanded dunk on the other end.
The barrage continued with a Lucas three from the top of the key, making it 11 straight points by the Panthers.
The Vikings got a runner to go, but two straight Thomas jumpers and then an offensive rebound and jumper by Tafari Simms gave UWM baskets on eight consecutive trips down court and a 23-16 lead.
After a dry spell of nearly 4 minutes for both teams Thomas got another jumper to go down, stretching the Panthers' run to 19-2.
Cleveland State got a three-point play from Yahel Hill on the other end, giving the Vikings just their second field goal over a span of 11:12 that also saw the Panthers force five turnovers while clamping down with some ferocious on-ball defense.
Things got borderline ridiculous when Lucas hit a tough fadeaway jumper from 20 feet with the shot clock expiring after Hill's three-point play, then after a Vikings miss on the other end Donovan Newby drained a three from deep in the corner just in front of a rowdy Cleveland State bench.
UWM forced one final turnover on Cleveland State's final possession and Thomas raced down court and banked a shot in as time expired, but the officials wiped it away to leave the Panthers with a 30-24 lead.
Considering they shot only 36.1%, hit 2 of 10 threes and went 2 of 4 from the free throw line, any sort of lead seemed out of the realm of possibility for the Panthers.
But they limited the Vikings to 35.7% from the floor, 3-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc and committed only four fouls leading to a lone free throw.
After going scoreless in the first half, Gholston began making his presence felt early in the second with a layup, pretty outlet pass that led to a breakaway Thomas layup and a free throw.
But Cleveland State's halftime adjustments led to points on six of its first seven possessions.