The Wright State Raiders men’s basketball team (13-14, 7-9 Horizon) led by as many as 14 in the early going on Valentine’s Day, but history repeated itself yet again as Clint Sargent’s guys gave the lead away and ended up having their hearts broken in an 88-80 defeat in overtime at the hands of the Milwaukee Panthers (17-9, 10-5 Horizon) at UWM Panther Arena.
The Panthers had a slow start and were down 4-3 before they took the 9-4 lead thanks to a 6-0 run with layups from Darius Duffy and Danilo Jovanovich, followed by a tip-in from Kentrell Pullian. But the Raiders immediately took the 20-9 lead after scoring six unanswered points, starting with a Logan Woods three-pointer, followed by back-to-back shots in the paint from Andrea Holden, and the last nine points in a row coming from Brandon Noel courtesy of three layups and a three-pointer.
However, the Panthers got back into it with 11 straight points of their own starting with back-to-back made treys from Jamichael Stillwell and John Lovelace Jr., followed by five consecutive points from Themus Fulks courtesy of made foul shots and a three-point play. Milwaukee kept it close and took a 39-38 halftime lead on another three from Stillwell with three seconds left in the first half.
The second half was both teams pretty much going back and forth with each other, with the Raiders leading by as many as eight at 55-47 after going on a six-point run thanks to a Solomon Callaghan three-pointer, a free throw from Jack Doumbia, and a layup from Michael Imariagbe. But down 57-50, the Panthers responded with a six-point run of their own with free throws from Erik Pratt and back-to-back jumpers from Fulks to make it a one-point deficit at 57-56.
UWM took the 69-68 lead with 2:56 left on a dunk from Stillwell before Pullian turned defense into offense by getting into the passing lanes, committing a steal, and going the other way for a one-handed throw down to make it 71-68. Then, Callaghan made a layup to make it a one-point affair at 71-70 with 1:43 left. WSU was down 73-70 with 19 seconds to go in regulation following made foul shots by Fulks, but Alex Huibregtse hit his lone three-pointer of the night to tie it up at 73 with nine seconds to go. Then, Fulks went for the win with a reverse layup, but his shot rimmed out at the buzzer.
The Panthers were ready to pounce by playing great defense and scoring the first eight points of the extra session on their way to an 81-73 lead courtesy of a layup by Stillwell, a layup by Pullian, another bucket from Stillwell, and a shot from Fulks. Wright State got to within five at 83-78 thanks to made free throws from Noel and a three from Woods, but A.J. McKee put the cream cheese on the bagel with a three-point play at 86-78 with 42 seconds left to go. The game would end with Fulks and Noel exchanging a pair of foul shots as Milwaukee defended home court on their Homecoming Night.
Wright State finished the night shooting 48.3 percent overall (29-of-60), 52.6 percent from three-point range (10-of-19), and 75 percent on free throws (12-of-16). They also outrebounded Milwaukee 35-32.
Noel finished the night with 25 points on 9-of-16 shots from the field with a trio of three-pointers in four attempts also went a perfect 4-of-4 at the free throw line to go along with seven rebounds, a pair of assists, a block, and a steal. Noel’s 25-point effort marks the 15th time this season he has tallied 20-plus points, while Friday was his third straight game of 25 points or more.
Callaghan tallied eight points in each half on his way to his career-high of 16 points while going 6-of-7 overall from the field and a perfect 4-of-4 from the three-point mark. It was Callaghan’s second-straight double-digit game and his fifth of this year.
Huibregtse scored nine of his 11 points in the second half while also recording five rebounds and seven assists. Michael Imariagbe, who was in the starting lineup for the first time since January 12, had 10 points of his own plus six rebounds and a pair of steals.
Bart Lundy’s Milwaukee squad made 50 percent of their overall shots (33-of-66), 38.5 percent of their three-point baskets (5-of-13), and 77.3 percent of their foul shots (17-of-22).
The Panthers were led by a double-double from Fulks, who had 21 points and 12 assists along with no turnovers. 15 points, eight rebounds, and two steals for Stillwell; 12 points for McKee; 10 points, six rebounds, and two steals for Pullian, and 11 points off the bench from Aaron Franklin.
Note: This game featured four ties and 12 lead changes.
Up next: Wright State will continue their weekend Wisconsin road trip on Sunday, February 16 as they visit the Green Bay Phoenix for a 3ET/2CT start time. Green Bay has lost 21 straight games, which is the longest active losing streak in all of college basketball.
