Phoenix Shine In Paradise Jam

Green Bay got a pair of wins in paradise, playing in the Paradise Jam Tournament in the US Virgin Islands over the weekend. The Phoenix started the weekend with tough loss to Yale, before rallying to defeat UMass and Iona for a 4th place finish in the event.

Friday’s contest saw Green Bay take Yale, the eventual champion of the tournament, to the limit. The Phoenix and Bulldogs matched buckets early on, before Yale was able to build a 22-15 lead midway through the first half. Marcus Hall and LeBron Thomas were able to help close the gap to three points, only to see Yale build the advantage back to double digits. CJ O’Hara was able to make a layup in the closing moments of the opening half, closing the deficit to 39-30 at the break.

Yale built their lead to as high as 65-50 in the second half, before the Phoenix sparked a comeback to draw the game much tighter. Cade Wilkins and Hall splashed threes as part of 9-0 run to close in on the Bulldogs lead, bringing the game back to a two possession contest. Jordan Brathwaite responded on the opposite end with a three of his own to give Yale some breathing room. Green Bay wasn’t done yet though, as Justin Allen converted an And 1 opportunity, combined with a Thomas layup to trim the lead. The Phoenix got as close as 69-67 after O’Hara hit a pair of free throws with 0:29 left, but with Green Bay forced to foul, Yale was able to close the game out by hitting its free throws, taking home the win 73-67 in the opening game of the tournament. Hall’s 20 points led the Phoenix, with O’Hara adding 15, and 10 apiece from Thomas and Preston Ruedinger.

After the loss in the opening game, Green Bay had to wait to find out their opponent. Charleston took down UMass 69-65 in the next game, setting up the Phoenix for a matchup against the Minutemen on Saturday. With the short turnaround, the Phoenix found out it would be without Hall for the contest, due to a lower body injury in the loss to Yale. After the initial feeling out process in the early going, Green Bay was able to build a lead that it would not lose for the entirety of the contest. Midway through the first half, Marcus Banks Jr., hit a three to tie the game at 13-13, which Allen responded with a short jumper to take the lead back. The two teams traded a pair of baskets before the Phoenix went on a 10-0 run to capture its largest lead of the game at 12 points. Green Bay used that run to take a 33-25 advantage to the locker room.

UMass was able to piece together a number of short lived rallies in the half to cut into Green Bay’s advantage. Each time though, the Phoenix had an answer. An Allen three ball and a pair of Vukasin Todorovic free throws gave Green Bay some much needed breathing room after the Minutemen closed the gap to four points. UMass relied heavily on Leonardo Bettiol to keep the game close, as the senior forward was able to put together a 21-point game, with most of his efforts coming from the charity stripe on 13 of 14 from the free throw line. Doug Gottlieb called a Green Bay timeout with 4:28 left in regulation after UMass closed the gap to 64-62, prompting the final media break of the game. Out of the extended break, O’Hara drew a foul and made both free attempts from the line, starting what would become a free throw battle over the remainder of the contest. While the Minutemen were able to draw the game to within a single possession over that final segment of action, the Phoenix held off the rallies, making its free throws and a pair of O’Hara dunks to close out the game, giving Green Bay a 79-75 win, its first against a Division 1 program on the season. Allen and O’Hara led the Phoenix in the contest, dropping 27 and 21 points, respectively. Wilkins also finished in double digits with 12 points in the winning effort.

Iona was able to take down its Saturday opponent, Oregon State, in a game that went to overtime, with the Gaels winning 91-84, setting up the two teams for a 4th place battle on Monday. Once again, Green Bay was without Hall due to injury, but found a way to get it done in his absence. Iona managed to grab an early lead at 17-11, before the Phoenix caught fire, and put together a 10-0 run, with Ruedinger bookending the run with a pair of made long balls to give Green Bay a 21-17 advantage. The Gaels had a run of its own, nabbing a 34-29 lead late in the first. After O’Hara split a trip to the line, Keshawn Williams made a layup on the other end to increase the Iona lead. Mac Wrecke fired a long ball of his own, hitting it and closing out the scoring for the opening 20 minutes, with Green Bay trailing 36-33.

The Gaels extended the lead out of the half, scoring five points to begin the period, until Green Bay responded with an 8 to 0 run of its own, tying the game briefly. The two foes exchanged the lead several times throughout the period, as neither team could extend its lead beyond a single possession. Until, that is, Allen dropped 8 straight points on a three ball, a pair of free throws, and a successful And 1 opportunity to give the Phoenix a lead it would not lose. O’Hara continued his impressive tournament as well, with five straight points including a made three to give Green Bay its largest lead at 9 points with 4:59 remaining in the game. Iona got as close as trailing 74 to 73 within 1:03 remaining, but the Phoenix held on thanks to clutch free throw shooting to take home the win, 80 to 75. Allen led all scorers in the contest with 28 points and was named to the All Tournament team for his efforts. O’Hara added 17 points, on the day he was crowned the Horizon League Player of the Week for his efforts in the first two games of the tournament. Wrecke and Wilkins also finished in double figures with 14 and 10 points, respectively.

Green Bay returns home for a Saturday afternoon contest against the Haskell Indian Nations University Fighting Indians, an NAIA school out of Lawrence, Kansas. The game is part of a partnership with UW-Green Bay and the Oneida Nation, and will see the Phoenix wear a special alternate uniform celebrating the Oneida Nation, that the Phoenix wore in its season opener against Kansas. Tip off is set for 1 pm CT at the Kress Events Center on campus.