The regular season wraps up for the Milwaukee Panthers and ultimately they were able to finish on a positive note. Milwaukee’s season has been a rollercoaster of emotions due to all the unpredictable injuries. That did not stop them from putting their best foot forward and coming out victorious over a hard fought game against Youngstown State.
Amar Augillard started off the night with a quick three point shot which would set the tone for the night, showing that Milwaukee would have constant momentum and control for pretty much the entirety of the game.
The Penguins did fight hard and were able to build momentum to at one point make the game a one-possession game.
The Youngstown boys were trailing by nine points in the first few minutes of play but did quickly find their groove to only trail but smaller digits.
Early on in the game, the Panthers showed their strong shooting skills and proved that when shots were needed, the boys quickly made it happen.
Esyah Pippa-White pitched in 11 points for the Milwaukee boys and secured a quick open dunk in the first few seconds coming back from the half.
The Stars of the Show
Stevie Elam was one the lead scorers of the night finishing with 19 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
Aaron Franklin, one of the five seniors celebrated for senior night, was the other high point scorer of the game for the Panthers. Franklin finished with his fifth double double of the season, securing 17 points and 11 rebounds.
“I’m not much of a person who pays attention to stats,” said Aaron Franklin. “It was more important to go out as a senior with a win on our home floor with our home crowd, so to go into the post season with momentum, that’s where my mindset was.”
Youngstown State had some key players who kept the Milwaukee boys on their feet. Chris Carroll led the Penguins, securing 13 points on the board. The Panthers defense held up well, not allowing Youngstown to secure their average points per game.
The Panthers had a couple of players who had a few injury scares on the court during playing time. Amar Aguillard came off the court with what seemed to be an ankle injury.
Josh Dixon stepped in to replace Aaron Franklin and take over his free throws after falling to the ground holding his knee. Franklin did return after a few minutes but there has not been an update on if Augillard will make a return for the following game.
Chandler Jackson was a part of the strong shooting group, finishing out with 14 points. He had a big three point shot and defensive rebound right after to make it a score of 70-58 with three minutes of play remaining.
The Panthers ended the night with a 50.9 percent overall and 78.6 percent from the line. The Panthers are now headed into the post season No. 8 seed and are traveling back to take on Detroit Mercy for a much anticipated rematch set for Wednesday night.
“I think we are kind of crazy dangerous, we are unpredictable, we have a lot of mismatches,” said head coach Bart Lundy. “We got some guys that really like to play together and developed some chemistry, I’ve got a group of them that really want to win.”
Celebrating the Seniors
Prior to tip-off, Amar Augillard, John Lovelace Jr., Danilo Jovanovich, Seth Hubbard and Aaron Franklin were honored and congratulated for all they have done for the program.
Horizon League Post Season Honors
As playoffs begin, votes were made by the conference office. Both Stevie Elam and Aaron Franklin were voted to be a part of the Post Season Honors. Stevie Elam was voted as the Horizon League All-Freshman Team. Aaron Franklin was selected for the Horizon League Sportsmanship Award.
Elam made 11 starts while appearing in 24 games, and averaging 10.5 points per game. He did miss a month of play due to an injury. He is now the third Panther to be given this award and the first since 2023.
Franklin, a returning veteran, has been the heart of the team helping the team navigate through all the unexpected injuries. He made an appearance in all 31 games and starting in 21 of them, averaging 6.8 points with a 56.7 shooting percentage. Franklin also averaged 6.8 rebounds a game which helped rank him sixth amongst Horizon League Leaders.