The Panthers live to see another game.
A first-round matchup with the 1-30 University of Detroit Mercy was expected to be a breeze, but instead, the Panthers endured their first test of March, escaping with a narrow 83-79 victory on Tuesday night.
“I knew it was going to be a dogfight,” said Head Coach Bart Lundy after the team’s first-round win. “We’ve played a lot of close games, so this was good to get it of our system. I think them hitting us early really helps us, because now we know if we do that again, it’s probably the end.”
Sluggish start for the home team
Seconds after tip-off, Panther guard BJ Freeman commenced the scoring with a three, his first points since being named to the Horizon League’s Second Team.
A Kentrell Pullian layup and Erik Pratt 3-point play gave the Panthers an 8-3 lead, before a series of defensive lapses allowed Detroit Mercy to take over. The Panthers wouldn’t retake the lead until the final three minutes of the half.
“I don’t think that we prepared the right way,” said Lundy on the team’s first-half efforts. “We weren’t very good in practice yesterday and came out sluggish.”
Guard Jayden Stone took control early, scoring nine of the Titans’ first 14 points to begin the game. The senior led the Horizon League in scoring this year, averaging 21.8 points per game.
Detroit Mercy ran their lead up to nine points with 12:42 remaining, before the Panthers kicked off their comeback effort with a Faizon Fields block and Angelo Stuart 3-point play. The home squad finally retook the lead at 29-28 with 3:27 left in the period.
The teams entered intermission knotted at 35.
Panthers pull it together in final minutes
The usual script — shaky start, followed by an early second-half run to victory — was nowhere to be found on Tuesday. Instead, the Panthers struggled through an up-and-down half that took them to the brink of elimination.
The score was even on nine separate occasions, as Milwaukee failed to take control over their inferior opponents. Nearly nine minutes into the period, Detroit Mercy took a 52-50 lead, prompting a timeout from Lundy.
The energy in the Klotsche Center began to drop as the pressure rose. Frustration mounted on the floor, as the Panthers looked visibly worried their postseason aspirations could come to a premature end.
Instead of caving to the pressure, Milwaukee bounced back.
“I don’t really feel [pressure] much,” said Freeman. “I just like to play basketball.”
After a few minutes of exchanging baskets, the black-and-gold reminded everyone in the building who the better team was by running off seven consecutive points. The 80-73 lead was one they would never relinquish.
Added Freeman, “Just knowing what type of team we’ve got, any given moment [we can have] a big play like Faizon made for us. It changes our momentum so fast.”
For Lundy, the win was a testament to their development as a team as the season has progressed.
“We’ve built resilience throughout the second half of the season,” said Lundy. “Early in the year, even early in conference season, we would have a lot of guys that weren’t on the same page, and we’ve gotten much better. It’s all mental toughness — so this particular game was kind of a synopsis of where the team has grown.”
Freeman, Stone lead the charge
Within Tuesday’s competition, two of the Horizon League’s finest players duked it out in one of the more compelling matchups of the year. Milwaukee’s Freeman and Detroit Mercy’s Stone each scored 30 points, most of which came in the game’s biggest moments.
A Stone layup gave Detroit Mercy a 68-66 lead, with just over five minutes remaining before Freeman countered with a pair of free throws. The two then exchanged 3-point plays to keep the score even at 71.
A pair of Freeman layups nearly put the game out of reach for Detroit Mercy until they countered with two 3-pointers, including one from Stone. The Panthers finally put the game out of reach with a couple of free throws from, you guessed it, BJ Freeman.
Adding 13 points to the winning effort was Faizon Fields, who also accrued a game-high +18 point differential while on the floor. With the team shooting just 2-19 from 3-point range, Fields stepped up in the paint.
“I try to give my team extra possessions just by trying to fetch the ball, offensive rebounds, going back up strong,” said Fields. “[I] tell them they could drive; they have open lanes.”
Contributing alongside Stone for the Titans was Marcus Tankersley, who scored 21 points in the losing effort.
Panthers set for in-state matchup with Green Bay
The season’s third chapter of the I-43 rivalry will take place at 8 p.m. on Thursday in Green Bay. The state’s two Horizon League teams split the season series 1-1, including a 90-69 Milwaukee victory on Saturday over the Phoenix.
“[We have to] try to figure out how to beat a team that’s really good on their home floor,” said Lundy, looking ahead at Thursday’s matchup with Green Bay. “There are adjustments that have to be made. They’re going to adjust to what happened the last game, and we need to make our own adjustments.”
The Phoenix limped into the conference tournament, losing four of five to cap off the regular season. However, Green Bay expects to welcome back Noah Reynolds, who was recently named to the Horizon League’s All-League First Team. Reynolds missed four of their last five games, including Saturday’s contest in Milwaukee.
Milwaukee’s confidence is unshaken, despite the test from the cellar-dwelling Titans.
“Just wait for Milwaukee basketball on Thursday,” said Freeman. “We’re going to be ready to play, be ready for war and be ready to battle.”
Added Fields, “I agree.”