UWGB men fall to Illinois-Chicago

GREEN BAY – The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay men played a home game at a different venue, but the result was all too familiar.

UWGB lost 83-75 to Illinois-Chicago on Friday night in front of 3,872 at the Kress Center.

It was the first regular season contest the men played at the Kress and just the third time overall.

This also was the third straight game for UWGB against the three best squads in the 10-team Horizon League, and for the third time it had a lead in the second half. For the third straight time, it couldn’t hold onto it.

A 62-58 advantage with 9 minutes, 6 seconds remaining quickly was erased thanks to a game-defining 15-0 run by the Flames that put them ahead 73-62 with just under 5 minutes left. The run was highlighted by what turned into a six-point possession after freshman Michael Diggins was fouled going in for a layup by UWGB junior guard Sandy Cohen III.

Diggins hit the shot, and Cohen was called for a flagrant after wrapping his arms around him. Diggins got two free throws and hit them both, and UIC retained possession and capitalized with a layup from Marcus Ottey.

The Phoenix never recovered, dropping its fourth straight after a two-game winning streak against Cleveland State and Youngstown State.

It was the first win in Green Bay for UIC since 2004. The Flames have won eight of their last nine and extended their road winning streak to seven.

“When they went on their run I told our coaches I think it took it out of us,” UWGB coach Linc Darner said. “It almost seemed like the air went out of our guys. Tough play. The problem is we gave up 11 points that way tonight. We gave up six on that play and then we had two others when we fouled them as they were laying it in.

“We gave up 11 points on three possessions. We have talked to our guys about not fouling them as they are laying the ball in. That has been one of our Achilles heels. Not just this year, every year I have been here. We seem to give a lot of love taps to guys when they are laying the ball in.”

UWGB didn’t help itself by shooting just 9-for-22 from the line, an uncharacteristic performance from a team that entered at 75.9 percent. It also was outrebounded 60-42, including 15-7 on the offensive glass that led to 18 second chance points for the Flames.

That was much easier to explain. Its best rebounder, Khalil Small, picked up three fouls early in the first half and didn’t play in the final 8 minutes entering the break. He was limited to just 23 minutes overall before fouling out.

The team’s other top rebounder, freshman forward Manny Patterson, missed his second straight game after injuring a shoulder at Wright State earlier this month. Darner has some serious doubts about Patterson’s availability for the rest of the season.

Cohen tried to pick up the slack, finishing with a game-high 25 points on 9-for-16 shooting while adding seven rebounds in 40 minutes. He was one of four Phoenix in double figures, with Kam Hankerson scoring 12, P.J. Pipes Jr. 11 and Small 10.

The Flames were led by Dikembe Dixon’s 18, while Jordan Blount had 14 points and 15 rebounds.

The hope for UWGB is that it mimics the success of the Flames next season.

UIC and UWGB are the two youngest squads in the Horizon, and the Flames have taken a big leap forward this season after going through some growing pains in 2016-17.

“I just told our guys that this time last year they were kind of where we are at,” Darner said. “I think if you look at what they have done, a lot of them have gotten a lot better. … it looks like they put in a lot of time after their season was over to this year of getting into the weight room, of getting bigger and stronger. Getting better and shooting the ball a lot better.”

Notable notes

► Darner was asked about the experience of playing at the Kress. UWGB usually plays its home games at the Resch Center, but the venue was booked for Disney on Ice this week.

“I thought it was good for our guys,” he said. “I thought it would be maybe a little louder. I thought it would be hard to hear. I thought my voice would probably be gone by the end of the night.

“It was a good atmosphere. We got a great turnout of students and alumni. Hopefully, we can build off that for the future.  

►Small and forward David Jesperson were honored before the game for Senior Night. Jesperson had 9 points and 7 rebounds in his final game at home, while Small grabbed six boards to go along with his 10 points.

► Small became the seventh player in program history to record 1,200 points and 500 rebounds.

Up next

UWGB will play at Oakland at 6 p.m. Thursday. The Phoenix beat the Golden Grizzlies 80-79 at the Resch on Dec. 30.

UIC (16-12, 11-4 HL)

DIXSON, Dikembe 5-13 7-9 18; ODIASE, Tai 7-11 0-1 14; BLOUNT, Jordan 6-10 1-2 14; OTTEY, Marcus 4-8 0-0 9; FERGUSON, Tarkus 3-11 2-5 8; ROBINSON, Clint 2-3 2-2 6; DIGGINS, Michael 2-3 2-2 6; MATTHEWS, Dominique 2-10 0-1 5; BOAHEN, Godwin 1-5 0-1 3. Totals 32-74 14-23 83.

GREEN BAY (10-19, 5-11 HL)

COHEN III, Sandy 9-16 5-12 25; HANKERSON, Kameron 4-9 1-3 12; PIPES, PJ 3-9 2-4 11; SMALL, Khalil 4-13 1-2 10; JESPERSON, David 4-9 0-0 9; PARHAM, TJ 2-7 0-1 6; BAINS, Sukhjot 1-5 0-0 2; CRIST, Hunter 0-0 0-0 0; BELL, Trevian 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-68 9-22 75.

UIC...........................   34   49  -   83

Green Bay.....................   38   37  -   75

3-point goals--UIC 5-20 (BLOUNT, Jordan 1-3; OTTEY, Marcus 1-1; BOAHEN, Godwin 1-5; MATTHEWS, Dominique 1-5; DIXSON, Dikembe 1-3; FERGUSON, Tarkus 0-3), Green Bay 12-28 (HANKERSON, Kameron 3-6; PIPES, PJ 3-5; PARHAM, TJ 2-5; COHEN III, Sandy 2-6; JESPERSON, David 1-4; SMALL, Khalil 1-2). Fouled out--UIC-None, Green Bay-SMALL, Khalil. Rebounds--UIC 60 (BLOUNT, Jordan 15), Green Bay 42 (COHEN III, Sandy 7; JESPERSON, David 7). Assists--UIC 10 (FERGUSON, Tarkus 4), Green Bay 16 (HANKERSON, Kameron 4; SMALL, Khalil 4). Total fouls--UIC 20, Green Bay 20. Technical fouls--UIC-None, Green Bay-None. A-3872