GREEN BAY, Wis. - Entering Sunday's game, Green Bay (15-9, 7-5 Horizon League) was 9-1 in games decided by single digits this year and 11-0 when scoring at least 70 points, but neither of those figures worked in the Phoenix's favor as Valparaiso (11-12, 6-5) picked up an 84-79 win at the Resch Center.

After the sixth and final Troy Cotton (Milwaukee, Wis.) trey put the Phoenix up eight with 4:36 left on the clock, Valpo surged ahead with an 11-0 spurt that took just under 2 ½ minutes. All told, the Crusaders scored 19 of the game's final 25 points to turn an eight-point deficit with just over four minutes left into a five-point win.

Valpo shot 66.7 percent (14 of 21) from the floor in the second half to overcome an eight-point halftime deficit (43-35). The Crusaders went on a 16-4 run spanning the end of the first half into the second and took their first lead of the second stanza (48-47) at the 16:13 mark.

Cotton cashed in five first-half 3-pointers in just six attempts and finished with a team-high 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc. It was his fifth 20-point game of the year and third in the last five games.

Randy Berry (Plover, Wis.) was a perfect 10 of 10 from the line en route to 14 points and finished one rebound shy of his eighth double-double of the year.

Bryquis Perine (Milwaukee, Wis.) had 19 points, five rebounds and five assists, while Seth Evans (Seneca, Ill.) added 13 points in 17 minutes of action.

As a team, the Phoenix went 29-for-33 from the free throw line (87.9 percent), but the Crusaders shot 58.7 percent from the field (27-for-46) and 50 percent from 3-point range (11-for-22).

Green Bay plays the final game of its three-game home stand on Saturday when Milwaukee visits the Resch Center for a 7 p.m. game.

--GreenBayPhoenix.com--