By: Joey Daniels
CLEVELAND, Ohio (GreenBayPhoenix.com) – Thanks to a season-high 11 made three-pointers and a career-high 20 points from Turner Botz, the Green Bay men's basketball team improved to a perfect 3-0 in the Horizon League, routing Cleveland State 87-67 at the Wolstein Center on Thursday night.
The 20-point win is the largest margin of victory for Green Bay at the Wolstein Center since Feb. 1998 (66-39), and it also snapped a two-game losing streak to the Vikings (5-11, 0-3 HL). The Phoenix shot 51.7 percent (30-of-58), finishing above 50 percent for the fifth time this year and third time in the last six games.
The Phoenix (10-5, 3-0 HL) fell behind 15-2 in the early going, but from that point forward it would control the game on the both ends of the floor. Green Bay went on a 39-15 run to close out the first half, sparked by a pair of Turner Botz three-pointers and solid free throw shooting.
Botz buried a career-high four three-pointers, making two in each half. As a team, Green Bay finished 11-for-21 from long range, the most since the season-opener at Stanford (made 10) and the second-highest percentage of the year (at SIUE, 52.9 percent). The Little Chute-native becomes the fifth Phoenix player to score 20-plus points in a game this season.
Joining Botz in double-figures was Carrington Love (16 pts), Jordan Fouse (14 pts) and Jamar Hurdle (11 pts). The stat-stuffing Fouse finished an assist shy of a double-double and also grabbed six rebounds. With Fouse's third rebound in the game, he surpassed Ron Ripley (1975-79) for second all-time on the Green Bay career rebounding list, with his 856 career rebounds now trailing only Dennis Woeffler (1969-73) who fjinished with 947.
Love knocked down three three-pointers and dished out five assists, while Hurdle shot 5-of-6 from the field off the bench. Love and Fouse each finished with two steals, with Botz adding three, to keep the team's average above 10.0 steals per game. Green Bay entered the game second in the country in steals, trailing only West Virginia, and registered 10-plus steals for the eighth time this year.
The 10-win Phoenix shot 61.5 percent in the second half from the field and finished 6-for-10 from beyond the arc. Love scored 13 of his 16 points in the final 20 minutes as well.
The Green Bay defense forced the Vikings into 23 turnovers, the seventh time this season it's forced its opponent into 20 or more turnovers. The Phoenix also racked up 20 assists, the second-highest total in a game this season (at SIUE, 24).
Green Bay will travel an hour down the road to face Youngstown State on Saturday next. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. CT at the Beeghly Center as the Phoenix will eye its second 4-0 start in league play in the last three seasons.
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