DETROIT, Mich. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) – Adopting a survive and advance mentality, the Green Bay men's basketball team returned to Joe Louis Arena for the second time in as many days on Sunday afternoon, rallying past in-state rival Milwaukee, 70-61, to move on to Monday night's semifinals of the 2016 Little Caesars' Horizon League Men's Basketball Championship.
Green Bay (21-12) is set to face top-seeded Valparaiso (26-5), which it went down to the wire with just seven days ago at the Resch Center before falling 70-68 on a 3-pointer in the closing seconds. It will mark the Phoenix's fourth straight appearance in the semis— the longest active streak of any conference member. Tip is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. CT (7 p.m. ET) and will be broadcast live nationally on ESPNU.
After scoring a season-low four points in the first win over Cleveland State, senior guard Carrington Love bounced back with a team-high 16 points, six assists and three steals, all without committing any turnovers in 38 minutes. Fellow senior Jordan Fouse (15 pts/8 reb) and junior guard Charles Cooper (10 pts/7 reb) were also major contributors, both scoring in double figures for the second-consecutive day.
In all, seven of the eight Green Bay players that saw the floor recorded six points or more. The Phoenix also held a 34-16 advantage in points in the paint.
After working its way to a six-point halftime lead, 31-25, the Phoenix found themselves down by as many as six points out of a media timeout, 52-46, with 7:36 remaining in the game. Its response came in the form of a 12-0 flurry over the next three minutes and 34 seconds, a surge that included steals, transition baskets and Fouse's third triple of the afternoon that gave Green Bay a 58-52 edge with 4:02 left.
Milwaukee pulled within three after senior Matt Tiby buried a triple of his own with 2:10 to play; however, that would be as close as the Panthers would get, as the Phoenix made enough free throws down the stretch to defeat Milwaukee for the second time in three meetings this season. The win also gave Green Bay the all-time series lead in the Horizon League Tournament, 3-2, while avenging its 2014 semifinal loss in overtime.
The win gives Green Bay its sixth win in its last seven games. In all but one of those games, the Phoenix defense has held its opponent to 70 points or fewer.
Up next: vs. Valparaiso, 7 p.m. ET (6 p.m. CT) at Joe Louis Arena (Semifinals)
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