GREEN BAY, Wis. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) – Green Bay escaped with an 89-81 victory over Detroit Mercy on Senior Day Sunday at the Resch Center, clinching the No. 3 seed at Motor City Madness this coming weekend. The Phoenix (18-12, 12-6 HL) shot 59.6 percent (34-for-57) from the field and outrebounded Detroit Mercy (8-22, 6-12 HL) 45-31.
Owners of the No. 3 seed thanks to a tiebreaker over Northern Kentucky, Green Bay will face No. 6 seed UIC on Sunday, Mar. 5, at 5 p.m. ET at Joe Louis Arena in the Quarterfinals of Motor City Madness. To view the full bracket, click here.
The Phoenix trailed the Titans by four at the half, which they lost to early this season by one, but outscored the visitors 48-36 in the second half. Green Bay shot 64 percent in the second half and held Detroit Mercy to 38.5 percent (25-for-65) shooting in the game.
Senior Charles Cooper scored a team-high and tied his season-high with 22 points on 8-for-11 shooting in the game. Cooper grabbed eight rebounds and dished out five assists in his last game at the Resch Center.
Green Bay dominated inside, owning a 52-18 advantage on points in the paint. Kerem Kanter was key to that success, scoring 12 points and grabbing 12 rebounds to notch the eighth double-double of his career. Kanter has now registered a double-double in three-straight games.
Fellow-senior Kenneth Lowe played one of his best games of this season in front of his Little Chute fan section, scoring 16 points and grabbing five rebounds. Lowe went 7-for-8 from the field and gave his team a huge spark when it needed it most in the second half.
With Warren Jones departing early due to injury, freshman Kameron Hankerson was asked to step up and he did so in fine fashion. Hankerson scored a career-high 13 points and went 4-for-5 at the free throw line in a career-high 20 minutes played.
The Phoenix bench again came through, scoring 47 points. Green Bay did commit 19 turnovers, but made up for it with hot shooting.
Detroit Mercy was led by Corey Allen with 24 points on four made 3s.
Green Bay now turns its attention to the 2017 Little Caesars' Horizon League Championship, looking to again make some noise and earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Phoenix will need to win three games in three days. For more information on the tournament, click here.
View full box score and play by play here.
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