GREEN BAY, Wis. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) --- Returning home for three of its next four games, Green Bay will host Northern Illinois at the Resch Center on Wednesday night for a 7 p.m. tip. The Phoenix (3-3) has won two out of its last three, taking the 2K Empire Classic Subregional Championship before giving No. 21 Oregon a scare last Tuesday.

GB will be playing its first game at the Resch Center this season, one of two on tap for this week. The Huskies (4-2) enter the game winners in three of their last four games, most recently as a 20-point winner at Oakland on Sunday.
 
CATCH THE ACTION: 
Wednesday, Nov. 28 - 7:02 p.m. CT // Resch Center (Green Bay, Wis.)

Matchup: Green Bay Phoenix (3-3) vs. Northern Illinois Huskies (4-2)
All-Time: Green Bay leads 24-6; NIU won last year in Illinois 85-65

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Where to Watch: ESPN+ (Click Here)

Where to Follow: StatBraodcast Live Stats

Where to Listen: The Fan WDUZ 107.5 FM

Game Notes: GB notes vs. NIU | NIU Game Notes

For Live in-game updates, follow the Phoenix on social media: Twitter - @gbphoenixmbb, Instagram - @gbphoenixmbb
 
RESCH RELIABILITY
GB will play its first home game at the Resch Center this season, a building it has enjoyed much success in under head coach Linc Darner. In Darner's three seasons as head coach, the Phoenix is 31-11 (.738 winning percentage) at the Resch Center, averaging over 10 wins there over the course of those three seasons. This game will serve as one of 10 games at the Resch this season, which includes eight Horizon League games and Saturday's showdown with Belmont. GB played its first two home games of the season at the Kress Center, its secondary home under the new Resch Center contract. 

LEADING THE LEAGUE
Averaging 84.5 PPG through six games this season, Green Bay leads all Horizon League teams in scoring average so far this season. The team has scored 70 plus points in all six games, but has also scored 80 points or more in four of those six. Prior to its 72-point effort at Oregon, GB had scored 82 points or more in three-straight games, going 2-1 in those games, with its only loss coming against an Iowa team now ranked in the Associated Press top 15 on the road. Under Darner, GB has three of the top six highest scoring average seasons in program history, and is currently above last year's average of 76.3 PPG. If GB keeps it current pace, that average would rank third all time in program history.

JAYQUAN'S GIANT WEEKEND
JayQuan McCloud averaged 22.0 PPG and was named both the Horizon League Player of the Week and the 2K Empire Classic Subregional Tournament MVP on Nov. 15-16, leading his team in scoring in route to Green Bay's Subregional Championship with wins over EWU and Morehead State. McCloud went 9-for-12 from 3-point range in the two games, and bested his Friday night career-high of 21 points against Eastern Washington with a new career-high 23 points the following day in the championship game against Morehead State. The North Chicago native and GB newcomer was 15-for-21 (71.4 percent) from the floor in the two wins, and also went 5-for-6 at the free throw line. McCloud did all his damage off the bench, helping GB score 82 and 87 points respectively.

SUPER SANDY
Senior Sandy Cohen III is second in the Horizon League in assists with 6.0 APG has now scored in double-figures in 12 of his last 13 games dating back to last season. Cohen was tabbed Horizon League Preseason First Team All-League, and so far as lived up to that billing. The Seymour, Wis., native also leads his team in rebounding, averaging 6.5 RPG after grabbing a career-high 13 boards against Eastern Washington. Cohen has 36 assists this season already, 24 more than his next closest teammate. Through the six games, Cohen is averaging a team-best 14.0 PPG, 6.0 APG, 6.5 RPG, 1.7 SPG and 1.5 BPG. The team captain also leads the team in minutes, averaging 32.5 per game.

TURNING THEM OVER
After turning Oregon over 13 times in its most recent game, GB is now forcing an average of 18.0 turnovers per game. GB has forced at least 16 turnovers in four of its six games this year, and made the likes of Iowa (17 TOs) and Oregon also look out of sync. 

SHARPSHOOTING SCHWARTZ
After making just two of his first 11 3-point attempts of the season, Cody Schwartz found the shooting touch at Eastern Washington. Schwartz converted 7 of his 13 attempts in the two games, scoring 18 and 13 points, respectively for Green Bay. The junior just missed out on his first career double-double, grabbing nine rebounds against EWU, and finished the Subregional averaging 15.5 PPG and 6.0 RPG.

TANK TO THE BANK
ShanQuan Hemphill, better known as Tank Hemphill, was named to the 2K Empire Classic Subregional All-Tournament Team on Saturday night, after averaging 18.0 PPG and 4.5 RPG in his team's two victories. Hemphill's first three games at the Division I level have gone quite well, scoring at least 13 points in three of the five games. The Gary, Ind., native played in 40 minutes against EWU and then played 32 minutes the following day. 

BRINGING THE BENCH
The Phoenix has received a nice lift when turning to the bench through six games this year, seeing another 48-point performance off the bench in the win over Morehead State. Head coach Linc Darner saw his bench score 41 points against EWU and 46 points at Iowa, over half the team's production in that game. The teams opened the season with 64 bench points against WLC, again over half the team's total point total. The style with which GB plays needs to see that success off the bench, and so far this season, it has.

STEALING THE RECORD
GB racked up 26 steals against WLC, besting the previous single game program record of 22 steals, which happened on two separate occasions. Five different players notched at least 3 steals and 11 total players had at least one. The Phoenix is trying to get back to it successful ways via the theft, after the team led the NCAA in steals per game in 2015-16. GB stole the ball and stole the show at Motor City Madness that year, winning four games in four days en route to the NCAA Tournament.  

SANDY SENIOR SZN
Sandy Cohen III will enter the 2018-19 season as the lone senior on the Phoenix roster, but also carries the talent and pedigree to chase Horizon League Player of the Week honors. The nearby Seymour-native started in 22-straight games to end the season last year, after becoming eligible in December. In those 22 games, Cohen was second on the team and sixth in the HL in scoring with 16.1 PPG, registering five double-doubles during that stretch. He was named to the Horizon League Preseason All-League First Team and was named on various basketball platforms as a player to watch in the league. He also led the HL in steals last season with 1.8 SPG in league play, while scoring in double-figures in 16 of those 22 games played. 

FIVE FOR FIGHTING
The Horizon League polls tabbed Green Bay fifth in their preseason poll, which is voted on by coaches, media and sports information directors. Five other media outlets (Athlon Sports, midmajormadness.com, Street & Smith, Blue Ribbon, three-man-weave.com) picked GB fourth, with all polls having some sort of Wright State, Northern Kentucky and UIC coming in the top three. The Phoenix finished seventh last year, but the returning talent and trust in Coach Darner and the program have those picking the Phoenix a bit higher this season.

THREE'S COMPANY
Green Bay made 9.6 3-pointers per game in Horizon League play last season, which led the entire league. Additionally, the team was third in the HL in 3-point field goal percentage, shooting just over 37 percent. The team found its shooting touch towards the end of last season, making 11 or more 3s in six of its final seven games, including a season-high 15 3s in an upset win at Oakland on Feb. 22, 2018. The top two three-point makers from a year ago are gone to graduation (David Jesperson and Khalil Small), but back are the likes of Kameron Hankerson, Cohen, PJ Pipes and TJ Parharm, all of which made 26 3-pointers or more. The welcoming of Cody Schwartz, who went 7-for-8 from 3-point range in the team's scrimmage, will immediately help the team's perimeter presence. 

NO SMALL REPLACEMENT
The team will be tasked with replacing its leading scorer and defensive stalwart in Khalil Small, who has taken his talents overseas to Finland upon graduation. But head coach Linc Darner will look to a core of turned sophomores, which saw significant playing time as freshmen last year. PJ Pipes started in all 18 games as a true freshman, while Manny Patterson started in nine of 14 before suffering an injury. Also playing in valuable minutes as freshmen were Hunter Crist and Trevian Bell, who will surround Cohen and Hankerson once again in 2018-19.

AERIAL ARTISTS
All the talk about the team's newcomers centers around their ability to play above the rim. ShanQuan Hemphill, Jevon Smith and Josh McNair are each capable of making eye-popping dunks at any point in the game, and also bring some athleticism to the defensive end of the court. Add in sharpshooter and slasher JayQuan McCloud, and Darner is armed with a quartet of talent and experience, to join a healthy returning roster. 

FOURTH TIME'S A CHARM
Darner's track record of his team's performance in his fourth season at a school bodes well for Green Bay. In his fourth season at Saint Joseph's in 2005-06, Darner led his team to a 31-3 record and a trip to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. In his fourth season at Florida Southern, Darner led the Mocs to a 25-5 record and another trip to the NCAA Tournament. In each of those seasons he won his conference's regular season championship. Enter 2018-19, where Darner will lead Green Bay in his fourth season, seeking that same fourth-year turnaround success. 

RESCH RELATIONSHIP
The Phoenix will continue to call the Resch Center its primary home. The six-year agreement the two sides reached continues a partnership that dates back to the 2002-03 season, when GB began playing its home games at one of the premier facilities in the state which opened prior to that season. The partnership states that all GB men's basketball home games, with the exception of non-counting games and one "homecoming" game during the Horizon League portion of the season, be played at the Resch Center. A non-counting game is a game where GB plays a non-division 1 opponent or hosts an exhibition game.

REDSHIRTING
Green Bay will have three redshirts this season, as Tyrone Powell, Bansi King and Will Chevalier will all save this season of eligibility by redshirting. 

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