CHARLESTON, Ill. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) --- Competing until the very end was Green Bay on Saturday afternoon at Eastern Illinois, but could not overcome a 23-point halftime deficit and frustrating officiating in a 93-80 loss at Lantz Arena. The Phoenix (3-6) was playing its third road game in a series of four in a row against the Panthers (5-4), watching head coach Linc Darner ejected due to arguing the officiating and getting outrebounded 40-21.

GB did outscore EIU in the second half 48-37, battling the final 20 minutes amid the "unusual" conditions, shaving a 23 point deficit down to just nine in the second half. The Phoenix eventually ran out of gas, but did have four players finish in double-figures, led by JayQuan McCloud with 17 points. McCloud has now scored in double-figures in all nine games this year. Kameron Hankerson had a season-high 15 points, while PJ Pipes (13 pts) and Trevian Bell (10 pts) also finished in double-figures.

The strong first half by EIU was too big of a hole for GB to climb out of, with the Panthers shooting 62 percent and GB shooting 32 percent. Darner was whistled for a pair of technical fouls because of the questionable officiating, which saw EIU log 10 first-half offensive rebounds.

The Phoenix will conclude its four-game road trip with a trip to the Sunshine State and a matchup against UCF on Tuesday (Dec. 10) night in Orlando. The game will tip at 7 p.m. CT and can be streamed on ESPN3 or heard on WDUZ The Fan.

QUICK HITS

• GB was outrebounded 40-21, with EIU getting 13 offensive rebounds
• GB went a season-best 21-for-23 from the free throw line
• EIU was led by Smith and Dixon with 24 points each
• Darner was ejected in the first half, after arguing the poor officaiting that saw freshman Amari Davis get whistled for two quick fouls
• Davis finished with a season-low 5 points
• GB had a season-low 10 assists
• EIU scored 40 points in the paint
• The win snapped a three-game winning streak by GB in the series
• EIU shot 50 percent from 3 (8-16), while GB was only 9-25
• GB got 33 points off its bench

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