GREEN BAY, Wis. -- The Green Bay men's basketball team got double-digit scoring efforts from Donovan Ivory, Cade Meyer, and Emmanuel Ansong, but fell short to the Oakland Golden Grizzlies Saturday afternoon at the Kress Center.
The trio combined to score 47 of Green Bay's 61 total points, shooting a combined 19-of-33 (57.6-percent). Ivory led the way with 18, Meyer poured in 16 for the second straight game, and Ansong helped with 13. Green Bay couldn't overcome the duo of Jamal Cain and Trey Townsend, who scored 26 and 23, respectively, for the Golden Grizzlies. Cain's 26 points are his highest total since November 24 against Delaware. Cain also dominated on the boards, grabbing a game-high 21 rebounds.
Green Bay took advantage of fantastic ball movement in Saturday's game, piling up 16 assists on 24 made field goals. Individually, Kamari McGee led the way with four assists.
Green Bay forced 16 Oakland turnovers. The Phoenix turned those takeaways into 12 points on the offensive end. McGee led the way individually with three steals.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Phoenix got out to a good start, going up by eight after Nate Jenkins sank a three to make it 22-14 with 10:41 left in the first half, but that's where Oakland turned it around. The Golden Grizzlies dominated the rest of the half, answering GB's good start with a 20-0 run of their own, stamped by two Jalen Moore free throws. Green Bay would try to claw back, but entered intermission down 38-26.
The Phoenix wouldn't let the Golden Grizzlies run away with the game, cutting the deficit to seven after Manny Ansong sliced through the Oakland defense for a layup wth 16:59 left in the second half. The Golden Grizzlies extended their lead once again, going back up by 12 after a Trey Townsend layup with 12:51 to go. The visitors maintained that lead until the final minutes when Ivory and Nate Jenkins each drained a three to bring the score to 64-59 with 30 seconds left. From there, Cain sank four free throws to ice the game.
GAME NOTES
» The Phoenix held the Golden Grizzlies to only 36.4-percent shooting from the field.
» Green Bay played solid perimeter defense, holding Oakland to 1-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc.
» Oakland had a 39-24 edge in rebounds.
» Green Bay bench made an impact with 26 points, compared to just three for Oakland.
» The Golden Grizzlies had nearly triple the opportunities at the charity stripe, going 27-of-30, compared to GB's 7-of-11.
» Green Bay forced 16 Oakland turnovers.
»
Donovan Ivory has now scored in double-figures in four straight games since returning from injury.
» Green Bay got a team-high eight rebounds from
Cade Meyer.
COMING UP
The Phoenix will embark on a four-game road trip that includes stops at Youngstown State, Robert Morris, Cleveland State, and Purdue Fort Wayne. Green Bay's next home game is Wednesday, February 9 when they take on Wright State at the Resch Center.
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