Men's Basketball 12/5/2023 4:50:00 PM

Phoenix Heads South for Nonconference Matchup with SIUE

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Nonconference action is back on tap for the Green Bay Phoenix men's basketball team as the Phoenix heads south to Edwardsville, Illinois, to take on SIUE tomorrow night.

Wednesday, Dec. 6 – EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – First Community Arena
Green Bay (4-4) at SIUE (5-4)
7:00 PM CT
Follow the action: Watch (ESPN+) | Listen (WDUZ The Fan) | Live Stats

ABOUT THE COUGARS
SIU Edwardsville boasts a winning record, but is coming into Wednesday's game off a 83-60 loss on the road at Troy last Friday. SIUE is averaging 69.7 points per game as a team, which ranks eighth in the 10-team Ohio Valley Conference. Defensively, SIUE allows 69 points per game, which ranks third-best in the conference. SIUE is dangerous from deep, ranking first in the OVC in three-point field goal percentage at 38.2 percent, while ranking ninth in three-point percentage allowed with 35.5 percent.

The Cougars are led by Shamar Wright, whose 16.9 points per game rank him fourth in the OVC, while his twin brother Lamar Wright is the conference's eighth-leading shot blocker with 1.2 a game, and the Cougars' fourth-leading scorer at 10.8 points per game.

LAST TIME OUT
Green Bay is coming into the matchup after grabbing their first Horizon League win of the season, 70-58 over Milwaukee on Saturday. Noah Reynolds led the squad with 17 points while also dishing out eight assists. Foster Wonders shot well from deep, scoring a season-best 12 points on four three-point makes, and Preston Ruedinger likewise scored a season-high in points with 12. GB shared the ball well, piling up 16 assists on 23 made field goals.

HISTORY VS SIUE
Green Bay and SIUE have met only three times before, between 1990 and 2016. The Phoenix has won all three matchups, with the most recent meeting between the two being the closest game in the series history. Green Bay won a shootout at the Resch Center on December 19, 2016 by a score of 94-92.

RISE FOR THE REBOUND
The Phoenix have dominated on the boards this season, winning the rebound total in six of their eight games. Green Bay leads the Horizon League in defensive rebounds per game with 27.5 and allowing the second-fewest rebounds per game in the HL with 31.3.

CAREER BUCKETS
Two Phoenix guards notched career-high scoring performances in their last outing vs Milwaukee. Sophomores Preston Ruedinger and Foster Wonders had their best outings with 12 points each, guiding the Phoenix to the 70-58 win. Senior Rich Byhre also tallied his second double-digit scoring night (10 points) at home with the Phoenix, and his third on the season.

LOCKDOWN DEFENSE
Green Bay allows the lowest opponent field goal percentage in the Horizon League at 39.7 percent. Additionally, Green Bay leads the HL in the fewest points allowed per game this season with 64.5. The Phoenix trail only Purdue Fort Wayne in the lowest allowed three-point percentage in the Horizon League, allowing opponents to shoot just 29.7 percent.

ROAD RANGERS
The Cougars have a perfect record at home going into the season, including a victory against fellow Horizon League team Detroit Mercy by a score of 81-67. The last nonconference road game for the Phoenix ended in an overtime victory at Montana State, 54-53. Green Bay looks to roll the momentum from last Saturday into Wednesday's contest in hopes of stringing two wins together for the first time this season.

REYNOLDS ON A MISSION
Noah Reynolds has been a leader on the court for the Phoenix this season. He is currently fifth in the HL in scoring, averaging 17.4 points per game. Reynolds also leads the Horizon League in assists with 5.8 per game and a conference-best 46 total assists across eight games.

OFFSEASON RECAP
A lot happened during the 2023 offseason, let's get you caught up:

March 14 - Sundance Wicks was named the ninth head coach in Green Bay men's basketball history.
March 30 - The rest of the coaching staff is announced. Pat Monaghan, Zach Malvik, and Nic Reynolds are added as assistant coaches and Adam Owens is retained as the Director of Basketball Operations.
April 19 – Will Eames, David Douglas Jr., Preston Ruedinger, and Rich Byhre are added to the roster.
May 1 – Noah Reynolds, Elijah Jones, and Foster Wonders join Green Bay.
June 2 – Rahmon Fletcher joins the staff as the Director of Player Development.

IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN GB
Green Bay hired Sundance Wicks as the program's next head coach on March 14, 2023. Wicks comes to the Phoenix after three seasons as an assistant coach at Wyoming. In his first season with the Cowboys, Wicks helped revamp an offense that led the Mountain West in scoring at 76.5 points per game. Prior to his time with the Cowboys, he spent two highly successful years as the head coach at NCAA DII Missouri Western State in St. Joseph, Missouri. The Gillette, Wyo., native led the Griffons to 18 wins in 2019-20, which was the most by the program in 10 years. In his first season at the helm of the program, his team doubled their win total from the year before. In his two seasons, Wicks mentored six All-MIAA players and an NABC All-District selection. Coach Wicks' first win at Green Bay came on Thursday, Nov. 9 against St. Francis (Ill.).

NEW LOOK ROSTER
The Phoenix underwent a roster transformation this past offseason. Of GB's 15 rostered players, three are returners, six are transfers, and six are incoming freshmen.

FAMILIAR FACES
Two of Green Bay's six transfers have played for coach Wicks prior to his time in GB. Will Eames played under coach Wicks at Missouri Western State in 2019-20 when he was the MIAA Freshman of the Year and All-MIAA honorable mention. Another Phoenix that has played for coach Wicks is Wyoming transfer Noah Reynolds. Reynolds was the second leading scorer on Wyoming last year, averaging 14.5 points per game in 19 games played.

PRESEASON #HLMBB POLL
PL. Team (1st-place votes) – PTS.
1. Northern Kentucky (18) - 435
2. Milwaukee (10) - 397
3. Wright State (12) - 392
4. Cleveland State (1) - 362
5. Youngstown State (3) -342
6. Oakland - 280
7. Robert Morris- 186
8. Purdue Fort Wayne- 166
9. Detroit Mercy- 132
10. IUPUI - 116
11. Green Bay – 96

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Players Mentioned

#15 David Douglas Jr.: G; 6' 5"; Freshman

#23 Will Eames: F; 6' 7"; Graduate Student

#2 Preston Ruedinger: G; 6' 2"; Redshirt Sophomore

#34 Rich Byhre: F; 6' 8"; Redshirt Senior

#0 Foster Wonders: G; 6' 5"; Redshirt Sophomore

#1 Elijah Jones: F; 6' 7"; Junior

#21 Noah Reynolds: G; 6' 3"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#15 David Douglas Jr.
: 6' 5"; Freshman
: G

#23 Will Eames
: 6' 7"; Graduate Student
: F

#2 Preston Ruedinger
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Sophomore
: G

#34 Rich Byhre
: 6' 8"; Redshirt Senior
: F

#0 Foster Wonders
: 6' 5"; Redshirt Sophomore
: G

#1 Elijah Jones
: 6' 7"; Junior
: F

#21 Noah Reynolds
: 6' 3"; Junior
: G