Box Score EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – SIUE men's basketball connected on 60 percent of its shots in the second half and captured a 61-56 win over Milwaukee Saturday night at Vadalabene Center.
The Cougars (2-7) were 12 of 20 from the field over the final 20 minutes to erase a halftime deficit and snap a seven-game losing streak. It is the first time this season (1-7) and only the 16th time in 126 games under Head Coach Lennox Forrester that SIUE has come back from a halftime deficit.
"I'm relieved for our guys because of the hard work they've been putting in and the sacrifices they've been making," Forrester said.
Milwaukee (5-7) was 10-12 from the free throw line in the first half and took a 28-25 lead into the locker room.
The Panthers enjoyed their largest lead of the night, six points, thanks to a three-pointer from Akeem Springs with 16:24 to play that put Milwaukee on top 35-29. A 14-2 run by SIUE over the next 7:22 gave the Cougars a six-point lead (43-37) with 8:46 left.
Milwaukee took a five-point lead on a Matt Tiby layin with 6:47 left before Rozell Nunn and Kris Davis combined for five points to tie the game for a 10th time with 5:03 remaining. Nunn hit a running layup with 6:35 to play and Davis drained three of four free throws. Tiby gave Milwaukee its last lead (48-47) with a three-pointer with 4:14 to play.
Donivine Stewart put the Cougars up for good with a jumper from the left side with 3:50 to play.
Milwaukee remained close thanks in large part to SIUE struggling at the free throw line. The Cougars missed 10 free throws over the final 3:35 and finished the game just 13-28 from the free throw line.
"You expect certain guys to come in and make those (free throws)," Forrester said. "(Missing free throws) is a trickle-down effect. It's a domino effect."
Stewart was just 4-12 from the stripe. He finished with eight points, a game-high six assists, and four rebounds.
"He still wanted the basketball and wanted to take the shot," Forrester said of Stewart. "To me, that's a sign of a true competitor."
Davis and fellow senior Maurice Wiltz led the way for SIUE with 13 points. Wiltz was 4 for 6 from the field and 2 for 3 from beyond the arc. He was 3 for 4 at the free throw line.
"Coach told us that we aren't playing for ourselves," Wiltz said after the game. "We're playing for our community – for Edwardsville, and that it was up to the seniors to step up and set the tone."
Michael Messer added nine points on a 4-of-5 shooting performance. Jackson scored eight points and added five blocked shots. Nunn also scored eight points for the Cougars.
Milwaukee finished the game just 3 for 21 from three-point range and just 20-63 (31.7 percent) from the field.
"Coming in, their guards were getting a lot of easy baskets," Forrester said. "Our guards did a really good job (defensively). They stuck to the game plan and challenged Milwaukee's shots."
Tiby led the Panthers with 16 points. Steve McWhorter scored 11 points and hauled in a game-high 10 rebounds.
The Cougars remain home to play host to Chicago State Monday night. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m., and the game is televised on FOX Sports Midwest.
