Top 10 Green Bay Phoenix Moments of the Decade

Honorable Mention:

Keifer Sykes FTs cap comeback vs. Wright State (2012)

Keifer Sykes hits game-winning shot at Youngstown State (2015)

Bryquis Perine hits jumper to beat North Dakota State (2010)

Bryquis Perine hits game-winner vs. Valparaiso (2011)

Keifer Sykes scores career-high 36 in final game in home city (2015)

10. Sykes takes the “W” out of Milwaukee (2014)

Green Bay was off to a blistering start at 12-3 and was the favorite to win the Horizon League. The Phoenix were 2-0 in conference after home victories against Cleveland State and Youngstown State, while Milwaukee was a half-game behind at 2-1. In the first road conference game for Green Bay, eventual conference Player of the Year Keifer Sykes dropped in 34 to help Green Bay overcome a late seven-point deficit to force overtime, and defeat its rivals to the south, 93-86.

Milwaukee took an early six-point lead, 17-11. But with the Panthers in front 24-23, Green Bay came back with 12 straight to go up by 11. But Milwaukee made a run to cut it to 39-37 before Green Bay ended with a 3-1 mini-run to give the Phoenix a four-point lead at the break.

However, the Panthers blew out of the gates in the second half, scoring the first eight points and 12 of the half’s first 14 to turn a 42-38 halftime deficit to a 50-44 Milwaukee lead. Sykes scored Green Bay’s next 10 points to trim the Panthers lead to two. But Milwaukee scored the next seven to push the lead to nine. Of course, then Green Bay went on a 7-0 run to cut it back down to a deuce. Every time Milwaukee was on the verge of breaking the game open, the Phoenix kept coming back. It seemed like the Panthers dealt the final blow when a Kyle Kelm layup put the home team in front 79-72 with 3:29 remaining. But on back-to-back possessions, Sykes and Alec Brown nailed triples to cut it right back down to one. A 3-pointer by Matt Tiby made it a four-point game with two minutes remaining, but Sykes ended regulation with back-to-back layups to tie the game and send it into overtime.

The Phoenix dominated the extra session, beginning it with four straight points to set the tone. Brown hit a running hook in the lane to put the Phoenix in front 88-84 with 46 seconds remaining. After missed layups by Jordan Aaron and Tiby, Sykes made a pair of free throws to put Green Bay up 90-84, and the Phoenix wound up coming away with a 93-86 victory in Milwaukee. The Phoenix improved to 3-0 in conference play. Sykes 34 points and did not commit a turnover in 43 minutes. It helped catapult the Phoenix to a conference championship.

9. Keifer wears three jerseys in win against Brad Stevens’ crew (2012)

This was the last game Butler played at Green Bay as a member of the Horizon League, and it was one to remember for the Phoenix. The Bulldogs had appeared in the last two NCAA Championship games. As a person who graduated from UW-Green Bay, I was fortunate to cover the games in 2011 and 12 against Butler. In the previous meeting at the Resch Center, Butler’s Matt Howard drove and dunked with 1.8 seconds left. In this meeting, a freshman point guard by the name of Keifer Sykes had to wear three different jerseys: his No. 24, as well as No. 1 and No. 11. A blow to his head left him bloodied, and that forced him to change jerseys multiple times. The point guard had 14 points and dished out seven assists, leading the Phoenix to an 80-68 win against Butler, its first victory over Brad Stevens’ bunch since 2009.

More than 5,000 fans saw this one and they saw Sykes get a gash on his head midway through the first half. Green Bay played well from the start, leading 21-16, led by Brennan Cougill. But Butler came back with an 8-0 run to take the advantage. Sykes hit a jumper with 25 seconds left in the first half to put the Phoenix in front 33-32 heading into the break.

In the second half, the Bulldogs were able to tie the contest five times, but they were never able to take the lead. The Phoenix made plays late to cease control and pull away. After Butler tied the game at 53, Cougill scored three of his career-high 21 on a triple to give Green Bay the lead. It sparked an 8-0 run to give GB a 61-53 advantage. As a matter of fact, the Phoenix scored on 13 consecutive possessions late in the game to pull away, as it won 80-68 at the Resch Center.

Stevens was not very happy about the officiating. I mentioned I covered this one for the school paper, and well, Stevens was livid about the refs. As a team, Green Bay made 25-of-30 shots from the free throw line. He received a scoresheet, and you could tell he was pissed. He constantly mentioned that he was not talking about the officiating, and after the press conference, he angerly threw the scoresheet in the trash as he walked out of the room. It was probably the most memorable moment from working at Green Bay’s school paper.

8. Sultan puts out the Flames (2013)

In a wild 2013 Horizon League Tournament that saw numerous games go down to the wire, the quarterfinals saw the No. 4 Green Bay Phoenix and the No. 5 UIC Flames meet in Valparaiso for the right to play top-seeded Valpo in the semis. The teams split close contests during the regular season, with both teams winning on its home floor. The Phoenix struggled to win away from the Resch Center, going just 5-11 in the regular season. However, Green Bay did win three of its last four on the road and its final three conference games away from Northeast Wisconsin. In this battle, Green Bay was trying to take another step to reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1996. The Phoenix led by as many as 10 in the second half, but found itself trailing with seven seconds left. That was when reserve guard Sultan Muhammad made the biggest shot of his brief Green Bay career, burying a deep triple with a second left to lift the Phoenix to a 64-63 win against UIC.

Green Bay led much of the first half, when UIC led by three early, the Phoenix rattled off 10 straight to take the lead back. A layup by freshman forward Jordan Fouse gave Green Bay a 34-29 lead into the break. Green Bay threatened to run away with the game in the early minutes of the second half, as Alec Brown drilled a 3-pointer and Keifer Sykes a layup, and it was a 10-point game. However, the Flames went on a 14-4 run to tie the game at 43. UIC could not wrestle the lead away from the Phoenix until late in the game. A Sykes triple made the score 58-52 with just over six minutes to play. Green Bay had a chance to add to the lead, but came up empty on two consecutive possessions. UIC’s Hayden Humes then got hot, going on his own personal 7-0 run, including a triple to give the Flames their first lead since near the midway point of the first half. Humes scored 23 for the game on an incredible 10-for-12 shooting.

The game remained tight the remainder of the game, and the Phoenix had a chance to take the lead with 44 seconds to play in a tie game, but Fouse missed a pair at the line. UIC took advantage of its last chance, as out of a timeout with eight seconds left, Gary Talton was fouled on a jump shot by Sykes. He made both to give UIC a 63-61 lead. On the inbounds play, Fouse roamed the baseline, and threw it into Brennan Cougill, who quickly passed it to the point guard Sykes. The Green Bay point guard drove across midcourt and passed it to an open Muhammad for a deep three. Nothing. But. Net! The halfcourt heave by Daniel Barnes was well off the mark and Green Bay moved on. What a game! What makes the play funny was that Green Bay coach Brian Wardle was trying to call a timeout, but the ref didn’t see him. Good thing, too, since Sultan hit the big shot. It was Muhammad’s only year with the Phoenix, as he transferred back home to be closer to his family, but this is one shot Green Bay fans will not soon forget.

7. Just like Roy Jones, Jr., Alec Brown can’t be touched (2013)

Green Bay had talent across the board in the 2013-14 season. The Phoenix had three players who were capable of scoring at least 25 points in any game. But I don’t think anyone saw Alec Brown dropping 40 in a game, like he did in a late December game against Fairfield. Green Bay was 7-3 going into the game, but was coming off a two-game stretch in which it played poorly in a loss at Eastern Michigan and a close win on the road against a poor South Dakota team. Behind Brown, the Phoenix would not lose against Fairfield, as Green Bay pulled away for a 74-58 victory at the Resch Center.

You could see right away that this had a chance to be a special day for Brown, as he scored 10 straight points early and the Phoenix jumped out to a 12-4 advantage. Brown made his final three shots of the first half to finish with 19 points in the opening 20 minutes and the Phoenix took a 35-27 lead into the locker room.

Brown began the second half on fire, scored the first nine Phoenix points of the second half to bring his total to 28, which tied his career high. That brought the score to 44-36. Fairfield did come back, but an 8-2 gave the Phoenix an 11-point lead. With the game at 58-50, Brown scored four quick points to put away the game. He scored six late points on four free throws and a jumper to bring his total to 40. His 40 points are the fifth-most in school history, just trailing the 45 by Ray Willis against UW-Parkside in 1971. It was the first 40-point game by a Phoenix player since Tony Bennett scored a school Division I-record 44 points in 1989. The successful non-conference schedule set the tone for one of the best seasons in program history.

6. Super Sandy (2019)

The season did not go as planned for the Green Bay Phoenix, as GB just went 17-16 in the regular season and fell in the semifinals of the Horizon League Tournament to Wright State. Many people thought that loss was the end to the season, but the Phoenix accepted a berth in the CIT. Green Bay played on the road to start against the best team in the field, East Tennessee State, and won 102-94. Then, the Phoenix won two consecutive home games against Florida International and Cal State Bakersfield to set up another home game, playing a good Texas Southern team in the CIT semifinals. The games were played in the Kress Center, and the fans were really getting into it, and the turnouts were very good. In a great game, Green Bay prevailed in overtime when senior Sandy Cohen III didn’t want his career to end, hitting a game-winner to lift the Phoenix to a thrilling 87-86 overtime victory.

The game was tight throughout the entire first half, with neither team leading by more than four. Cohen scored 11 and Trevian Bell had seven, including the last four of the half to give Green Bay a 36-32 halftime advantage.

Green Bay tried to run out to a comfortable lead on an 8-4 run to start the second half to give the home team an eight-point lead. However, every time Green Bay was on the brink of running away with the game, Texas Southern came right back. The Phoenix had a seemingly comfortable 70-61 advantage with 4:19 to play. But then Tyrik Armstrong made a jumper before Devocio Butler made back-to-back triples, and all of a sudden it was a one-point game. A few possessions later, a steal and layup plus the foul put Green Bay in front 76-71. But Texas Southern ended regulation on a 5-0 run, finished off by a Jeremy Combs layup, to send the game into the extra session.

It was a coming out party for Bell, who had a career-high 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting, including making all six shots from inside the arc. He scored the first four points for the Phoenix in overtime to give Phlash an 80-78 advantage. Texas Southern scored the next four to regain the lead before Shanquan Hemphill’s jumper tied it back up. Like he did toward the end of regulation, Cohen came up with a steal and flushed it home, plus a foul. The free throw made it 85-82. But Texas Southern scored on back-to-back possessions to give it the lead bac 86-85. Time for one last chance. Head coach Linc Darner called on his senior to send them to the CIT Championship, and Sandy did not let him down.

Cohen took the ball up the court and did not even look to pass. He was taking the shot all the way. The team spaced the floor and let Sandy work. Cohen went 1-on-1 against Butler, and the Green Bay guard got to his spot and buried a free throw line jumper over Butler with 1.5 seconds left and the Phoenix held on for the thrilling 87-86 win! What a way to go out in your last home game. Obviously, this wasn’t the tournament the team hoped to go to, but it was a terrific run through the tournament, which ended with a loss to Marshall in the Championship.

5. Green Bay left Vander feeling Blue (2012)

I love this one because this was the last Green Bay regular season game I was at. It was the beginning of the 2012-13 season and the Phoenix had lost seven of eight to fall to 3-7 and the Marquette Golden Eagles were next up. Three of those losses were by six or fewer. This was the first (and to this point, only) trip to the Resch Center. The Golden Eagles entered the game at 7-2, and their only losses were to a very good Butler team and No. 7 Florida. This game was not pretty, as neither team could scratch the 50s in points, but the Phoenix rose to the occasion and came out on top 49-47.

Marquette jumped out to an early 10-6 lead, but Green Bay bounced back, going on an 8-0 run to vault ahead. The Phoenix flew out to a 23-14 lead on a 9-0 run (17-4 extended run), but Marquette came right back to take the lead going into the locker room, 31-29. Jamil Wilson scored 14 of his team-high 16 in the first half to pace the Golden Eagles. Without him, Green Bay would have been up by multiple scores. Wilson, a Milwaukee native, started his career at Oregon, but transferred to Marquette at the end of his freshman campaign. On the Green Bay end, Keifer Sykes scored 11 to lead the Phoenix.

The second half was.....uhhhh.....a rock fight. Old Green Bay coach Dick Bennett would be proud. Sykes scored all five points in a 5-1 run to begin the half to give the Phoenix a 34-32 advantage. But baskets were hard to come by for both teams. From 16:03 until 10:19 left in the game, there was exactly three points scored. Three! The lead never was more than four in the second half. Marquette took the lead 44-43 on Wilson’s only basket of the second half, a dunk, but the Phoenix responded with a 5-0 run. The last basket was a baseline jumper by Greg Mays to give Green Bay a 48-44 lead. A 3-point play by Davante Gardner cut it to 48-47 with 1:25 remaining. But then came the wild ending.

Vander Blue, once a Wisconsin commit before de-committing and heading to Marquette, was fouled with Marquette down one with 35 seconds remaining and he went to the line for a 1 and 1. Free throw: No good! But Blue managed to grab his own offensive rebound and the Golden Eagles called a timeout. With the shot clock off, Marquette could hold for the final shot. After another timeout with 11 seconds remaining, the Golden Eagles held for one shot. The ball was passed to Jake Thomas in the corner for a 3-pointer. The shot looked good. From my viewpoint in the student section, I thought it was going down. But Thomas’ shot went around the rim and out and Alec Brown rebounded it. Brown made the first and missed the second, and the three-quarters court heave was no good, and the Phoenix had a huge victory. It upset Marquette so much that the Golden Eagles have not played Green Bay since that game. The win jumpstarted the Phoenix, as Green Bay won seven of its next nine and the Phoenix wound up finishing fourth in the Horizon with a 10-6 conference mark.

4. Rough homecoming for Tony Bennett (2013)

What a great nonconference home schedule for the Green Bay fans. First, Wisconsin came in a few weeks before, and now, Green Bay Phoenix legend Tony Bennett brought his Virginia Cavaliers into the Resch Center. With Bennett being a former player for the Phoenix, the schools agreed on a deal where they played twice at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, and the ACC power would come up and play at the Resch Center once. UVA won the first two battles by an average of 21 points per game, but the 2013-14 Phoenix team had the potential to be one of the program’s best ever.

Green Bay came in at 4-2 with a three-point home loss to Wisconsin, which would go to the Final Four, as well as a Harvard team that finished the regular season 26-4. Virginia was 7-2, having just dropped a home contest to Wisconsin and only scored 38 points in the game. The Phoenix built a 13-point second half lead, but Virginia came back to cut it to a point. But Green Bay held on to upset Virginia, giving the Phoenix one of its biggest upsets.

The first half was tight throughout, with Virginia briefly holding a five-point lead early, but Green Bay battled back and a layup by eventual Horizon League Player of the Year Keifer Sykes put the Phoenix in front by six, 37-31, at the half. Greg Mays had 12 big first half points to help the home team take the lead into the locker room.

Virginia started the second half with baskets by Joe Harris and London Perrantes to quickly cut the Green Bay advantage down to two, but the Phoenix fought back with an 11-0 run to push the lead to a game-high 13 at 48-35. At the start of the run, Green Bay grabbed three offensive rebounds, which kept the possession alive for Mays to knock down a triple to push the lead to 40-35. Sophomore Carrington Love buried 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions to give GB the 13-point lead. The second of those triples was once again off an offensive rebound.

Green Bay was able to withstand pushes by Virginia, and received big baskets, and the Phoenix led 60-49 with less than nine to play. But the Cavaliers stormed back on a 13-3 run to cut in six minutes to make it a one-point contest. From there on, it was nip-and-tuck. The lead was never more than four the rest of the way. Future NBA Rookie of the Year Malcolm Brogdon drained a 3-pointer that tied it up with less than two minutes to play.

With any other mid-major team, the little school might have folded. But this Green Bay team was legit, and Mays scored two of his game-high 24 points to grab the lead back. And on the following possession, star defender Jordan Fouse stole the ball from Brogdon and scored on a layup to make it 73-69 and the Phoenix felt good. Justin Anderson, however, buried a 3-pointer to cut it back to one. After a Green Bay timeout, Keifer Sykes missed a jumper, and Virginia rebounded, down one. Harris tried a 3 for the lead. Nope! Green Bay secured the rebound and Sykes made a pair of free throws to give th Phoenix a three-point lead. That meant it was still a one-possession game. One more chance for Virginia, but Anderson’s triple was no good and the Phoenix won it! The 75 points were the second most allowed by Bennett’s defense all season, and Green Bay shot an incredible 51 percent. What a performance! What a win, as Virginia went on to win the ACC regular season and conference tournament championship and earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.''

3. Oh my, the upsets! (2016)

Yes, I did say that headline in a Gus Johnson voice. Green Bay entered the Horizon League Tornament as the No. 4 seed. Two years before, the Phoenix lost as the top seed against Milwaukee in the same round. This was the first time the conference tournament was located in Detroit, and played at old Joe Louis Arena, and the tournament was appropriately named Motor City Madness. Like Green Bay in 2013-14, this Valpo team was loaded, led by Player of the Year Alec Peters. The Crusaders went 26-5 in the regular season and were coming in on a five-game winning streak. In the last game of the regular season, Green Bay lost to Valpo at home 70-68 on a Shane Hammink 3-pointer with four seconds left. Even in a loss, you see it a lot when a team loses to the best team late in the season in a close game, and the losing teams gains confidence for when/if they play again. You saw it in 2007 with the Giants/Patriots and in 2011 Packers/Giants. I think that is what happened here, as the Phoenix won in overtime against the Crusaders 99-92, to make its second consecutive Horizon League Tournament championship appearance.

Green Bay started quickly, going on an 8-0 run that answered Valpo scoring the first four, and the Phoenix had an 8-4 advantage. However, Valpo dominated the next eight minutes, outscoring Green Bay 20-8 to take a 24-16 lead with nine minutes to go in the first. The lower-seeded team could make some runs as well, and went on a 12-4 run to tie it at 28. The teams traded points the remainder of the half, and Khalil Small buried a triple in the final minute, and the Phoenix took a 35-32 advantage into halftime.

It was a close second half, and while the Phoenix were able to get a lead, it was never able to separate. However, a Jordan Fouse 3-pointer put the fourth-seeded Green Bay in front 68-61 with five and a half minutes left, and it looked like the Phoenix were on the brink of the upset. The most exciting thing to happen up until the final minutes of regulation was an announcer ejection. Green Bay announcer Matt Menzl was temporarily ejected for making gestures describing the action on the court, and the official thought he was showing him up. Well, the Horizon League met with Menzl and knew he wasn’t trying to show up the ref, let him go back to his seat. For a minute or so, Oakland announcer Neal Ruhl filled in. I recommend listening to the audio of the incident. It is pretty funny!

With three minutes to play, Green Bay led by six after a pair of Charles Cooper free throws. Valparaiso scored on two straight possessions, but both times, the Phoenix answered. A free throw by Carrington Love put the Phoenix in front by six with 1:11 remaining, but Valpo would not go away. A pair of triples cut the Phoenix lead to one. After a missed shot by Fouse, Valpo had a shot for the win. With the clock winding down, Jubril Adekoya had a clean look at a 3, which went in and out and there was a jump ball on the rebound. The Phoenix had the possession arrow. Charles Cooper went to the line and missed the first and made the second. One more chance for the top-seeded Crusaders.

On the inbounds pass, the Crusaders launched it to Peters in the paint. The pass went just over the outstretched arm of Fouse, and Peters caught it and scored on the layup to tie the game at 79 as time expired. Overtime in Detroit! After everything that went on to finish regulation, Valparaiso had everything going in its favor. A pair of free throws by Valpo’s E. Victor Nickerson opened the scoring in the extra session, but it was ALL Phoenix after that. Green Bay went on a 12-0 run to take control of overtime. Love had five in the run to lead the way. A pair of three-point possessions by Peters cut the Green Bay lead to five, but Valpo could get no closer. It became clear the Phoenix was going to win when Cooper grabbed an offensive rebound off a Love missed free throw. Cooper hit a free throw to put GB up three possessions, and it was over. What a win by Green Bay! It was so memorable, from the Menzl temporary ejection to the major upset, it was one to remember for Phoenix fans.

2. We are the champions, my friend (2014)

It had been 20 years since the Green Bay Phoenix had won the regular season conference championship. Jeff Nordgaard led that team to a 25-4 and a 16-0 record in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference. Since the conference changed its name to the Horizon League in 2001, Green Bay had not won the regular season or the conference tournament crown. The 2013-14 season was shaping up to be the Phoenix’s best chance to win the championship, especially after Detroit’s Ray McCallum, Jr. left for the NBA a year early. Green Bay was led by the terrific duo of point guard Keifer Sykes and center Alec Brown. Sophomore Jordan Fouse was a monster at the top of the zone defense. The team was loaded.

The Phoenix dropped a tough one to Wisconsin 72-69, as Keifer missed a triple at the buzzer. The Badgers ended up going to AT&T Stadium for the Final Four later that year. Green Bay bounced back with an upset over a Virginia team that went on to win the ACC regular season and conference tournament titles. The Phoenix also defeated the Conference USA champion Tulsa during non-conference. In conference play, Green Bay was so good, it could often kinda sleepwalk through the first half, only to turn it on and dominate the second half to win. The Phoenix stumbled twice, when Brown missed a game at Valpo, and then when Milwaukee shot well from deep, and beat Green Bay. After Green Bay started fast and coasted to a victory at Cleveland State, the Phoenix was 21-5 (11-2) and on the brink of a regular season title. This one would be for revenge against Valpo, and Brown would be playing in this one.

Green Bay came out fast, jumping out to a 13-2 lead, and it looked like the route was on. Valpo came back, and actually took the lead on a 14-2 run. Green Bay was able to wrestle the lead back and took a three-point lead into the locker room after reserve forward Alfonzo McKinnie buried a triple from the corner to make it 30-27.

The second half was all Green Bay. Following a triple by Jubril Adekoya to tie up the game early in the second, the Phoenix responded with a 12-0 run to take control of the game. Sykes had four and sophomore guard Carrington Love had five in that run. After that run, Valpo was never within one possession the rest of the game. Valparaiso’s best chance to make it interesting was midway through the half when Alec Peters made a basket and was fouled. That made it a four-point game. Peters missed the free throw, but Bobby Capobianco secured the rebound. However, Peters missed a shot that would have cut it to two, and on the other end, Brown nailed a 3-pointer to quickly improve the lead to seven, and that was basically all she wrote. The Phoenix kept the pressure on, and it was celebration time at the Resch Center, as the Phoenix won 67-53. Not only did they win the regular season championship, but Alec Brown said good bye to the Green Bay fans on Senior Day. Not a bad day!

1. Shut up and dance with me (2016)

The previous few years. the Green Bay Phoenix had been kicked in the crotch when it came to tournament time, failing to reach its first NCAA Tournament since 1996. From 2013-2015, the Phoenix made it to the semifinals in the conference tournament, only to lose in heartbreaking fashion in either the semis or tournament championship. In 2013, Green Bay led top-seeded Valpo by four with 10 seconds left, but the Crusaders made a pair of 3-pointers, including Ryan Broekhoff draining a fadeaway 3-pointer, while leaning to the right, five feet behind the 3-point line with a hand in his face to win 70-69. The next year, Green Bay was easily the best team in the conference, coming in at 14-2 in conference and 24-5 overall. The Phoenix had victories over Conference USA champ Tulsa and the ACC regular season and conference tournament champ Virginia. GB also went to the wire with a Wisconsin team that made the Final Four. Well, the top two players, Alec Brown and Keifer Sykes, were injured early in the conference tournament game against Milwaukee, and the Phoenix lost in overtime. Then, a year later, Sykes led his team to the Horizon League Tournament Championship. Green Bay had a 39-31 lead with 11 and a half minutes left, but then the wheels fell off. The Phoenix went more than seven minutes without any points, and only finished with five more points the rest of the game and lost 54-44. Many people thought if Green Bay was just a cursed program. Without Sykes and current NBA player Alfonzo McKinnie, how would Green Bay make the next step. And then coach Brian Wardle left for Bradley.

The Linc Darner era got off to a slow start, dropping its first three, allowing 101 points per game in the process. Then, it trailed to Minnesota-Duluth at halftime in the fourth game, but the Phoenix rallied to win by 20. Green Bay went into the conference tournament at 19-12 and the No. 4 seed. The Phoenix won the first three, including against Valpo in overtime in the semifinals, to make it to the conference tournament, where it took on No. 3 seed Wright State, which was also playing its fourth game in as many days.

Going into the game, I just had a feeling that Green Bay was not losing this game. Despite what had happened the previous three years, I just had a feeling this was the time the Phoenix make it to the dance.

One of the keys going in for the Phoenix was to start fast, and it did just that. After following behind 6-4, Green Bay rattled off 13 straight to take a 17-6 advantage. The lead ballooned to 28-13 before a 9-0 Wright State run cut it to six. That was when Charles Cooper one-hand slammed it ended it and the Raiders were not as close the rest of the game. The Phoenix was ahead 42-30 at the half. It would be all Green Bay for the first 10 minutes of the second half to virtually seal it. Wright State was a defensive team, so pouncing on the Raiders early and forcing them to play catch-up was huge. Just past the halfway point of the second half, Tevin Findlay intercepted a Wright State pass, and threw it ahead to Cooper, who threw it down to give the Phoenix its largest lead of the game at 19, 60-41. At that point, I knew it would happen. My alma mater was going to the tournament.

Wright State would try to make it interesting late, but this game was never in doubt. It was virtually wire-to-wire  and much of the game was a double digit difference. The 78-69 win to become Horizon League Tournament champs was one of my favorite wins out of all my sports teams. It took away some of the sting of losing the previous three in heartbreaking fashion. It made this win that much sweeter. It was cool seeing Darner go on the Freddie Coleman Show and the Jim Rome Show, and of course seeing my school pop up on the Selection Show was really cool. Green Bay led 31-30 with five minutes to go in the first half against Texas A&M, but foul trouble took its toll and the Phoenix lost 92-65, but seeing Green Bay in the NCAA Tournament was a thrill.