#HLMBB Roundup - Feb. 24
#HLMBB Standings | #HLMBB Statistics
INDIANAPOLIS – The final week of the #HLMBB regular season began on Thursday with Northern Kentucky and Purdue Fort Wayne each securing top-4 spots in the standings and first round byes in next week’s tournament. Detroit Mercy and Wright State kept their hopes alive for the final first round bye with wins at home, while UIC and Milwaukee also picked up victories.
RESULTS
GAME RECAPS
Detroit Mercy 74, Cleveland State 67
- Detroit Mercy continues to stay unbeaten this season inside Calihan Hall and are still alive for a top-4 seed and a first-round bye after a win over first-place CSU.
- The Vikings already clinched the No. 1 seed for the 2022 Keeps Horizon League Men’s Basketball Championship last week, but will need a win on Saturday to guarantee sole possession of the regular season title.
- Antoine Davis led four Titans in double figures with 24 points including three 3-pointers and five assists. Noah Waterman and D.J. Harvey each tallied 15 points and Matt Johnson added 12.
- Cleveland State ended the game with 10 different scorers with Tre Gomillion scoring a team-high 12 points, followed by Deante Johnson and D’Moi Hodge with 10 each.
- The Titans held a 25-14 advantage in points off turnovers and hit 12 3-pointers compared to just five for the Vikings.
Northern Kentucky 78, RMU 64
- With the win, Northern Kentucky secured a top-4 seed and will host a quarterfinal game for the second-straight season.
- Marques Warrick tied a career-high of 30 points for NKU as he hit a career-best seven 3-pointers on 10 attempts. Trevon Faulkner closed the game with 10 points, six rebounds and five assists.
- Four RMU players finished in double figures paced by Kam Farris with 14 points, followed by Kahliel Spear with 12, Matt Mayers with 11 and Enoch Cheeks closing the game with 10.
- The Norse jumped out to a 15-point advantage at halftime thanks to shooting 56.7 percent from the floor, including hitting 7-of-11 shots from behind the arc, in the opening period.
Purdue Fort Wayne 81, Oakland 70
- Purdue Fort Wayne earned its eighth win in a row and have clinched a first round bye in the 2022 Keeps Horizon League Men’s Basketball Championship.
- With the loss, the Golden Grizzlies are now guaranteed to host a home first-round game inside the O’rena on Tuesday, March 1.
- Bobby Planutis went 6-of-8 from 3-point range for 18 points for the Mastodons and Damian Chong Qui also totaled 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor. Jarred Godfrey fell just shy of a triple-double with 11 points, 10 boards and eight assists.
- Oakland’s Jalen Moore led all scorers with 19 points and Micah Parrish finished with 18. Jamal Cain registered his League-best 14th double-double with 12 points and 14 boards.
- The Mastodons shot 54.2 percent from the field and went 16-for-24 from distance, its most 3-pointers against a Division I opponent this season.
Wright State 84, Youngstown State 71
- The Raiders earned its second win in three games to remain in the driver’s seat for a top-4 seed as a win on Saturday earns them the last first-round bye.
- The Penguins will now host a first round game in the tournament for the third consecutive season.
- WSU ended the game with a pair of 20-point performances as Grant Basile posted 29 points on 12-of-16 shooting, while Tanner Holden tallied a double-double with 27 points and 10 rebounds for his League-leading 18th 20-point game this season.
- Shemar Rathan-Mayes led four YSU players scoring in double figures with 20 points. Tevin Olison poured in 19 points, while Michael Akuchie and Dwayne Cohill each added 12 points.
- Wright State had a strong performance inside the paint as it outscored YSU 54-30 in points in the paint and shot 66.7 percent from inside the arc.
UIC 81, Green Bay 77
- The Flames won their second-straight game and improved to 8-10 in Horizon League play.
- UIC’s two leading scorers came off the bench as Zion Griffin recorded 21 points and Jalen Warren recorded 17. Damaria Franklin added 15 points and eight boards.
- Green Bay ended the game with four double-digit scorers with freshman Kamari McGee totaling 20 points and Nate Jenkins adding 14. Emmanuel Ansong registered 12 points and Cade Meyer chipped in 11.
- UIC shot over 50 percent from the field for the third-straight game as the team combined to go 25-for-48 from the floor.
Milwaukee 66, IUPUI 54
- Milwaukee snapped a quick two-game losing skid with a road win to move up to 8-13 in HL play.
- DeAndre Gholston posted his seventh 20-point game of the season with 20 points to go along with eight rebounds. Jasin Sinani tallied a career-best 10 points and Joey St. Pierre was close to a double-double with eight points and 10 boards.
- Four IUPUI players scored double-digit points with B.J. Maxwell leading the charge with 14 points, while Chuks Isitua and Nate McClure each finished with 12 and Mike DePersia added 10.
- The Panthers won the rebounding battle 35-27 and also the battle in the paint by outscoring the Jags 26-18.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE (All times ET)
Saturday, Feb. 26
Purdue Fort Wayne at Detroit Mercy, 1:00 PM (ESPN+)
Cleveland State at Oakland, 3:00 PM (ESPN+)
Green Bay at IUPUI, 4:45 PM (ESPN+)
Youngstown State at Northern Kentucky, 7:00 PM (ESPN+)
RMU at Wright State, 7:00 PM (ESPN+)
Milwaukee at UIC, 8:00 PM (ESPN+)