GREEN BAY – The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay men’s basketball team dropped its 10th straight game Sunday in an 83-67 loss to Purdue Fort Wayne.
The Phoenix now stands at 2-13, but nobody can say it hasn’t been an eventful season.
It took another interesting twist when the game against PFW was supposed to be played at the Resch Center but instead had to be moved to the Kress Center because of a power outage before tip-off.
The 1 p.m. start initially was pushed back 20 minutes, but it soon became clear the arena was not going to be in working order to play the game.
PFW players loaded onto their bus and UWGB players got into their vehicles to make the 11.7-mile journey across town to the Kress for a game that was delayed 1 hour, 45 minutes.
UWGB previously changed the game time from 4 p.m. to 1 p.m. after the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings were flexed from a noon start to the 3:25 p.m. slot.
The hope of letting Phoenix fans attend the basketball game and still get home for the start of the football game didn’t work out so well.
“It has got to be hard for them, they bused in last night,” UWGB coach Doug Gottlieb said about PFW. “We moved the game time on them six days ago. I don’t think (PFW coach) Jon (Coffman) was happy about that. They had a charter to catch.
“It’s crazy, but this level of college basketball, stuff is going to go wrong.”
UWGB jumped out to a 5-0 lead, PFW responded by scoring the next 15, and the Phoenix never led again. It trailed by as much as 26 points with 8 minutes, 11 seconds remaining.
The Phoenix outshot the Mastodons 57.1% to 47.5% and outrebounded them 30-26. But it was the 17 turnovers by UWGB that led to 26 points and a 15-for-27 performance from 3-point range by PFW that helped shape the lopsided final.
“The biggest issue with our team is how we handle adversity, how we handle runs, how we handle miscommunications, how we handle travel stuff that goes wrong,” said Gottlieb, whose team plays seven of the next 10 games on the road. “We just didn’t handle it well. It was a crazy day. You plan it all out. You are like, ‘OK, we will shoot early in the morning. Try to wake them up. Get there.’ Everybody was in tune. A good crowd at the Resch, which was actually really impressive.
“I just continue to tell our guys that we have good fans, we have to give them a better product. They continue to show up and believe that we are eventually going to get there, which we are. But today was a tough day.”
Isaiah Miranda’s time over at UWGB?
It appears the 7-foot-1 sophomore center’s career with the Phoenix could be over.
Gottlieb paused for 18 seconds when asked if Miranda has been dismissed from the team.
“Let me just get through the process before we speak,” he said.
Miranda last played Dec. 18 in a loss to Michigan Tech, a game in which he was issued a technical foul.
He is averaging 4 points and has appeared in seven games, playing a total of 58 minutes.
Miranda, a former four-star recruit, joined UWGB after Gottlieb was hired in May. He spent part of last season at Oklahoma State, appearing in three games before leaving the program in the middle of January.
He previously redshirted his freshman season at North Carolina State and entered the NBA draft before withdrawing from the draft process and signing with OSU.
If Miranda is done at UWGB, there always is a chance he could find another team. There is a good bet Gottlieb would help him in that process. They knew each other before this season with the ties both have to OSU, and Gottlieb has love for him.
Gottlieb’s former high school coach, Andy Ground, was in Green Bay the past week and has been honest in his assessment with his former pupil. Gottlieb also has had other coaches come in this season, including former legendary Phoenix coach Dick Bennett.
“This is not specific to Isaiah or anybody else,” Gottlieb said. “But of the things we have done, we probably have had too many guys (with a roster of 18 players). What happens when you have too many guys, they all think they can play and they want to play. I’m a very positive, confidence-building person. I want them to believe they can all play.
“At the end of the day, I can only play five guys. When guys don’t play and you start losing, the adversity can affect certain players. We can’t have guys pulling us down, anchoring us. Whether with attitude or grades or anything. The guys that I am going to play are the ones who are about us. Not about themselves. We just have to find the right mix of guys that want to compete.”
Anthony Roy remains out
UWGB has played without star guard Anthony Roy since the senior sustained a lower body injury in a game at UC Santa Barbara on Dec. 14.
Roy is leading the nation in scoring at 25.7 points per game, but it doesn’t appear he will be back soon.
“Anthony Roy is one tough sucker,” Gottlieb said. “He will play for the Phoenix later this year. I don’t know when.”
Local prep star makes homecoming
Former Ashwaubenon and Kaukauna guard Chris Morgan is in his second season at PFW and played in front of family and friends Sunday.
The 6-2 guard scored 6 points in 16 minutes and shot 2-for-3 from 3-point range.
Morgan’s parents, Brian and Jackie, were among those in attendance. His brother, James, a former Ashwaubenon star quarterback and NFL draft pick was there, as was his sister, Katelyn, who is a former standout athlete at Green Bay Notre Dame.
“It’s unbelievable,” Morgan said. “There is nothing like the energy with these guys, when you walk into the gym and hear them all cheering. It’s been a great experience. Nothing but love for Green Bay and really grateful to have all these people here.”
Morgan averaged 0.5 points in four games last season and has taken another step this season. He has appeared in 12 games, averaging 2.6 points and shooting 50% in 8.2 minutes per game for a team that was picked with UW-Milwaukee as the preseason favorites in the Horizon League.
“The people are fantastic,” Morgan said. “First and foremost, the most important thing that I have gained throughout my time there is just the great relationships with coaches, with staff, with players, with other students. I can’t say enough about how great the organization and the school is itself, and just how great of people.”
Former Appleton North star Maximus Nelson also plays for PFW. He had 9 points in 20 minutes against UWGB.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: UWGB men lose 10th straight after power outage forces venue change
