Green Bay Holds Off UMass
Justin Allen turned in a 27-point night, going 12-of-12 from the charity stripe, while C.J. O’Hara added 21 points and four boards as Green Bay (2-5) held off a second-half charge by UMass (3-3), downing the Minutemen 79-75 on day two of the Paradise Jam.
With the win, Green Bay will move to Monday’s 4 p.m. game against the winner of the Iona/Oregon State matchup, while UMass will face off against the losing team from that same contest.
UMass scored the game’s first five points and led until midway through the first half, when Green Bay staged a furious rally and pushed its lead into double figures (27-15) with just over three minutes to play until halftime.
Green Bay once again pushed its lead to 12 – the largest overall lead of the day – in the second half, but the Minutemen would not go quietly, pulling to within one point (70-69) in the final two minutes of the contest; however, the Phoenix were able to maintain the lead to hold on for the win.
Caden Wilkins also reached double figures for the Phoenix, scoring 12 points in the winning effort. Leonardo Bettiol led UMass with a 21-point, eight-rebound effort.
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