St. Norbert Battles UW-Green Bay In Exhibition Loss

From Asst. AD/Athletics Communications, October 28, 2019 | Men's Basketball
by Dan Lukes, dan.lukes@snc.edu, (920) 403-4077

GREEN BAY - St. Norbert College gave NCAA Division I neighbor UW-Green Bay a battle but eventually succumbed 79-72 in an exhibition loss at Kress Center.

It was the first exhibition matchup between the two schools since the 2012-13 season.

The Green Knights trailed the Phoenix 75-61 with 5:22 left before climbing back into the game. Wade Geenen connected on a 3-pointer with 5:06 left and followed with a jumper with 3:45 to go to get to within single digits. Connor Curtis then canned a pair of free throws with 3:15 left to get to within seven. St. Norbert then forced a turnover but missed a 3-pointer with 2:49 left.

St. Norbert trailed 77-70 after a Curtis hoop, but missed the ensuing free throw with 2:25 left. St. Norbert would get no closer than the final score.

The Green Knights got off to a decent start, leading 26-23 with 6:26 left in the first half after a Patrick Danen basket. Green Bay then went on a 15-2 run to open up a 10-point lead before settling on a 42-31 halftime lead.

The second half got off to a racehorse start, with each team scoring 17 points in the first 6:08 of the period. St. Norbert didn't cut the deficit down to single digits after that until getting to within 75-66 with 3:45 to go.

Joe Ciriacks led St. Norbert with 18 points, while Curtis added 15 points and 10 rebounds. Jacob Bolwerk netted 15 points, while Geenen finished with 10 points. St. Norbert shot 40 percent from the floor, making 28 of 70 field-goal attempts. The Green Knights also outrebounded the Phoenix 43-40, and committed just two second-half turnovers after totaling 13 in the first half.

Green Bay was led by Kameron Hankerson and Trevian Bell, who had 16 points apiece. The Phoenix shot 43.9 percent from the floor, good for 43.9 percent. Green Bay was 16-for-20 (80 percent) at the free-throw line, while St. Norbert was just 6-for-8 (75 percent).