Green Bay Phoenix
Horizon (24-6, 14-2)
Green Bay is a team that has proven that they can hang with the best teams in the country. The Phoenix beat Virginia back on December 7th by a score of 75-72 and only fell to Wisconsin 69-66. One important thing to note about those two games is the relatively high score, at least by UVA and UW standards. The Phoenix are not a particularly high scoring team. They can run when they want to, but they can also dictate tempo and make the opposition play out of their comfort zone.
Big Wins: 12/7 Virginia (75-72), 1/2 Cleveland State (66-55), 2/15 at Cleveland State (68-54)
Bad Losses: 12/10 at Eastern Michigan (58-67), 1/29 at Valparaiso (60-75), 2/8 Milwaukee (63-73)
Coach: Brian Wardle (4 seasons at Green Bay)
Why They Can Surprise:
Alec Brown could have gone to the NBA after last season, but opted to return to Green Bay for his senior year. The 7-1 center is a massive force in the paint on both ends of the floor. He averages 15.6 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.2 blocks. With Greg Mays, at 6-9, and Jordan Fouse, at 6-7, the Phoenix have the size in the paint to compete with anybody. Mays is a dynamic scorer and Fouse will do a little bit of everything and a lot of rebounding. He is just a sophomore and averaged 7.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 2.2 steals and 1.6 blocks on top of his 6.4 points per game. While Brown and the frontcourt deserve the spotlight, point guard Keifer Sykes has stolen it. The junior is the man who dictates the tempo, works the offense through Brown and the big guys and scored over 20 points per game himself.
Why They Can Disappoint:
Sykes and Brown are capable of hitting a few three-pointers, but the Phoenix struggle from beyond the arc. Shooting guard Carrington Love has not been very consistent from beyond the arc. He can disappear for games at a time and never knocked down more than three long balls during the regular season. With Brown sucking in defenders and Sykes driving and dishing, Green Bay can get plenty of open looks. At times they just cannot get that big three-point basket and there will be times when the Phoenix need that big bucket.
Probable Starters:
Keifer Sykes, Junior, Guard, 20.3 ppg, 4.9 apg
Carrington Love, Sophomore, Guard, 8.0 ppg, 2.4 apg
Jordan Fouse, Sophomore, Forward, 6.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 2.2 spg, 1.6 bpg
Greg Mays, Junior, Forward, 10.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.0 bpg
Alec Brown, Senior, Center, 15.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 3.2 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Lamin Fulton, Junior, Guard, 2.1 ppg
Kenneth Lowe, Freshman, Forward, 3.9 ppg, 3.5 rpg
Vince Garrett, Senior, Guard, 6.5 ppg, 1.4 apg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 74.6 (77th in nation, 2nd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 64.0 (38, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 47.3 (34, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 39.1 (12, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 4.9 (302, 9)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: n/a
Free-Throw Percentage: 70.6 (154, 9)
Rebound Margin: 3.4 (70, 2)
Assists Per Game: 15.4 (31, 3)
Turnovers Per Game: 12.4 (186, 3)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2013 CIT First Round loss to Bradley
2010 CBI First Round win over Akron
2010 CBI Second Round loss to St. Louis
2009 CBI First Round loss to Vermont
1996 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Virginia Tech
1995 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Purdue
1994 NCAA Round of 64 win over California
1994 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Syracuse
*all team stats through 3/9
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
