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 Erik Parker led the Warriors with 17 points and 11 rebounds. |
Dec. 28, 2004
BROOKINGS, S.D. - The Wayne State men's basketball team (5-5) dropped a 77-52 decision to 10th-ranked University of Nebraska-Omaha (12-1) during day one of the Burger King Holiday Classic hosted by South Dakota State University. WSU plays the host Jackrabbits Wednesday night at 9 pm Eastern.
WSU trailed 7-0 in the opening 3:30 of the game until Darrell Evans (Detroit, Mich.) grabbed the rebound off his own miss and put the Warriors on the board. The Mavericks forced back-to-back turnovers that led to consecutive baskets and forced WSU head coach David Greer to call a 30-second timeout.
The teams combined for 11 turnovers in the first eight minutes as the Mavs led 15-6. Junior Ethan Banks (Warren, Ohio) then found senior guard Morris Hall (Detroit, Mich.) for an open three-pointer to climb within six points. Banks then drove the baseline and scored on a reverse lay-up as UNO was held scoreless for three minutes.
A Dwayne Jones (Inkster, Mich.) lay-up then cut the deficit to five, 24-19, with 4:43 left in the half. After a Maverick bucket, Evans scored on an acrobatic basket for his fourth point of the half. But Nebraska-Omaha extended its lead to 11 points and led 37-26 at the halftime break as it shot 53.8 percent from the floor, compared to WSU's 35.7 percent.
A 10-2 run by the Mavericks pushed their lead to 19 points in the first three minutes the second half. The Warriors battled back with four straight points, but UNO went on a 12-2 sprint for a 25-point cushion with 12:01 left.
The Mavs continued to shoot well and their largest lead was 30 points with 2:36 remaining in the contest.
WSU's halftime season trend continued as the Warriors have trailed at the break in all five of their losses.
Junior center Erik Parker (Oak Park, Mich.) had his fourth double-double of the season with a team-high 17 points and game-best 11 rebounds. Hall was the only other WSU player in double digits with 10 points.
