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 Erik Parker had 19 points off the bench. |
Dec. 29, 2005
DETROIT - Senior Erik Parker's (Oak Park, Mich.) 19 points off the bench helped the Wayne State men's basketball team (4-6) avenge an early-season loss with a 68-59 win over Bellarmine University (4-7) Thursday, Dec. 29 in Detroit. The Warriors also improved to 16-3 at the Matthaei against non-conference opponents under fifth-year head coach David Greer.
WSU sophomore Rob Igbawua (Belleville, Mich.) made two defensive plays to start the game with a rebound and a block on BU's first two possessions that led to jumpers by junior Will Pierce (Detroit, Mich.) and senior Herb Goliday (Royal Oak Twp., Mich.) for a 4-0 lead. But with three three-pointers, Bellarmine took a 9-6 lead with 15:43 on the clock.
The Warriors regained the lead with five straight points by junior Kris Krzyminski (Flint, Mich.). The Knights came back as five of their first six field goals were from downtown, helping them to a 17-13 lead with 11:08 left in the first half.
Over the next two minutes, the Warriors tied the game at 17 with baskets by Parker and Goliday. Jacob Black's (Detroit, Mich.) second steal of the game put Black at the line for a pair and a 19-17 WSU lead.
Wayne State made its first eight free throws to increase its lead to five points (25-20) with just under six minutes to go in the half. The Warriors held a 27-26 lead with 3:06 left when Parker converted a three-point play. Black and Igbawua then both had offensive put-backs, sandwiched around another Knight three, for a 34-29 score. The teams exchanged baskets before Krzyminski gave WSU a 38-31 halftime lead with a layup.
BU closed the gap to two points early in the second half, but Parker answered with a one-handed dunk from an Ethan Banks (Warren, Ohio) bounce-pass assist. Parker then caused two turnovers on the defensive end and had a second-chance bucket for a 48-41 lead with 12:13 to play.
Black's offensive put-back, followed by a Banks steal and a pair of Parker free throws, gave the Warriors a 61-50 advantage with 7:07 on the clock. Then Goliday's finger-roll layup and fast-break layup pushed the lead up to 15 points.
After that point, the Warriors' only score came on a Banks three-pointer at the 2:20 mark, but BU missed six of its final eight shots.
Bellarmine made more three-pointers (12) than two-point field goals (7), but made just 9-of-17 at the free throw line and were forced into 21 turnovers in the defeat.
Krzyminski added 13 points while Black recorded a WSU career-high 12 points in 15 minutes of action.
WSU continues its five-game homestand with another non-league contest against Illinois Tech on Jan. 2 at 7:30 p.m.
