Nov. 15, 2013
DeKalb, Ill.--Rashad Muhammad came off the bench to lead all scorers with 17 points, but two three-point attempts by San José State with under six seconds fell short as the Spartans lost to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 64-61 Friday night at the NIU Invitational.
Down 64-60 with 5.8 seconds remaining, Spartan Jalen James went to the free throw line and made the first to cut the Milwaukee lead to 64-61. He missed the second shot, but Muhammad was able to get the offensive rebound and dribble beyond the three-point arc for a try on the left side. He missed, but Devante Wilson was able to get the rebound on the right side. He tried a three-pointer at the buzzer, but it rolled off the rim.
Despite three turnovers and a missed field goal on the team's first four possessions of the second half, San José State (0-2) stayed with Milwaukee through the first five minutes. The Spartans took a three-point lead at the 15:00 mark as Muhammad made three free throws to take a 37-34 lead.
The two teams traded the lead over the next three minutes before the Panthers took the lead for good at 12:02 and extended its lead to 10 at 59-49 with 2:00 left in the game. The Spartans got it down to three points before the three-point attempts fell short.
Four Spartans scored in double figures, led by Muhammad's 17 points who was 3-for-8 from three-point range. Jalen James scored 12 points and dished out five assists in 37 minutes played. Jaleel Williams scored 11 points and grabbed five rounds but was limited to 22 minutes played due to foul trouble. Brandon Mitchell came off the bench to score 10 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
The Spartans outrebounded Milwaukee, 43-29, as four players grabbed at least five rebounds in the game - Mitchell with seven, James and Muhammad with six each and Williams with five. The team also out-blocked the Panthers 4-1, led by guard Isaac Thornton with three.
San José State continues play Saturday night at the NIU Invitational against host Northern Illinois at 8 p.m. CST/6 p.m. PST.
Milwaukee vs San José State
11/15/13 5:30 p.m. at DeKalb, Ill. (NIU Convocation Center)
MILWAUKEE 64, SAN JOSÉ STATE 61
MILWAUKEE (2-1)
AARON, Jordan 4-16 5-8 16; ARIANS, Austin 5-10 2-2 14; MCWHORTER, Steve 5-7 0-0 12; TIBY, Matt 2-6 8-13 12; KELM, Kyle 3-8 3-4 9; PANOSKE, J.J. 0-1 1-2 1; LYLE, JeVon 0-2 0-0 0; MOORE, Malcolm 0-1 0-1 0. Totals 19-51 19-30 64.
SAN JOSÉ STATE (0-2)
Muhammad, Rashad 5-13 4-6 17; James, Jalen 5-11 1-2 12; WILLIAMS, Jaleel 5-14 0-0 11; Mitchell, Brandon 2-5 4-6 10; Pollard, Matt 2-3 0-1 4; Wilson, Devante 1-2 0-0 3; Brown, D.J. 0-0 2-2 2; Cunningham, Chris 1-2 0-0 2; Thornton, Isaac 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 21-54 11-17 61.
Milwaukee..................... 28 36 - 64
San Jose State................ 26 35 - 61
3-point goals--Milwaukee 7-21 (AARON, Jordan 3-8; MCWHORTER, Steve 2-4; ARIANS, Austin 2-5; LYLE, JeVon 0-2; TIBY, Matt 0-2), San Jose State 8-21 (Muhammad, Rashad 3-8; Mitchell, Brandon 2-2; James, Jalen 1-3; Wilson, Devante 1-2; Williams, Jaleel 1-6). Fouled out--Milwaukee-None, San Jose State-CUNNINGHAM, Chris; Williams, Jaleel. Rebounds--Milwaukee 34 (TIBY, Matt 8), San Jose State 43 (Mitchell, Brandon 7). Assists--Milwaukee 9 (MCWHORTER, Steve 5), San Jose State 9 (James, Jalen 5). Total fouls--Milwaukee 15, San Jose State 23. Technical fouls--Milwaukee-None, San Jose State-None.
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