No. 1 Green Bay 80, No. 5 Northern Kentucky 78 (2OT)
Jen Wellnitz scored the winning putback basket with 0.6 seconds remaining in the second overtime that gave Green Bay a spot in the Horizon League Women’s Basketball Championship final after defeating Northern Kentucky 80-78.
Shar-Rae Davis knocked down a triple for the Norse in the final seconds of regulation to force the extra time after Northern Kentucky had trailed Green Bay the final two minutes of the fourth quarter.
Senior guard Kaili Lukan spotted up for a three-pointer with six seconds left in the first overtime period to tie the contest at 71-71 and extend the game into its second overtime period. The triple was Lukan’s only field goal of the night as she finished with four points and seven rebounds.
Despite being down 14-7 at the end of the first quarter and going into intermission down 25-14, the Phoenix rallied in the second half to execute a defensive heavy game plan. Junior Mehryn Kraker was the star of the night keeping Green Bay in the game as she recorded a game-high 32 points and six rebounds.
Northern Kentucky’s Kasey Uetrecht was clutch for the Norse with a team-high 20 points and 11 rebounds for her second career double-double. Uetrecht went 4-for-7 from beyond the arc and 19 of her points coming in the fourth quarter and overtime.
Green Bay will go for its fourteenth championship title on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. ET live on ESPNU.
No. 2 Milwaukee 68, No. 3 Wright State 60
Jenny Lindner posted a game-high 31 points as Milwaukee outlasted Wright State in the second semifinal game on Saturday night at the Kress Center 68-60.
The Panthers got off to a quick start on the Raiders with a 14-2 run to kick off the game. Wright State would battle back to even the game at 27-27 with less than 2:00 left in the first half before Milwaukee would take a 7-0 run into the break.
The two teams battled back-and-forth in the second half as the Panthers found a counter to every attack the Raiders threw their way. Wright State forced 16 turnovers but were outrebounded by Milwaukee 44-41.
Player of the Year and the Horizon League’s all-time leading scorer Kim Demmings had a team-high of 27 points to end her career as a Raider. Demmings also grabbed six rebounds, three assists and three steals on the night. Teammate Richelle van der Keijl also went for a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Milwaukee will face in-state rival Green Bay in the title game tomorrow on ESPNU at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Tags: Horizon League - Women's Basketball
