By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
GREEN BAY, Wis. – Anyone who says home court advantage doesn't play a factor in the outcome of a contest probably hasn't' seen the Green Bay Phoenix play in the Resch Center. The Tennessee Tech men's basketball team found out why Green Bay doesn't lose very often at home on Tuesday night.
A strong second half showing from both the players and fans helped propel the Phoenix to a 76-49 victory over the Golden Eagles. A rowdy crowd showed why Green Bay hasn't lost a home game to an unranked, non-conference opponent in over a year.
Tech actually held a four-point advantage late in the first half, but an 11-4 run by Green Bay sent the Golden Eagles into halftime trailing 34-28.
And then the struggles began. With the Golden Eagles struggling to find their rhythm offensively, Green Bay took advantage with a hot stretch of shooting. The Phoenix opened the second half on a 23-2 run, taking advantage of missed shots and costly turnovers by Tech squad.
In the game, the Golden Eagles struggled to protect the ball, turning over the rock 22 times, leading to 28 points for Green Bay. Tech also had a rough time finding the bottom of the basket, shooting just 30 percent in the game and 20.6 percent in the second half.
The Phoenix, however, shot a steamy 60.9 percent from the field in the second half. They turned over the ball 16 times, but allowed just 10 points off those turnovers.
Anthony Morse played well off the bench for the Golden Eagles, scoring a season-high nine points and pulling down five rebounds. He led the Tech scoring and was followed by Dwan Caldwell who finished with eight points. Senior Dennis Ogbe led the squad on the glass, collecting eight boards to go along with five points.
Green Bay placed three players in double-figures in the game, including point guard Keifer Sykes, who led all scorers with 17 points. Vince Garret added 16 points on the night and seven-footer Alec Brown contributed 15 points, six rebounds, and four blocks.
The Golden Eagles will return home after four straight road games, hosting Hillsdale (Okla.) College on Thursday night in a 7 p.m. CT contest.