March 22, 2008

Box Score

Box Score

DES MOINES, Iowa - The Green Bay women's basketball team could not hold on to a nine-point second-half lead Saturday afternoon as the Phoenix lost in the first round of the WNIT to Drake, 65-56.

The loss ends Green Bay's season at 26-6, a record that included the fifth-highest win total in a season for the Phoenix.

Green Bay was led by Lavesa Glover, who continued her hot hand in March with a game-best 23 points. Glover averaged 20.7 ppg for the Phoenix over the final six games of the season while shooting 60.6 percent from the field during that span. Glover also added team-highs of seven rebounds and three blocks. No other Green Bay player scored in double figures.

Senior Kayla Groh finished her career with four points and two steals, as the Elkhart Lake, Wis. native completed her four seasons as the all-time winningest player in program history. Groh aided the Phoenix in compiling a 105-21 record over the last four years, including three of the team's top five win totals. Her 1,112 career points ranks 18th in team history.

Drake (23-10), who will advance to face Illinois in the WNIT second round, was led by Lindsay Whorton's 18 points. Jill Martin added 15 points and 16 rebounds, which boosted her to over 1,000 rebounds for her career.

In a game that featured big scoring streaks by both teams, it was the host Bulldogs that prevailed with the final run of the game. After the Phoenix took a 45-36 lead with 12:44 to go in the game, Drake rattled off 24 of the game's next 30 points to own a 60-51 lead with under two minutes to play. While the Phoenix scored the next four points, Green Bay could get no closer.

Green Bay took an early lead in the first half, leading by as much as six early and owning a 17-12 lead with 8:31 to go. That's when Drake went on a 14-0 run, fueled by a trio of three pointers, one of which was part of a four-point play by Lindsay Whorton.

But the Phoenix slowly chipped back into the game, and with a 12-2 run of their own, capped by a Kati Harty layup at the end of the half, Green Bay owned a 29-28 lead at the break.

Green Bay's run continued into the second half, as Glover scored 12 of team's first 14 points of the stanza as the team shot 8-of-11 out of the locker room. But as hot as the team was to start, the Phoenix cooled and mustered just 11 points over the final 12:44 of the game.

For the second time in three outings, Green Bay had just nine turnovers in the game including only three in the first 20 minutes of the game.

The Phoenix was hindered by a 1-of-7 effort from three-point range, missing its last six attempts of the game. Green Bay finished the contest shooting 42.6 percent to Drake's 34.4 percent, but the Bulldogs were 7-of-21 from long range.