WSU Men’s Basketball | Photo by Monica Brutto | The Wright State Guardian
This past Saturday, magic filled the Nutter Center as the Wright State University men’s basketball team hosted the Phoenix of Green Bay on Homecoming weekend.
Coming into Saturday
The Raiders entered Saturday evening after a season-saving victory on Thursday against the top-seeded Milwaukee Panthers.
Saturday’s showdown marked the fourth and final game of a lengthy homestand for WSU, with the team having won one of the three previous games.
Green Bay has had a disastrous season, with the team’s head coach being fired during the week. The Phoenix entered Saturday with a 2-20 overall record, which is last in the Horizon League standings.
“I have been in bad situations before, and I can see it on their face,” WSU head coach Scott Nagy mentioned on the current state of Green Bay’s program. “It’s unfair to them for sure.”
The action
After scoring the first basket in the game, Green Bay never saw a single lead the rest of the evening. WSU opened the floodgates early, taking an early 13-2 lead and never looking back.
Senior guard Trey Calvin scored 14 first-half points, only two shy from Green Bay’s entire roster combined.
The Raiders entered halftime leading 41-16 and controlling the match. WSU was lights out on the offensive end, shooting 52.9% in the first half.
In previous games, WSU has struggled taking care of the basketball and limiting turnovers. Saturday night was a completely different story as the Raiders gained most of the momentum on the defensive end. Green Bay only managed to shoot 18.5% from the field in the first half.
The second half took off the same way as the first with WSU continuing its dominance. As the lead grew bigger for WSU, more players got playing time.
Brandon Noel fouled out of the game with over nine minutes remaining in play. This allowed WSU to showcase some other players at center.
“I think it is something that is important especially later in the season,” Tim Finke mentioned after Noel went out. “It is important to have depth in that position.”
Senior C.J. Wilbourn hit the floor for nearly six minutes late in the game. WSU has sidelined Wilbourn for a majority of the season due to foot injuries. When healthy, the six foot seven senior provides more depth at center for the Raiders. When not playing, Wilbourn adds to the team in any way possible, including in scouting opponents.
“He is a phenomenal man and a great teammate,” Nagy said. “He is probably the most intelligent guy in terms of what the other team is doing, and he talks our team through it.”
With a few minutes remaining, the Raiders led by 40 points, resulting in the crowd chanting for a fan favorite. After persistent chanting, coach Nagy summoned fifth year senior Andy Neff to get on the floor. The crowd grew loud as Neff got in the game and later scored.
With Neff’s reverse layup, all 11 Raiders on the roster managed to tally points in the 77-46 victory.
“They work just as hard and don’t get any of the glory, ” Nagy added. “Any time they get a chance to play it’s just an awesome thing.”
Final stretch
WSU will close out the regular season with six of its last eight games on the road. WSU has played better on the road all season, going 5-3 and looking to continue the momentum. WSU is only three games back from first place with eight games to play before the HL tournament begins.
“We are just taking it game by game and not worrying about other teams,” Calvin mentioned. “We are just trying to get better everyday.”
The Raiders will start a road trip and take on the Penguins of Youngstown State on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. Viewers can see the action on ESPN+.
