HAMMOND, Ind. – Purdue Northwest earned its second home win this week with Saturday's 93-75 triumph over Wayne State inside the Fitness & Recreation Center.
Following the victory, the Pride improved to 5-13 (2-8 GLIAC) overall on the season. It was PNW's third straight win over Wayne State in Hammond.
HEAD COACH BOOMER ROBERTS:
"As a group, our emotional maturity took another big step today. Wayne State was better to start the game, but we had a great response. We didn't have to say much at halftime because the guys were locked in on what we needed to do better.
AB was big time. Plus 33 in his minutes, so his impact was obviously huge. Logan played really well for the second straight game, and Kai made a lot of plays with Kell out. Z stuffed the stat sheet, Sangolay continues to grow, and Jyro and Ant were really consistent.
We can't be satisfied. The work they do during the week is paying off, but this team has a lot more room for growth."
How it happened: PNW overcame a four-point deficit at the halftime break by shooting a blistering 67% in the second half. The Pride went 14 for 21 from the field and 21 of 24 (87.5%) at the free-throw line, outscoring the Warriors 56-34 during the second stanza.
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Logan Phillips (Chandler, Ariz./Valley Christian) fastbreak 3-pointer opened the second half scoring as the Pride began the period by making their first nine shots, including five from beyond the arc. PNW raced out to a 63-48 lead after the run which featured 11 points from
Anthony Barnard (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo) and eight from Phillips.
PNW's lead swelled to as much as 22 following
Kai Steinman's (Champaign, Ill./Ben Davis) three with 9:16 left. The Pride cruised the rest of the way for their largest margin of victory over a GLIAC opponent in over a year.
Barnard led five players in double digits with 21 points on 4-of-7 shooting from three-point range. Steinman finished with a career-high 20 points.
Caleb Zurliene (Breese, Ill./Mater Dei) added 13 points and team-high eight rebounds, while Phillips and
Anthony Irvin (Chandler, Ariz./Corona Del Sol) each chipped in with 12 points
UP NEXT
PNW will travel to Davenport (Thurs.) and Grand Valley State (Sat.) in a pair of GLIAC road games next week.
FOLLOW THE PRIDE
For all the latest information on Purdue Northwest Men's Basketball, please visit PNWathletics.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Pride (@pnwathletics & @PNWBasketball) on Twitter. You can also find the Pride on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.
