On Feb. 7, the Phoenix's Horizon League top-ranked defense stopped a late second half rally and secured its winning streak to 11 games, defeating the Cleveland State University Vikings 69-54. The Phoenix got off to a slow start missing open 3-point shots and making turnovers. However, the Phoenix would play through and keep its lead. Head Coach Matt Bollant said their toughness and desire to get at the ball really helped on both sides of the court. "I thought we handled the adversity," Bollant said. "There were ups and downs, but the kids don't have a blame mentality for the calls that didn't go our way." Sophomore guard Celeste Hoewisch, senior guard Rachel Porath, senior forward Erin Templin and senior center Lavesa Glover shot well from the free throw line along with the rest of the team as they shot 80.8 percent on the afternoon. Glover also shot well from the field, shooting 4-for-7 in field goals and grabbing seven rebounds on both ends of the court. Bollant said Glover was a lot more active in the first half than in the second due to what CSU's defense was giving her. "I thought she played a little tougher and stronger in that second half," Bollant said. "We need her. The ability to score on the block is huge in basketball, to get touches inside. She can make it look easy at times." Even though the Phoenix has a 19-3 record, Bollant doesn't feel the team being ranked nationally is something he should be worrying about. "You've got to control what you can control, and for us, we feel great being 19-3 and those things I think will fall into place," Bollant said. Porath's 18 points on the day led the Phoenix as she went 4-for-7 from the 3-point line and was perfect at the free throw line, going 4-for-4. Players also with double figures in points included Hoewisch with 15, Glover with 13 and senior guard Kati Harty with 11. Templin led the Phoenix in rebounds, tying a career high with 11, and added four assists, which was good enough for a tie with Hoewisch for the team lead in assists. Harty also tied a career high in steals, with six. Porath said the Phoenix's loss to the Vikings last year in the Horizon League Tournament was extra motivation for this game. "It's all in the back of our mind, we all knew what it felt like so we wanted to make sure that we came out and played hard, because they play well here and shoot well here," Porath said. Porath also said consistently being at the top of the Horizon League standings hasn't affected the way they've played this year. "It shows a lot about our team," Porath said. "We take a lot of pride in playing hard no matter what the score is or who we're playing and we need to make sure that we play this way when the postseason comes." Templin said CSU's comeback attempt in the second half made the Phoenix focus and play as a team. "When we start to see a downfall, we try to focus on playing as a team and playing together and that's been a big thing of Green Bay basketball," Templin said. The Phoenix will have their next game against the Wright State Raiders today at 6 p.m. in Dayton, Ohio.
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