The Wisconsin Herd dropped its second straight game to the Delaware Blue Coats 107-102 at the Chase Fieldhouse Jan. 27.
The Herd (6-8), who sit in 12th place in the Eastern Conference of the NBA G League, shot 44% from the field and 39.1% from behind the arc in the loss. Wisconsin, which shot a perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line, was outrebounded 44-41 and committed 13 turnovers.
Wisconsin was led by guard Stephen Thompson, who scored 21 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished out three assists. Forward Glenn Robinson III also finished the contest with 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting and grabbed five boards. Center Wenyen Gabriel scored 15 points, grabbed nine rebounds and had six assists while forward Marques Bolden added 14 points off the bench.
Delaware (7-4) shot 45.7% from the floor and 42.5% from 3-point land to complete the series sweep of the Herd. The Blue Coats had 14 turnovers but finished with more assists (25-19) and steals (8-5) than the Herd.
The Blue Coats were led by guard Jeff Dowtin Jr., who scored a game-high 32 points. Grabbed four rebounds and dished out five assists. Forward Darius Bazley finished with a double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 13 boards. Patrick McCaw scored 16 points off the bench while Jared Brownridge added 15 points and two rebounds.
Delaware jumped out to a 3-0 lead to begin the first quarter, but the Herd scored three straight baskets to take a 6-3 lead with nine minutes to play. Wisconsin extended its advantage to seven points after a free throw from Thompson and a jumper from Malachi Smith, but the Blue Coats took a one-point lead after an 8-0 run midway through the period. The two teams traded baskets until Jarron Cumberland knocked down a 3-pointer with 47 seconds left to put Delaware ahead 27-24 at the end of the quarter.
Wisconsin tied the game at 30 after a jump shot from Bolden and the Herd took a 3-point lead following after Isaiah Mosley connected on a shot from 3-point range to begin the second quarter. The game remained a back-and-forth battle for the remainder of the period until Dowtin knocked down a floater and a 3-pointer to put the Blue Coats ahead 54-52 at halftime.
Smith tied the game at 54 with the first basket of the third quarter, but Brownridge hit a 3-pointer on the next possession to give Delaware a 57-54 lead. Both teams traded blows for the majority of the quarter until a Thompson layup sparked an 11-2 Herd run that gave Wisconsin a 72-67 advantage. With two minutes to play in the period, Delaware cut the Herd lead to one point after a layup from McCaw, but back-to-back Wisconsin baskets extended the visitors’ lead to 78-73. Aminu Mohammad hit a free throw to trim the Herd’s lead to three points, and a few seconds later McCaw nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game at 78 going into the final quarter.
Wisconsin kicked off the fourth quarter with a step-back 3-pointer from Thompson to give the Herd an 81-78 lead, but Delaware responded with a 3-pointer a few minutes later to level the score once again. Neither team could hold onto a lead until 6-2 Herd run midway through the period gave Wisconsin a 95-89 lead. Wisconsin maintained a five-point advantage but fell apart down the stretch when Delaware went on a 11-0 run after a pair of free throws to take a 105-99 lead with 17 seconds to play. Hughes hit a 3-pointer with 10 seconds to left to bring Wisconsin to within three points, but the Blue Coats hit their free throws the rest of the way and hung on for the five-point victory.
