Wisconsin forward Elijah Hughes scored a game-high 25 points, but the Herd fell to the Delaware Blue Coats 115-103 at the Chase Fieldhouse Jan. 26.
Hughes finished the game 10-for-13 from the field and grabbed five rebounds and finished with three assists.
The Herd (6-7), who sit in 12th place in the eastern conference of the NBA G League, shot 48.3% from the floor and 36.8% from behind the arc in the contest. Wisconsin was outrebounded 55-39 but finished with eight blocked shots and three steals.
Aside from Hughes, the Herd was led by guard TyTy Washington Jr., who scored 19 points and dished out 13 assists for his third straight game with a double-double. Forward Wenyen Gabriel collected 15 points on 6-for-11 shooting while forward Alex Antetokounmpo added 10 points off the bench.
The Blue Coats (6-4) finished the game shooting 43.6% from the field and 34.1% from 3-point range. Delaware forced 11 Herd turnovers and accumulated five blocked shots and three steals.
Delaware was led by center Darius Bazley, who finished with a 24-point, 11-rebound double-double while dishing out seven assists. Guard Jeff Dowtin Jr. scored 22 points on 8-for-17 shooting and had four rebounds and five assists. Forwards Melvin Frazier Jr. and Aminu Mohammed both added 16 points for the Blue Coats.
The Blue Coats started off the first quarter with a dunk, but the Herd was quick to answer and even the game after a Marques Bolden layup. The teams traded baskets until the Blue Coats went on a 7-0 run midway through the period to take a 24-13 lead. A Washington layup cut the Herd deficit to seven points, but that was as close as Wisconsin came in the quarter and Delaware held onto a 33-23 advantage at the break.
Delaware scored the first two baskets of the second quarter and opened up a 14-point lead, but the Herd went on a 10-2 run with nine minutes remaining and cut the deficit to 39-33. Hughes nailed a 3-pointer that brought Wisconsin to within two points of the Blue Coats, but Delaware embarked on a 12-2 run with six minutes to go in the period to open up an 11-point advantage. Both teams traded baskets for the remainder of the half and Delaware entered the locker room with a 61-52 lead.
Wisconsin opened the third quarter on a 7-0 run which cut the Blue Coat lead to two points, but Delaware responded with 11 straight points to take a 72-59 lead. A string of Herd baskets cut the deficit to five points after a Bolden dunk, but the Blue Coats outscored Wisconsin 14-7 for the remainder of the quarter to lead 86-74 at the break.
Delaware held onto a double-digit lead for most of the fourth quarter until the Herd went on an 11-2 run which brought Wisconsin to within two points. Four straight baskets from Wisconsin with six minutes to play gave the Herd a 98-96 advantage, but three straight 3-pointers from Delaware gave the Blue Coats a seven-point lead with under four minutes to play. Dowtin hit another 3-pointer with under a minute to play to give the Blue Coats a double-digit lead, and Delaware cruised to a 12-point win.
