The Wisconsin Herd extended its win streak to four straight games with a victory over the Motor City Cruise 94-88 in front of a franchise record 4324 fans Thursday afternoon at the Oshkosh Arena.

Herd forward Henry Ellenson said the game was very physical and that the Herd got stops on the defensive end when they needed to.

“We got ugly at times,” he said. “But I thought James (Akinjo) kept us in some big buckets. And, you know, Liam (Robbins) had some tough ones at the other end too. It took everyone today, and we had a bunch of guys score in double digits. In a game like this early morning one, when we got a bunch of school kids screaming and stuff, bringing the energy. It was a good win.”

The Herd (6-6), the NBA G League affiliate of the Milwaukee Bucks, jumped to 10th in the Eastern Conference standings and sit a game out of the final playoff position. Akinjo scored a game-high 25 points on 8-for-15 shooting and had four assists while Robbins finished with 13 points and six boards. The Herd had three other players finish in double-figures, with Ellenson tallying 11 points, and both Ibou Badji and Justise Winslow recording 10 points each.

As a team, Wisconsin shot 48.6% from the field and 25% from behind the arc. The Herd forced 14 Motor City turnovers and finished with eight blocked shots.

Ellenson said the team has been having a lot more fun on the court during the four-game winning streak and the Herd is finally starting to get healthy.

“I think at times, we’ve been missing a few guys here, guys there, and so this past week, you know, it was the first time going through our lip lines that I felt like we had a full roster out there,” he said. “You can tell, when we have everyone together, it’s just turns into wins.”

The Cruise (5-7), the G League affiliate of the Detroit Pistons, was led by point guard Daniss Jenkins, who scored 20 points on 8-for-18 shooting. Motor City’s Ron Harper Jr. finished with a 19-point and 10-rebound double-double while Tolu Smith added 16 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.

The two teams traded baskets for the majority of the first quarter until the Cruise had a 5-0 spurt after a 3-pointer from John Ukomadu and a finger roll layup from Jenkins to take a 15-8 lead. The Herd cut the deficit to 1 behind a 3-point play from Ellenson and a 3-pointer from Terence Davis, but Motor City embarked on another 5-0 run with under four minutes remaining in the period and led 25-22 at the break.

The Cruise held onto its 3-point lead for the first three minutes of the second quarter and built a 34-26 advantage after an Ukomadu driving dunk and a Harper 3-pointer. An Akinjo 3-pointer kickstarted a 10-2 Wisconsin run that saw the Herd tie the game at 36, and with three minutes until halftime, Ade Murkey nailed a triple to give Wisconsin the lead. The Herd extended its lead to 6 points with a 3-point play from Badji, and Wisconsin went into halftime leading 49-43.

Motor City began the third period with a running dunk from Harper, but Wisconsin held onto at least a 4-point lead for half the quarter. Ukomadu drilled a 3-pointer to kickstart a 7-0 Cruise run, and Motor City took a 56-55 lead after a layup from Jenkins. The Herd stepped back in front with a jumper from Winslow and a layup from Robbins, and Wisconsin clung to a 66-65 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Wisconsin began the final period on a 6-0 run to build a 7-point lead, but a Harper layup ignited a 10-0 Cruise run that put Motor City ahead 75-72 with seven minutes to play. The Herd retook the lead with a 6-0 spurt, and with three minutes remaining, a finger-roll layup from Winslow started a 7-0 Wisconsin run that gave the Herd a 92-85 advantage. Wisconsin connected on its free throws down the stretch as the Herd survived for a 6-point win.

The Herd will return to action Saturday when they take on the first-place Capital City Go-Go (7-3) at the Oshkosh Arena at 7 p.m.