The Wisconsin Herd won their second straight game after taking down the Delaware Blue Coats 128-114 at the Oshkosh Arena Wednesday night.
The Herd (8-7) had their three-game winning streak snapped by the Capitol City Go-Go on Saturday, but Wisconsin got back in the win column with a 91-81 victory over the Windy City Bulls Sunday afternoon.
Wisconsin, which is tied for sixth in the Eastern Conference of the NBA G League, was led by forward Henry Ellenson, who scored a game-high 29 points on 12-for-17 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds. Herd forward Terence Davis went a perfect 6-for-6 from behind the arc and 9-for-10 from the field for a season-high 24 points and 10 rebounds. Guard James Akinjo finished with a 21-point and 14-assist double-double while Milwaukee Bucks rookie AJ Johnson scored 16 points, collected 6 rebounds and dished out five assists.
As a team, the Herd shot 56.8% from the field and 53.1% from 3-point range. Wisconsin out-rebounded Delaware 50-34 and forced 11 turnovers.
The Blue Coats (6-8) were led by center Robert Woodard II, who tallied 28 points and six rebounds on 11-for-18 shooting. Delaware guard Jarron Cumberland finished with 20 points and eight assists while fellow guard Judah Mintz scored 19 points and dished out seven assists.
Delaware, which dropped to 13th in the Eastern Conference, finished the game shooting 43.2% from the floor and 36.4% from 3-point range. The Blue Coats forced 19 Herd turnovers and collected 11 steals.
The Blue Coats opened the scoring with a 3-pointer from Woodard, but Akinjo responded with a layup as the two teams traded baskets for most of the first quarter until the Herd connected on three straight 3-pointers from Davis, Johnson and Akinjo to take a 7-point lead. Wisconsin built a double-digit advantage after a driving dunk from Ellenson with under two minutes remaining, and the Herd held onto a 33-25 lead at the break.
Wisconsin started off the second quarter with a layup from Ade Murkey and the Herd maintained a double-digit lead for nearly the entire period. The Herd opened up a 15-point advantage after a Davis 3-pointer and a driving layup from Johnson, but Delaware responded with an 11-3 spurt to pull within 7 points. Wisconsin outscored the Blue Coats 6-4 in the final two minutes of the first half to take a 69-60 lead into the locker room.
Davis knocked down another 3-pointer to begin the third quarter, and three minutes into the period, the Herd build their lead back to 13 points with a layup from Ellenson. The Herd enjoyed at least a 10-point lead for over 10 minutes of action in the quarter until Jared Brownridge nailed a 3-pointer to bring the Blue Coats to within 7 points with 10 seconds left.
Wisconsin began the final period with a 96-87 advantage, and midway through the fourth quarter Ellenson connected on a 3-pointer to put the Herd back up by double-digits. A pair of layups from Ellenson and Davis put Wisconsin up by 16 points with five minutes, and the Herd never looked back en route to a 14-point win.
The Herd will face off against the Blue Coats once again Friday night at the Oshkosh Arena at 7 p.m.
