Hot shooting Milwaukee beats men's basketball 87-76

ROSEMONT, Ill. --- The Blue Demons couldn't fend off Milwaukee's sharp shooting Monday night, falling to the Panthers 87-76.

"I'd like to give Milwaukee all the credit in the world," said Coach Oliver Purnell. "They came in ready to play."

Led by guard Paris Gulley, the Panthers shot 60 percent to DePaul's 44, which they fed off for an early lead. Guard Tony Meier also proved to be a threat to the Demons, shooting four for four from three point range. The Demons never found their shooting rhythm and fell to 13-35 in the first ten minutes.

"The game was won in the first half," said Purnell.

Cleveland Melvin and Brandon Young were the major scorers in the first half, racking up 10 and eight points, respectively. With the only other scorers in the half being Worrel Clahar and Jamee Crockett, the Demons' lack of scoring support left them at a 20 point deficit at half with a score of 48-28.

The Blue Demons (4-3) were able to close the gap after half by shooting 53 percent in the second half, but couldn't get ahead of the Panthers who were able to maintain their exceptional shooting game.

The Panthers (8-1) upped their shooting in the second half, hitting 61 percent with 55 percent from three point range, while DePaul shot 50 percent from the field, but only 16.7 percent from downtown.

"Our team has shown an ability to make a run," Purnell said. "But you can't always come back from 17 and 20 points down against good teams."

Crockett came out in the second half on fire, with a dunk in the first thirty seconds. Two more quick baskets by Crockett made a comeback by the Demons look imminent, but his spark wasn't quite enough to get the Demons ahead.

Melvin and Young were again the biggest producers for the Blue Demons. Melvin finished with a game high of 27 points and Young ended with 20. Jeremiah Kelly was off his shooting game Monday night, with only one three pointer and a total of seven points.

Fouls once again plagued the Blue Demons. While Derrell Robertson and Krys Faber were able to keep their fouls to just two each in the first half, the second half proved to be more challenging. Crockett fouled out with 3:17 left in the game. He was followed soon after by Faber.

"We weren't being elastic and moving," said Purnell.

The Demons take on the Loyola Ramblers in their next match on Wednesday, Dec. 7. This will prove to be a quick turnaround for the Demons, but one Purnell is glad they have. "We won't have time to wallow in it[the loss]."

Crockett is also thinking short term concerning the Demons' play. "We are working on executing our offense and just getting ready for Loyola."