43
YSU has a third shot at Phoenix
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
Youngstown State’s women’s basketball team didn’t just lose two games to Green Bay this season.
The Penguins lost a little bit of pride, too.
Two weeks removed from a 46-point loss to the Phoenix, YSU will get another shot at the Horizon League’s heavyweights in tonight’s tournament semifinals at Green Bay.
“I think we like another chance in the [sense] that we don’t think we played as well as we could have,” YSU coach John Barnes said. “I think Green Bay is a great team. They’re very, very good defensively. Obviously, it’s going to be a tough matchup for us. But we would like to prove that we can play better than what we have against them the last two times.
“We’ll get that opportunity and we’ll see what we do with it.”
After sweeping the season series last season against Green Bay — just the second and third wins ever by a YSU team against the Phoenix — YSU stumbled in this year’s first meeting, falling 66-43 on the road.
The second meeting was even worse, with YSU posting the second-lowest point total in school history in a 73-27 loss. (The school record is 25, set in an 84-25 loss at Green Bay in 2011.)
“I think that we definitely deserve to get a chance to play them again and hopefully play our game rather than worrying about their game or being scared of them or any of that,” freshman Nikki Arbanas said.
Green Bay has won or shared 17 straight conference titles and went 15-1 in this year’s league schedule. The Phoenix opened tournament play with a 74-62 win over No. 8 Milwaukee on Wednesday, while YSU beat Detroit 73-55.
The Penguins (21-9) have advanced to the conference semifinals in each of the last three years, losing to Wright State last season and Loyola two years ago. They have never played in the Horizon League final.
“At this point, both teams know each other very well so you just do your best to execute your stuff and do your best to try to slow down or stop what they do and go from there,” Barnes said. “Hopefully we play a great game.”