Milwaukee pulls away against Harper

The teams combined to shoot 28 percent in the first half Wednesday as Milwaukee Area Technical College played host Harper College in men's basketball on Wednesday.

Milwaukee led 31-30 after the first half, but the energy on the tartan court in Palatine was at a season-high.

"You have to finish with pride," said Harper coach Dr. Justin Welke. "At the end of the day, it's all you have."

Milwaukee produced a 51-point second half, outscoring the Hawks 26-21 over the final 8:45 to record an 81-73 victory in North Central Community College Conference play. But the team ranked No. 9 in the NJCAA poll certainly got a battle from Harper.

"They had a good game plan," said Milwaukee coach Randy Casey.

Keys to the Stormers' second-half success were fluent defensive adjustments and the ability to get the ball into the painted area at the other end of the court. Milwaukee finished with a 20-6 edge in points scored in the paint, and that advantage also led to a big free throw effort as the Stormers made 18 of 24 foul shots.

With starter Christian Poulsen having fouled out, the Hawks faced another challenge when the game's leading scorer, Allias Burnett (29 points) suffered his fourth foul. Some 38 seconds later, Harper's Marcus Gatlin (14 points) also committed his fourth foul.

"That's what happens when you're thin," Harper coach Dr. Justin Welke said.

Wheeling alum Abdul Mustaq (12 points) eventually joined Poulsen and Gatlin on the bench in the game's final minutes for Harper (10-19, 1-12). The Hawks wrap up their regular season with a 3 p.m. Saturday tipoff at Madison College.