By Green Bay Athletics
For the Press Times
OMAHA – Upset in Omaha! The Green Bay women’s basketball team took down No. 22-ranked Creighton with a 65-53 victory Thursday night at D.J. Sokol Arena. The Green Bay Phoenix earned their first victory over the Bluejays since 1989 in the first clash against Creighton since 1995.
Maddy Schreiber led the Phoenix (2-1 overall) with 14 points. Callie Genke tacked on 11 points off of the bench and Cassie Schiltz chipped in as well with 10 points and four assists. Creighton suffered their first loss of the 2023-24 campaign. The victory was UW-Green Bay’s first win over an AP Top-25 team since 2019.
How it happened
Creighton took an early 5-4 lead after Emma Ronsiek buried a triple, but after that, Green Bay went on a 17-0 run with 8:15 left in the first quarter. The run culminated in a bucket from Caelan Givens, increasing the lead to 21-5. The Bluejays tried to shrink the deficit and were able to gain some momentum towards the end of the frame thanks to Ronsiek and Lauren Jensen, combining for four points, making it 22-9 in favor of the Phoenix after the opening 10 minutes. The Green Bay Phoenix kept its efficiency in the second quarter, keeping at least a six-point advantage the entire quarter. The Phoenix went on a 10-2 run that spanned nearly six-and-a-half minutes, extending the lead to 15 after Schreiber drove through the lane for a layup. Her first-half effort helped Green Bay carry a 14-point lead into the break.
The Phoenix kept the cruise control on in the third quarter. Creighton was able to cut the Phoenix’s advantage to eight after Jensen finished an and-one to make it 44-36 with 3:39 remaining in the frame. As they had done twice already, the Phoenix would open up the game with an 8-1 run to end the quarter, capped by a Natalie Andersen mid-range jumper, making it 52-37 through three quarters. Creighton would fight back and make life difficult for the Phoenix in the fourth quarter, starting the frame on a 9-3 run. Jensen cashed in another triple before adding a pair of free throws, cutting it to a 55-51 lead for the Green Bay Phoenix. Bailey Butler decided to put the game in her hands, scoring the next four points to put the Phoenix back up nine. From there, the Phoenix never looked back and iced the game at the charity stripe, upsetting No. 22-ranked Creighton 65-53 on the road.
Highlights
UW-Green Bay shot over 54% overall and over 50% from beyond the arc. The Phoenix held the Bluejays to only 34.6% shooting from the field. The Green Bay Phoenix’s bench racked up 23 points and their defense forced 15 turnovers. Ronsiek and Morgan Maly led all players with six rebounds.
Coming up
The Phoenix will turn their attention to the Cancun Challenge, which takes place over Thanksgiving weekend in Cancun, Mexico. UW-Green Bay will battle UMass on Thanksgiving Day before clashing against Big Ten foe Maryland on Nov. 24. The tournament will conclude with a meeting against Washington State on Nov. 25. All games will start at 12:30 p.m. CST and be streamed on FloSports. Stay tuned to GreenBayPhoenix.com for more coverage of the Cancun Challenge.