Milwaukee, WI – Horizon League favorite Milwaukee flexed its muscles in the first game of its home tournament, the Cream City Challenge, defeating Portland State, 91-74, at UWM Panther Arena.
 
AJ McKee scored 21 points and Themus Fulks had 20 points for the winners as the tandem hit 18-25 field goals between them (.720). They led Milwaukee to a 37-67 shooting mark, good for .552 from the field.
 
PSU was 27-63 from the field for a .429 percentage. It was the Vikings' poorest shooting output of the season. Senior guard Shane Nowell led the way with 14 points and five rebounds. Jaylin Henderson scored 12 points and Terri Miller added 10 points and five rebounds.
 
Portland State dropped to 2-2 on the season as their modest two-game winning streak came to an end. PSU must make a quick turnaround as it faces St. Thomas of the Summit League on Saturday at noon CT/10 a.m. PT in the second of three games in the tournament.
 
Milwaukee, winner of 20 games last season and chosen to win the Horizon League in preseason polling this year, improved to 3-2 with the win.
 
Milwaukee led wire-to-wire but didn't break the game open until midway through the second half. McKee scored the first seven points of the game to get things going for the Panthers. That had the Vikings playing uphill all night. Eventually, PSU warmed up behind Henderson and Miller. That tandem combined for 15 first-half points. PSU got as close as two but never led in the game.
 
After halftime, Milwaukee built on a 46-39 lead, going up by as many as 13 on three occasions early in the second half.
 
The Vikings were back within eight at 60-52 on a three-point jumper by Henderson with just over 13 minutes to play. From there, the Panthers took off.
 
PSU managed only three field goals over the next 10 minutes and Milwaukee took advantage with a 31-9 run. The Panthers made 15 of 21 shots from the field in their run.
 
Milwaukee had a huge advantage on the glass, out-rebounding the Vikings, 45-29. That helped lead to 33 fast break points.
 

GAME NOTES

• This was a first-ever meeting with Milwaukee.
• The Vikings started their fourth different starting lineup in four games with Qiant Myers, Ismail Habib, Shane Nowell, Isaiah Johnson and Terri Miller Jr.
• Friday's game was the first of three for the Vikings at the Cream City Challenge, hosted by Milwaukee. PSU will face St. Thomas on Saturday at Noon CT/10 a.m. PT, then Wofford on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT/9 a.m. PT. Those game will be shown on YouTube. Check the GoViks.com basketball schedule page for links.