Former Trotwood-Madison star Amari Davis scored a game-high 24 points — including 10 in the final 4:47 — and the Phoenix shot 54.5% from the field in handing the Raiders only their second road defeat in nine games this season.
The home team shot a whopping 43 free throws, making 28.
“We weren’t any good defensively all game,” Nagy said on his post-game radio show. “We just scored 89 points and lost the game. Not only did they shoot (54.5%), but the worst part is they had 43 free throws. That’s very unlike us. If anybody shoots 43 free throws on you, you’re probably not going to win.”
Loudon Love had 21 points and nine rebounds for the Raiders (19-5, 9-2), who have lost at least once in their annual Wisconsin swing in seven straight years.
Tanner Holden had 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting before fouling out, and James Manns added 11.
The Raiders let a comfortable cushion in the Horizon League ebb away. They lead Northern Kentucky (16-7, 8-3) by just one game, while Youngstown State (13-11, 6-5), UIC (11-13, 6-5) and Green Bay (11-13, 6-5) are tied for third.
Wright State plays at NKU in the regular-season finale.
“I’m proud of our kids. They didn’t give up. It’s amazing we even had a shot at the end to win. But I can’t remember when we’ve given up 43 free throws. We just couldn’t guard them,” Nagy said.
The Raiders had a 10-point first-half lead and still led by seven with just under 16 minutes to go. But the Phoenix, which leads the conference in scoring, kept humming on offense.
Davis made a jumper and a layup for a four-point lead with 2:11 to go. He added a pair of free throws with 57 seconds left for a six-point edge.
Green Bay led, 88-81, with 39 seconds to go, but Manns hit a pair of 3’s, including one with 13 seconds left, to help the Raiders cut it to two.
Kameron Hankerson made one of two foul shots with nine ticks left. But needing a 3 to tie, Cole Gentry missed from deep at the horn.
And while Nagy was pleased with their closing push, he was livid over their first-half effort, letting a 10-point lead with 4:32 to go dwindle to three.
“We should have won this game in the first half,” Nagy said. “We were physically getting whipped — at every aspect, other than they turned the ball over. That’s the only thing that gave us the lead.
“They were hungrier, and I guess they had more reasons to be hungry.”
THURSDAY’S GAME
Detroit Mercy at Wright State, 7 p.m., ESPN3/ESPN+, 106.5
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