Feb 28, 2004

MILWAUKEE (AP) - Dylan Page scored 24 points, Chris Hill 13 and Joah Tucker 12 Saturday night, as Wisconsin-Milwaukee defeated Cleveland State 88-63 to clinch sole possession of the Horizon League regular season championship.

The Panthers (18-9, 13-3 in league play) captured their first conference crown since 1941, when they had an 8-0 record to win the State Teachers College Conference title.

Illinois-Chicago finished second in the Horizon League with a 12-4 record after beating Butler 64-54 Saturday night.

Cleveland State (4-24, 0-16), losing a 22nd straight game, was led by Jermaine Robinson with 21 points and Pape Badiane with 17.

Page's 3-pointer to open the scoring put Milwaukee ahead for good. A 9-3 run capped by a basket by Nate Mielke gave the Panthers an 18-9 lead midway through the first period.

Page scored 17 points to power the Panthers to a 46-34 halftime advantage.

In the second half, the Vikings never got closer than 12 points, their deficit at halftime.

Cleveland State will open the 2004 Horizon League Tournament at Detroit on Tuesday night. Detroit earned the fourth seed in the tournament by defeating Youngstown State on Saturday evening.