Box Score WHITEWATER, Wis. – The top-ranked UW-Stevens Point men's basketball team saw its unbeaten start to the season come to an end with an 81-76 overtime loss at seventh-ranked UW-Whitewater on Wednesday night at Kachel Gym.
Box Score
The Pointers (20-1, 11-1 WIAC) trailed by as many as 16 in the opening half but led by five with 1:28 remaining in regulation. The Warhawks (18-3, 9-3 WIAC) sent the game into overtime and scored the final six points to claim the win. The loss snapped the best start to a season in UWSP program history, as UW-Stevens Point was one of only two undefeated teams left in Division-III.
UW-Stevens Point had won seven in a row against UW-Whitewater, including the last four meetings in Whitewater.
Both teams had four players score in double figures in the game.
Tyler Tillema (Randolph, WI/Randolph) led UW-Stevens Point with 19 points on 8-for-14 shooting, while
Joe Ritchay (Wisconsin Rapids, WI/Lincoln) (18),
Stephen Pelkofer (Hales Corner, WI/Whitnall) (11) and
Trevor Hass (New London, WI/New London/Augustana (SD)) (10) also made it to double digits. Quardell Young (19), Eric Bryson (17), Reggie Hearn (16) and KJ Evans (15) combined to score 67 of UWW's 81 points.
In overtime, the Pointers took a 76-75 lead with 2:15 remaining after a jumper by Ritchay. However, the Warhawks held UWSP scoreless for the rest of the game and made six straight free throws. Trailing by three with 20 seconds left, Tillema had two looks at a potential game-tying three-pointer but came up empty.
Trailing 39-27 at halftime, UW-Stevens Point came out strong in the second half, scoring 11 of the first 12 points. Ritchay sank two threes and Tillema added a third in the run, as UWSP closed to within two at 40-38.
The Pointers took their first lead since the opening four minutes of the game at 47-46 after a Hass three with 13:38 to play. In the ensuing 10 minutes, neither team led by more than four until UWSP made three consecutive shots to lead 65-60 with 2:09 remaining.
UW-Stevens Point held a 68-64 lead with 31 seconds to play but a pair of missed free throws and a three-pointer by Young cut the UWSP lead to 69-67 before Young was fouled on a made layup with 13 seconds left. With the tied score at 69-69, Young missed out on a potential three-point play and Ritchay missed a three-pointer at the buzzer, sending the game to overtime.
In the first half, UW-Whitewater shot 65.4 percent from the floor and led by as many as 16. In the closing stages of the half, UW-Stevens Point scored on four possessions in a row to cut the deficit to 10 but Young gave UWW a 12-point lead at the break with a layup at the buzzer. Bryson scored 14 of his 17 points in the first half.
Tillema and Ritchay each scored a dozen points in the second half, as UW-Stevens Point shot 56.5 percent and held UW-Whitewater to 39.3 percent shooting. In overtime, the Warhawks shot 7-for-9 from the free-throw line and held UWSP to 3-for-9 from the field.
Clayton Heuer (Wisconsin Rapids, WI/Lincoln/UW-Green Bay) narrowly missed out on a double-double, finishing with nine points and nine rebounds. Ritchay's three made three-pointers tied a career-high, while Pelkofer's 11 points accounted for his second double-figure scoring game this season.
After a weekend off, UW-Stevens Point looks to bounce back from its first loss of the season against UW-Platteville on Wednesday, February 12 at Bennett Court.
