Box Score

STEVENS POINT – In front of 2,425 fans in Quandt Fieldhouse, the ninth-ranked UW-Stevens Point men's basketball team used a 23-2 run in the second half to top second-ranked UW-Whitewater by a score of 76-47.

The win puts the Pointers into a three-way tie for first place in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) with two games to play. Stevens Point has an overall record of 19-4 and a WIAC record of 11-3. The Warhawks lose sole possession of first place in the conference with a record of 11-3 and an overall record of 19-4.

Whitewater started out fast opening up a 6-0 lead. The Pointers then went on a 12-2 run to take a 12-8 lead with 14 minutes left in the first half. The game went back-and-forth over the next five minutes, but the Pointers opened up a five-point lead following a Louis Hurd (Portage/Portage) (Fr.-Portage) jumper. The Warhawks regained the lead with less than four minutes remaining and led the rest of the half as the score at halftime was 30-29 Whitewater.

The Pointers shot 36 % from the field in the first half, including just 1-for-10 from beyond the three-point line. The Warhawks shot 42 % in the half. The big difference was the Pointer bench, who outscored the Warhawks bench 14-4 in the half.

The Warhawks held the lead the first two minutes of the second half with the score at 34-32 with 18 minutes remaining. However, from that point it was all Stevens Point. The Pointers proceeded to go on a 23-2 run, including a 15-0 run over the next eight minutes to take a 55-36 lead. During that span, Whitewater was just 1-for-7 from the field and committed five turnovers.

The lead just kept on increasing the rest of the way as the Pointers cruised to a 76-47 victory over second-ranked Whitewater. The Pointers have beaten their last five opponents by an average margin of 27.8 points per game.

Stevens Point shot 61 % in the second half, including 5-of-11 on three-point attempts. The Warhawks shot just 25 % in the second half on 5-for-20 shooting. The Pointers had a 40-20 scoring advantage in the paint and had 25 points off of 17 Whitewater turnovers. The Pointer bench had a 36-8 edge for the game.

Bryan Beamish (Wisconsin Rapids/Lincoln) (Jr.-Wisconsin Rapids/Lincoln) led the Pointers with 16 points to go along with six rebounds and six assists. Steve Hicklin (Sussex/Hamilton) (Sr.-Sussex/Hamilton) had 15 points. Three Pointers off the bench had tremendous games as Scott Hoelzel (Kaukauna/Kaukauna) (So.-Kaukauna) had a career-high 13 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Drew Jackson (Milwaukee/Rufus King) (Jr.-Milwaukee/Rufus King) had a season-high 10 points and Matt Moses (Fond du Lac/St. Mary Springs) (So.-Fond du Lac/St Mary Springs) also added 10 points. Matt Goodwin led Whitewater with 14 points.

The Pointers will play their final regular season home game Wednesday night when they host UW-La Crosse. The tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. in Quandt Fieldhouse.