Box Score ST. PAUL, Minn. –
Stephen Pelkofer (Hales Corner, WI/Whitnall) matched his career high with 19 points but Cortez Tillman hit a pair of late threes as sixth-ranked St. Thomas edged the 20th-ranked UW-Stevens Point men's basketball team 68-66 in a non-conference top-20 matchup on Saturday evening at Schoenecker Arena.
Box Score In a second half the featured 11 lead changes and six ties, a jumper by
Jordan Lutz (Amherst, WI/Amherst) gave UW-Stevens Point (7-3) a 61-60 lead with 3:59 remaining. However, Tillman hit back-to-back threes in the final 2:15 for St. Thomas (8-1). The Pointers had a look at a game-winning three in the final seconds but Pelkofer's attempt hit high off the iron and time expired.
Six of the last eight meetings between UW-Stevens Point and St. Thomas have now been decided by seven points or less. The Pointers are now 5-4 in the last three-plus seasons against top-10 teams.
UWSP led by five, 44-39, with 13:29 remaining in regulation but a 7-0 St. Thomas run gave the hosts their first lead of the game. The Tommies scored two baskets following offensive rebounds in the run and Jimmy Remke capped it with a three-point play.
St. Thomas outscored UW-Stevens Point 10-2 in second-chance points in the second half. From the 13:29 mark on, neither team led by more than two points until the first of Tillman's three-pointers in the closing two-plus minutes.
The Pointers started the game by making eight of their first 10 shots to take a 20-11 lead nearly seven minutes into the game. Back-to-back threes by Pelkofer and
Joe Ritchay (Wisconsin Rapids, WI/Lincoln) gave UWSP its largest lead of the game at 23-11 at the 11:49 mark of the opening half.
Trailing 32-21 with 3:57 left in the half after a three by
Austin Ryf (Winneconne, WI/Winneconne), St. Thomas used s 9-0 run to get within two. Taylor Montero scored four of his 12 first-half points in the stretch but a jumper by Richard sent the Pointers to the locker room with a 36-32 lead.
Pelkofer shot 7-for-10 from the field and 5-for-7 from behind the arc on his way to matching the 19 points he scored earlier this year at St. Olaf. Eleven of the junior's 19 came in the second half. Richard scored nine points in each half and shot 6-for-7 from the field and the free-throw line.
UW-Stevens Point 59.5 percent from the field, the team's second-best mark of the season, in the game, including 61.1 percent in the second half. The Pointers matched their season high with eight made threes on 15 attempts (53.3 percent).
St. Thomas shot 51.1 percent for the game and was 7-for-12 (58.3 percent) from behind the arc. The Tommies made all 13 of their free throws and had four players in double figures. Tillman was 4-for-4 from three-point range on his way to a team-high 14 points. Marcus Alipate added 13, while Montero and Ryan Saarela had 12 each.
The teams combined for just six turnovers in the game, compared to 27 total assists. The Tommies held a 23-18 edge on the glass, including 10 offensive rebounds.
Next up for UW-Stevens Point is a two-game trip to the West Coast. The Pointers face Pomona-Pitzer on Monday, Dec. 29 and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Wednesday, Dec. 31. Both games are scheduled for 4 p.m. PT.
