STEVENS POINT, Wis. – The eighth-ranked UW-Stevens Point men's basketball team held Illinois Wesleyan scoreless for the final 7:16 to pull away from the Titans and advance to the Round of 16 of the NCAA Tournament with a 70-53 win on Saturday night at Bennett Court at Quandt Fieldhouse.

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UW-Stevens Point (23-5) led Illinois Wesleyan (20-9) by six, 59-53, with 7:16 remaining but scored the game's final 11 points as the Titans missed their final 10 shots of the game. The Pointers advance to the Round of 16 for the fourth time in the last six seasons.

UWSP will face Emory, which defeated Whitworth 85-84 in the second round, in the Round of 16 on Friday, March 16 at a time and site to be determined. The Eagles and Pointers played in the Round of 16 last season with Emory winning 76-73 in overtime at Bennett Court at Quandt Fieldhouse.

The game was the third meeting between UW-Stevens Point and Illinois Wesleyan in the NCAA Tournament in the last six seasons and UWSP has won two of the three contests.

The Pointers never trailed in the game but led by a single point at halftime. UW-Stevens Point started the second half on an 8-2 run to take a 43-36 lead but Illinois Wesleyan immediately got back within three with 15:06 remaining.

UWSP's lead remained between three and seven points for the next seven minutes before the Pointers locked down the Titans for the final seven-plus minutes. Illinois Wesleyan was down one possession three times with over 11 minutes still to play but each time UW-Stevens Point hit a shot.

UW-Stevens Point shot an even 50.0 percent in both halves and held Illinois Wesleyan to 26.9 percent (7-for-26) in the second half after the Titans shot 54.2 percent (13-for-24) in the opening half. The Titans were just 2-for-13 (15.4 percent) from three-point range after halftime after shooting 6-for-13 (46.2 percent) in the first half.

The Pointers, who commit the second-fewest turnovers per game (8.2) in the country, turned the ball over just five times in the game and enjoyed a 15-0 advantage in points off turnovers. UW-Stevens Point's top-ranked scoring defense (55.6 ppg) held Illinois Wesleyan to over 25 points under its season average (78.5 ppg).

Joe Ritchay (Wisconsin Rapids, WI/Lincoln) scored 15 of his game-high 19 points in the first half and made his first five shots from the field in the game. Austin Ryf (Winneconne, WI/Winneconne) poured in 12 of his 14 points in the second half, while Jordan Lutz (Amherst, WI/Amherst) and Stephen Pelkofer (Hales Corner, WI/Whitnall) each added 11.

Alex Richard (Spring Green, WI/River Valley) and Sean McGann (Baraboo, WI/Baraboo) added eight and seven points, respectively, as six players scored in the game for UW-Stevens Point. Illinois Wesleyan held a 19-7 edge in bench scoring and was led by Trevor Seibring's 13 points.

In the first half, the Pointers hit eight of their first 11 shots to take a 19-8 lead with 12:51 until halftime. However, the Titans used a 10-2 run in the final 2:59 of the half to close to within one at the break.