STEVENS POINT, Wis. – The No. 11 UW-Stevens Point men's basketball team (10-2, 0-1) fell behind early and couldn't rally in a 79-64 loss to No. 4 UW-Platteville (11-1, 1-0) in the league opener.
 
Darrius Bolden (Glendale, Wis./Nicolet) led a trio of Pointers in double figures with 15 points. Logan Baumgarter added 14 and Seth Miron (Appleton, Wis./Kimberly) had 11 points. Miron led UWSP with seven boards.
 
Bolden had an early jumper for a 2-2 tie, but the Pioneers rattled off a 12-1 run for a lead they wouldn't relinquish. Baumgartner buried a three to end the run by UWP. Malik Abdul-Wahid (Brookfield, Wis./Brookfield Central) hit from behind the arc later in the half, but the Pointers faced a 39-25 hole at the break.
 
Baumgartner and Josiah Butler (Appleton, Wis./Fox Valley Lutheran) each hit threes early in the second half as UWSP tried to chip away. Tyshawn Teague-Johnson (Beloit, Wis./Turner) hit a jumper with 12:13 to go halting a 12-0 run by UWP.
 
Baumgartner hit another three and completed an and-one as UWSP cut the deficit to single digits with 2:50 remaining. But the Pioneers hit all 10 free throws the remainder of the game to seal the win.
 
The Pointers travel to UW-Whitewater on Wednesday (Jan. 8) for a 7:00 p.m. matchup with the Warhawks.