Big play. Just when you made a mental note that you had just seen the crucial play in the game, someone else stepped up. And then someone else. And so it seemed to go as the clock wound down and UW-Whitewater won a draining 75-71 victory over UW-Stevens Point in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament championship game Saturday night in Kachel Gym of Williams Center. With the tourney title UW-Whitewater also earns the league's automatic berth in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III playoffs. Who, when and where the Warhawks play will be announced Monday, March 3.
Box Score
Count the big plays in just the last minute of the game.
Sophomore guard Kevin Koski (Jefferson/Jefferson) made a layup with 0:55 left to put Whitewater up 67-61. Pointer junior Khalifa El-Amin responded with a three-pointer from way out to cut the margin to 67-64 with 0:43 remaining. El-Amin fouled Matt Goodwin (Milwaukee/Rufus King) on the inbounds at 0:41, and Goodwin made what appeared to be the clinching free throws to put UW-W in front 69-64. It took just seven seconds for El-Amin to drive the length of the court and hit a layup to cut the margin to 69-66. Point fouled again on Whitewater's next possession, but Whitewater missed the front end of a one-and-one. Point's Matt Moses grabbed the rebound and went the length of the floor for a layup to bring Point back to 69-68. Goodwin was fouled to go back to the line, where he made the first of two. However, senior forward Billy Kolinske (Big Bend/Waukesha Memorial) grabbed the missed shot for UW-W, and he was fouled immediately, then made two free throws to make it 72-68. Pointer senior guard Steve Hicklin made a three with six seconds left to tighten it up to 72-71. Whitewater's Myles McKay (Milwaukee/Menomonee Falls) got the inbound pass and was fouled, and he went to the line and hit both shots to make it 74-71. UW-SP missed a three, and Goodwin was fouled again to score the final point of the game.
McKay and junior forward Kori Vernon (Madison/Memorial) scored 20 points each for Whitewater, and Goodwin and Koski added 13 and 10, respectively. McKay played all forty minutes of the game, adding a team high four steals while Koski led UW-W with four assists. Kolinske led the Warhawks with eight rebounds. Hicklin tied for game scoring honors with 20. El-Amin contributed 15 and freshman forward Lewis Hurd 10. junior forward Bryan Beamish had a game high five assists, and Pete Rortvedt led both teams with nine rebounds.
The free throw shooting in the last minute was part of Whitewater's advantage at the line. UW-W made 16-23, while the Pointers went to the line six times, making two free throws in the game.
Whitewater, 24-4, will continue playing next week. UW-Stevens Point, 22-6, will await the possibility of an at-large birth in the NCAA tourney.
UW-W will be making its fourteenth NCAA III tournament appearance. The Warhawks, also the 2008 WIAC champions (determined by regular season play), last played in the national tourney in 2006. UW-W won NCAA III championships in 1984 and 1989.
For additional information
UW-W coach Pat Miller
NCAA men's basketball site
WIAC men's basketball site
