It took a little longer, but it was worth the wait.  UW-Whitewater, ranked fifth in the D3hoops.com poll, defeated fourth ranked UW-Stevens Point 67-60 in overtime Thursday night in Kachel Gym in Williams Center in Whitewater.

box score
photo gallery by Joy Kowald

The Warhawks led 11-10 with 9:19 left in the first half, then scored the only five points scored in the next four-plus minutes and gradually built a lead of 24-14 with 2:20 left.  UW-SP closed out with the final five of the half for a 24-19 score at intermission.

Whitewater gradually built on their lead early in the second half, up to 35-23 at 15:10.  The Pointers turned a switch and cruised past UW-W with a 17-0 run, eight of those coming from sophomore forward Dan Tillema, to lead 40-35 at 8:59.  

The rest of regulation was a see-saw affair, with the lead changing hands three times and four ties in the remaining minutes.  UW-SP junior forward Louis Hurd drove for a layup with :07 left for the final tie.  UW-W was able to get off three-point attempt as time ran out.

Defense was the name of the game, again, in overtime.  No one scored for the first 2:05, with Dustin Mitchell (Lac Du Flambeau/Lakeland) laying one in to break the drought.  That was it though, as the teams went back to defense another 1:38 when Mike Bendall (Oconomowoc/Oconomowoc) gave UW-W a four point lead with a layup.  The teams traded old fashioned three point plays, one by Whitewater's DJ Dantzler (Joliet, IL/Joilet Township West) and one by Jerrel Harris for the Pointers, to make it 62-58 with 0:47 left.  Another Dantzler free throw made it 63-58 and Harris countered with a jumper for a 63-60 Whitewater lead with 0:26 on the clock.  Whitewater closed out the scoring, and the game, with four free throws.

Whitewater's defense limited UW-SP to 39% (25-64) shooting from the floor.  The Warhawks also used a big margin at the charity stripe, 16-20 comparaed to 5-5 for the Pointers, in the win.  With the rebounding battle almost even, the Pointers got eleven of theirs on the offensive boards.  

Mitchell led both teams with 19 points and 12 rebounds.  Bendall added 18 points and tied Phil Negri (Minocgua/Lakeland) for game high honors with five assists, and Dantzler contributed 12.  The Pointers were led Tillema's 15, with Harris chipping in with 13 and Hurd 10.  Hurd also led the UW-SP with seven rebounds, and Nick Krull handed out four assists.

UW-Whitewater improved to 8-0 overall and 3-0 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.  The Pointers are 7-1 and 2-1.

The Warhawks will travel to Superior to take on the Yellowjackets Saturday, December 12 with a scheduled start at 3:00 pm.

For additional information Pat Miller