UW-Whitewater advanced to the second round of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III championship tournament with a 81-79 overtime win over host Elmhurst College in Elmhurst, Illinois Friday night. UW-W, 23-5, will face defending Division III champion Washington University of Saint Louis, 24-2, in the regional final at 7:00 Saturday in Elmhurst. Washington defeated Lawrence University 67-65 in the early regional semifinal Friday in Elmhurst.
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Myles McKay (Menomonee Falls/Menomonee Falls) could be excused if he had a sore back at halftime. The senior guard poured in 25 first half points, scoring more than half of Whitewater's total, to carry the Warhawks to a 46-38 halftime lead.
Whitewater increased the margin to eleven twice early in the second half, 51-40 and 53-42. With the Warhawks leading 65-55, Elmhurst went off 11-0 to take a 66-65 lead at 8:04. The teams traded baskets and defensive stops to a 74-74 tie with 0:32 left, and Elmhurst with the ball. After three timeouts, two by Elmhurst, Ryan Burks missed a three at the buzzer to send the game into OT.
With 1:34 left UW-W guard Tyson Kingsby (Milwaukee/Custer) hit a pair of free throws to give UW-W an 80-79 lead. McKay came through again, this time on the defensive end, blocking a Chris Childs shot with 1:16 left, and Kingsby made one of two free throws two seconds later for the final scoring in the game. Burks had another three attempt, with 0:49 left, that missed, which Whitewater followed with a Tyson Kingsby (Milwaukee/Custer) layup attempt that Childs blocked. Without stopping the clock Elmhurst went back to Burks for the win, but it missed as UW-W escaped.
As you would expect in a game this close there wasn't any noticeable difference in the team stats. Elmhurst had a 37-30 rebound advantage, but that was offset by Whitewater's five fewer turnovers. And so it went, down the line.
McKay finished with 30 points, adding a team-high nine rebounds and three steals. Dustin Mitchell (Lac Du Flambeau/Lakeland) added 15 points and Chris Vines (Milwaukee/Washington) 11 off the bench. Elmhurst had four players score in double figures, led by Brent Ruch's 23 and 22 from Burks, who went 9-9 from the free throw line. Childs contributed 11 points and Zack Boyd 10. Burks had a double double, chipping in with ten rebounds, sharing the game lead with teammate Robert Strzemp.
For additional information: Pat Miller, UW-W coach
