Box Score Seventh ranked UW-Stevens Point used 53% from the three point line to defeat thirteenth ranked UW-Whitewater 67-57 in Stevens Point, Wisconsin Wednesday night.  UW-SP takes a firm grip on the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference lead, upping their record to 10-0 in league play and 17-2 overall.  Whitewater is 14-4 overall and 7-3 in the WIAC.

The Warhawks and Pointers didn't settle anything in the first half.  UW-SP got out to an 11-4 lead, their largest of the first half. When Alex Merg (Greendale/Greendale) made a pair of free throws with 5:08 left Whitewater had its first lead of the half.  The teams traded leads more often than a police hotline, but Whitewater managed two, two point leads, 28-26 on Quardell Young (Kenosha/Bradford)'s free throws, and 31-29 on the Patrick Souter (Racine/St. Catherine's) three with 3:59 on the clock, but Point tied it with 2:17 left.  Neither team put a point on the board the rest of the way, and the teams headed to the lockerroom tied 33-33.

Whitewater and Point mirrored each other on shooting percentages in the first half, 48% for the Pointers and 46% for the Warhawks, but the Pointers went 6-11 from beyond the arc and Whitewater shot 2-9.  Whitewater's Darnell Harris (Milwaukee/Hamilton) and the Pointers' Joe Ritchay led their teams in scoring, both with 11.

The teams seemed stuck on a seesaw through much of the second half.  The largest lead either team managed was three points, with UW-W in front 45-42 on KJ Evans (Beloit/Beloit Memorial)' jumper with 5:34 left.  From that point the Pointers outscored the Warhawks 11-1 to build a 58-48 lead, and the margin reached twelve, 62-50 with 0:38 left. 

Point shot 48% from the floor for the game, Whitewater 40% -- but breaking down the numbers shows that UW-SP hit 9-17 three point shots, Whitewater 4-19.  The Pointers also made hay at the free throw line, hitting 16-20, many coming in the later stage of the game as Whitewater tried to foul to stop the clock, but UW-SP was up to the task.

Evans led UW-W with 14 points, with Young adding 10.  Evans tied for the team lead, with Harris, with four rebounds.  Ritchay added four points in the second, giving him game honors with 15 points.  Clayton Heuer contributed 13 and Trevor Hass 10 for the Pointers.  Point's Austin Ryf dished out six assists.

UW-Whitewater will travel to Eau Claire Saturday at 3:00 tipoff against the Blugolds in McPhee Gymnasium.  The next home game for UW-W will be Wednesday, January 30 at 7:00, with UW-La Crosse visiting Kachel Gym in Williams Center.

tf/ko