Box Score Sophomore forward KJ Evans (Beloit/Beloit Memorial) scored 17 points as thirteenth ranked UW-Whitewater ran its win streak over UW-Eau Claire to seven with a 72-63 win at Zorn Arena in Eau Claire, Wisconsin Saturday.  UW-W improves to 15-4 overall and 8-3 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.  UW-EC is 9-11, 3-8 in league play.

Neither team could take control in the first half.  Whitewater managed a 12-6 lead on a three by Evans at 11:32, but that margin was the largest of a first half that saw nine lead changes.  Eau Claire led 26-25 at the half.  The statistics bore out the score, with Whitewater shooting 55% from the floor, Eau Claire 52%; Whitewater making 2-6 three pointers, Eau Claire hitting 2-7; and Whitewater making 3-5 free throws, Eau Claire 4-4. 

For the first seven minutes of the second half it was like neither team took a break from the first half, continuing to play cat and mouse with the lead.  But, with the Blugolds leading 38-37 at 12:59, Whitewater went on a 14-2 run to build the first double digit lead of the game, 51-40 on an Alex Merg (Greendale/Greendale) layup.  Darnell Harris (Milwaukee/Hamilton) drained a three at 4:42 to give UW-W a 57-42 lead, the largest of the game. 

Eau Claire managed to pull to within seven, twice, in the closing minutes, 64-57 with 1:22 left and 70-63 with just eleven seconds remaining.

Whitewater broke the game open, going 18-28 from the free throw line in the second half (while EC was 5-9).  Overall the Warhawks were 21-33 from the line, Eau Claire 9-13.

Evans' 17 points is his second highest output of the season, behind the 21 he scored in the first Whitewater-Eau Claire game December 8 in Whitewater.  Evans was 4-6 from the field, including 2-3 threes, and 7-10 at the line.  He was joined in double figure scoring by Harris with 14, and Patrick Souter (Racine/St. Catherine's) and Luke Knoble (Boscobel/Boscobel) both added ten points.  Evans was also the game's leading rebounder, with six.  Eau Claire's Jordan Peterson took game scoring honors with 18 points, with Nick Craggs contributing 17. 

UW-W will host UW-La Crosse Wednesday at 7:00 in Kachel Gym of Williams Center in Whitewater.




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