The No. 24 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's basketball team won its fifth straight game Saturday afternoon, defeating UW-La Crosse 67-62 in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest in La Crosse, Wis.
 
Junior guard Chris Jones (Milwaukee, Wis./Bradley Tech) tallied 20 of his game-high 25 points in the first half to lead the Warhawks (16-3 overall, 5-3 WIAC), who shot 49 percent for the contest and committed only nine turnovers.
 
Sophomore guard/forward Derek Rongstad (Middleton, Wis./Middleton) posted 10 points, six rebounds and two steals. Junior forward Scotty Tyler (Grafton, Wis./Grafton) contributed nine points and four rebounds, and senior forward Cole Van Schyndel (Kaukauna, Wis./Wrightstown) registered eight points off the bench.
 
UW-Whitewater hit five 3-pointers and shot 55.6 percent in the first half en route to a 42-35 halftime advantage. UW-La Crosse started the contest with a 10-0 run, but was countered by a 12-2 Warhawk run.
 
The two teams were tied six different times in the period, with the final one broken by a 7-0 UW-Whitewater run over the finals 1:24 of the half.
 
The Eagles fought back to tie the game at 50-50 with 11:24 remaining in the game.
 
After a scoring lull by both teams and three more tie scores, the Warhawks took the lead for good on a jumper by junior forward Demetrius Woodley (Milwaukee, Wis./Vincent) with 2:44 to play.
 
Jones gave UW-Whitewater a three-point lead on a free throw with 31 seconds on the clock, and the Warhawks got a stop on the other end.
 
UW-La Crosse had one last chance to tie the game, but an over-and-back violation gave the ball back to UW-Whitewater with two seconds left. Jones put the exclamation point on the result with a layup that beat the buzzer.
 
The Warhawks continue WIAC play Wednesday at UW-Platteville. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.