The No. 10 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's basketball team posted strong performances on both ends of the floor Wednesday night in an 83-58 triumph at Beloit in a non-conference affair at Flood Arena in Beloit, Wis.
 
The Warhawks (8-1 overall) shot 56.1 percent from the floor and held the Buccaneers to a 33.9 percent performance, including 21.9 percent in the first half.
 
Sophomore forward Riley Jensen (Milton, Wis./Janesville Craig) collected a career- and game-high 18 points to go along with four rebounds to lead UW-Whitewater, which outscored Beloit 38-16 on points in the paint.
 
Junior forward Derek Rongstad (Middleton, Wis./Middleton) tallied 13 points, six rebounds and two assists. Junior guard Andre Brown (Kenosha, Wis./Indian Trail) registered 12 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals, and junior guard David Sachs (Highland Park, Ill./Highland Park) recorded 12 points, a team-high seven rebounds and three assists.
 
UW-Whitewater scored the first seven points of the game before the Buccaneers tallied seven of the next nine to draw within 9-7 with 13:45 to play in the first half.
 
The Warhawks posted another 7-0 run on three consecutive layups, including a 3-point play by Sachs, and grabbed a double-digit lead at the 8:06 mark on a layup by Jensen.
 
UW-Whitewater doubled up Beloit at 31-15 with 4:29 to go on a jumper by junior forward Scotty Tyler (Grafton, Wis./Grafton), and the team took its largest lead of the game at 39-21 after a pair of free throws by junior guard Dalton Menke (Rockford, Ill./Winnebago) with 20 seconds left in the period.
 
The Buccaneers drew to within 12 on two separate occasions in the second half, but Sachs and Brown hit back-to-back 3-pointers to bring the Warhawk lead back to 18 at 60-42 midway through the frame.
 
Senior guard Jerry Ngobi (Janesville, Wis./Janesville Craig) tallied five straight points to give UW-Whitewater a 78-52 advantage with 2:44 to play, and sophomore forward Ryan Fitzgerald (St. Charles, Ill./Burlington Central) converted a 3-point play with 1:57 on the clock to give the team its largest lead of the game at 81-54 with 1:57 remaining.
 
The Warhawks resume play Dec. 29-30 at the Nicolet National Bank Holiday Tournament at St. Norbert College in De Pere. UW-Whitewater faces Finlandia (Mich.) to open play on the 29th at 5 p.m.