The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's basketball team posted a strong scoring performance on the perimeter and had several key contributions off its bench Tuesday night, but was unable to hold a late lead in a 71-70 loss against Ripon in a non-conference contest at Kachel Gymnasium.
 
The Warhawks (2-2 overall) took their first lead of the second half with 1:05 to play as junior forward Equan Ards (Milwaukee, Wis./Hamilton) drilled a go-ahead 3-pointer.
 
The Red Hawks (2-1) scored on their next possession, and UW-Whitewater was unable to respond on the offensive end.
 
Ards tallied 28 points on 12-of-17 shooting to go with two rebounds and three steals. Off the bench, sophomore guard Paul Kingsley (Chicago, Ill./St. Rita of Cascia) made four 3-pointers on his way to 12 points, and freshman forward Trevon Chislom (McFarland, Wis./McFarland) collected 10 points and three rebounds.
 
Sophomore guard Bailey Kale (La Crosse, Wis./Central) registered eight points and eight assists, and freshman guard Brian Conaghan (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) recorded seven points, three rebounds and three assists.
 
UW-Whitewater got off to a slow start in the opening half before tying the game at 15-15 on a layup by Ards. Ripon embarked on a 9-0 run to make it 24-15 with 7:41 remaining.
 
The Warhawks clawed their way back, tying the game at 29-29 on a layup by Ards with 1:10 on the clock, but the Red Hawks tallied the final four points of the half to take a 33-29 advantage into halftime.
 
Ripon continued to hold its lead throughout the second half. UW-Whitewater drew to within one possession four times in the first four minutes of the period before the Red Hawks extended their lead back to nine midway through the half.
 
A steal by Ards led to a 3-pointer by Kale with 6:57 to play that brought the Warhawks to within two. Ripon pushed its lead back to seven before UW-Whitewater ran off 10 of the next 12 points, including Ards' go-ahead 3-pointer.
 
The Warhawks host Monmouth (Ill.) Friday at 8 p.m. at Kachel Gymnasium.