The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's basketball team played its third straight game against a nationally-ranked opponent Friday night, falling 64-58 at No. 11 UW-Platteville in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game.
Trailing by eight at halftime, the Warhawks (1-4 overall, 1-4 WIAC) fought back to tie the game and took the lead at 45-42 just over midway through the second half on a 3-pointer by
JT Hoytink (Menomonee Falls, Wis./Sussex Hamilton).
The Pioneers (5-1, 5-1) scored the next five points, but a 3-pointer by
Trevon Chislom (McFarland, Wis./McFarland) put UW-W back ahead at 48-47 with 7:23 remaining.
UW-Platteville ran off the next eight points and held a seven-point advantage, but the Warhawks continued to hang around, eventually tying the game at 57-57 with 2:52 on the clock thanks to a 3-pointer by
Breontae Hunt (Milwaukee, Wis./Bay View).
Chislom gave UW-Whitewater the lead with a free throw on the next possession, but the Pioneers finished the contest on a 7-0 run in the final minute, knocking down 5-of-5 from the free-throw line over the final 39 seconds of regulation.
Chislom and Hunt each starred off the bench. Chislom tallied a career-high tying 18 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two blocks, while Hunt registered 13 points, six rebounds and three assists.
Derek Gray (Madison, Wis./La Follette), also coming off the bench, finished with seven points and five rebounds.
UW-W held UW-Platteville to 36.5 percent shooting from the floor, but was held to 36.8 percent shooting on the other end, including 26.9 percent in the first half. UW-P held a 23-11 advantage in made free throws.
Neither team held a lead larger than four over the first 14-plus minutes of action. Hoytink put the Warhawks ahead 20-15 at the 5:48 mark with a pair of free throws.
The Pioneers ended the half on an 11-0 run over the final three minutes, 15 seconds.
UW-Whitewater finishes the regular season next week with games against UW-Stout. Tipoff on Wednesday at Kachel Gymnasium is set for 7 p.m.
