MBB: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[thrunt01]

WARHAWKS: 71
LaCrosse: 63

Once again the WARHAWKS Luke Knoble got the scoring going with a layup and the two teams exchanged leads for the first three and half minutes.  Alex Merg's jumper gave the WARHAWKS an 8-7 lead that would not exceed three points and lead to three ties over the next seven minutes of the game.  With the score tied 18-18 Bradon Tice hit a jumper to put the Eagles on top but the WARHAWKS responded and after a second tie took a lead they would hold until the first of three consecutive three-pointers put the Eagles back in the lead and the half ended with the score 36-29.  It was a see-saw first half which saw seven lead changes and eight ties.  Both teams shot well (WW: 57%, LX: 58%) but the Eagles drained 6 of 10 three-pointers while the WARHAWKS sank only 1 of 6 attempts.  The Eagles also had 10-6 scoring edge in points off of 9 WARHAWKS turnovers though the WARHAWKS hung in the game by dominating in the paint 20-6.  LaCrosse maintained their lead, which reached a high of nine points 42-33, for the first six and half minutes of the second half until a basket by Knoble, a three-pointer and a pair of free throws by Merg gave the WARHAWKS their first lead of the half 45-44.  The WARHAWKS built the lead to four points however the Eagles came back to reclaim it 49-48.  A free throw by Quardell Young retied the game 51-51 at the eight and half minute mark but once again the Eagles went out in front and led until Merg's free throws put the WARHAWKS ahead 57-56 with six minutes left in the game.  The Eagles would get to within three points but a basket by Knoble and 4-4 from the charity stripe by Merg down the stretch kept them at bay.

The WARHAWKS finished the game 56% from the floor and turned up the defense three notches holding the Eagles to 36% in the second half and 2 of 7 from beyond the arc.  The WARHAWKS also held a significant advantage on the boards out rebounding the Eagles 33-18 and out scoring them 32-10 in the paint.  The game included 11 ties and 10 lead changes.

Merg's 24 points (6-7 from the field, 3-3 three-pointers and 9-10 free throws) led the WARHAWKS and both he and Young had a game high 3 assists.  Knoble added 11 points and Eric Bryson 10 points to round out double figure scorers.  Darnell Harris's 12 rebounds were a game high as were KJ Evans pair of steals. 

Lucas Collum led the Eagles with 18 points while Jeff Heiden added 13 and Tice chipped in with 12.   

Watched the game online and early on I thought that UWL's hot shooting against UWO would keep up but that was not the case. UWW always seemed to hit 3s at the most crucial time and buried UWL at the free throw line. I really like this UWL team and I just don't understand how they've faltered so badly of late (aside from the UWO game of course).

[John Gleich]

The only thing worse than Point's first half tonight are the camera angles on Platteville's live stream.  Are you kidding me??  ...

No, I think it was Point's first half.

And, you're a fan of who??

It's "of whom", and I'm a fan of good basketball.  I graduated from Platteville but their offensive play frustrates me so much that I can barely watch them play.  I thought Point should have sped up their play especially in the last ten minutes but Platteville's defense/rebounding overcame its own offensive woes to hold on for the win.  My "magic" number for a lead in college is nine points.  Stay nine and above for most of the game (as Platteville did for most of the second half) and you're golden.  Under nine and with the three point shot, a team can "steal" a game up to the last minute.  Point had several threes late that I thought might carry them but the Platteville lead was just too much.  Also, twenty more free throw attempts by Platteville was the obvious killer for Point.

As bad as the camera angles were (and they were some of the worst I've ever seen), Point's first half was worse.

But, for as bad as it was... it was just one game. It's easy to snipe from the stands, but you have to remember that Point is still really banged up.

Studer and Lutz were still unavailable and have provided great sparks off of the bench throughout the year. Tillema is still not ready (I heard rumors that there's a pretty good chance that he'd take the medical waiver, though nothing is set in stone yet) and Forsythe has been out all year.

Is it an excuse? You're darn right it is. But this team is 18-3 and 11-1 in one of the toughest conferences in the country. They're still a top 10 team, even WITHOUT Tyler Tillema.

And they just played a bad game. A horrible game. One of the worse halves of basketball I've seen a Stevens Point team play.

But it's over.

Saturday brings another challenge, this time in yet another capable opponent in the La Crosse Eagles.

And just like the game last night, it'll be a tough one.

Hopefully it won't be AS tough as last night... but, especially because some cracks showed up last night, I think LaX will come out pumped up.

Coach Bennett used to share a quote with us...

You're never as good as people tell you that you are when you win and you're never as bad as people tell you that you are when you lose.

I think the same thing goes for individual feelings... Unless your team played an absolutely horrendous game and eeked out a victory against a really bad opponent, you generally feel really good about wins and really bad about losses... and it either makes you think you're better than you are or worse. That's why winning and losing is so contageous.

Heh... and I haven't even really said anything about the game itself!

[stargazejerry]

To say Studer has provided a great spark is........  really?

[tomt4525]

To say Studer has provided a great spark is........  really?

Um yeah....He obviously doesn't score much at all but Point doesn't need him to.  He's a role player.  He's pretty athletic which helps him defensively and to grab rebounds....something Point needed against Platteville last night. 

[John Gleich]

To say Studer has provided a great spark is........  really?

Um yeah....He obviously doesn't score much at all but Point doesn't need him to.  He's a role player.  He's pretty athletic which helps him defensively and to grab rebounds....something Point needed against Platteville last night.

And he's another big(ish) body. He isn't nearly as polished as he'll be in future years... but he's averaged a good 7-8 minutes per game all year, up until his injury.

[ShineTime]

It's been a while but did I miss something. I thought Tillema came back against st Thomas a week after original injury and played well.  I just noticed he hasn't played since.  What's the deal is he coming back this year? If he does ill predict final 4 and without maybe sweet 16 he truly is a difference maker last year they go possibly to title if he there seeing they dominated whitewater last year with him I believe.  I'm guessing someone posted a long time ago that he's done and I just missed it but any feedback would be appreciated

[ShineTime]

Also I had heard back in fall point had a kid built like Jared Jenkins and super athletic did this guy make team or who is he?  Want to say he was from Illinois and good shot blocker

[John Gleich]

It's been a while but did I miss something. I thought Tillema came back against st Thomas a week after original injury and played well.  I just noticed he hasn't played since.  What's the deal is he coming back this year? If he does ill predict final 4 and without maybe sweet 16 he truly is a difference maker last year they go possibly to title if he there seeing they dominated whitewater last year with him I believe.  I'm guessing someone posted a long time ago that he's done and I just missed it but any feedback would be appreciated

No official word yet. He was originally hurt right before halftime of the Whitewater game and sat out the second half and the next game.

He tried to go against St. Thomas, but he clearly wasn't himself. Still scored 14 points, but he was noticeably limping up the court... I think he may have done more damage to it then.

Also I had heard back in fall point had a kid built like Jared Jenkins and super athletic did this guy make team or who is he?  Want to say he was from Illinois and good shot blocker

Robert DeMeyers, though he is no longer on the roster.

[cubs]

Any of the La Crosse backers out there know why Zuiker didn't play on Wednesday Wednesday against Point?  It appears that is the only game this year that he hasn't played.  Injury/Illness?

[voice]

Superior's Jarrod Peterson appears on the way to becoming the WIAC's leading scorer this season. He enters Saturday's game vs. RF averaging 16.8 points per game. Stout's Alex Oman ranks second at 14.6 per game.

The last time the conference's leading scorer finished under 20 pts per game was in the 07-08 season when Dan Byer (EC) and Miles Webb (Stout) led the WIAC at 19.0 pts per game.

In 06-07 Pete Rortvedt (SP) led the league with a 16.9 point average.

Does the lack of big scorers tell you anything about the WIAC this season?

[thrunt01]

Superior's Jarrod Peterson appears on the way to becoming the WIAC's leading scorer this season. He enters Saturday's game vs. RF averaging 16.8 points per game. Stout's Alex Oman ranks second at 14.6 per game.

The last time the conference's leading scorer finished under 20 pts per game was in the 07-08 season when Dan Byer (EC) and Miles Webb (Stout) led the WIAC at 19.0 pts per game.

In 06-07 Pete Rortvedt (SP) led the league with a 16.9 point average.

Does the lack of big scorers tell you anything about the WIAC this season?

It tells us Tyler Tillema has been hurt for most of the season 

[stoutfan1]

Superior's Jarrod Peterson appears on the way to becoming the WIAC's leading scorer this season. He enters Saturday's game vs. RF averaging 16.8 points per game. Stout's Alex Oman ranks second at 14.6 per game.

The last time the conference's leading scorer finished under 20 pts per game was in the 07-08 season when Dan Byer (EC) and Miles Webb (Stout) led the WIAC at 19.0 pts per game.

In 06-07 Pete Rortvedt (SP) led the league with a 16.9 point average.

Does the lack of big scorers tell you anything about the WIAC this season?

I dont know if you are talking about overall season stats or just conference statistics, but looking at the school websites the scoring stats are as follows........

Chas Cross- 17.9 pts in Conference play and 15.5 overall
Alex Oman- 16.2 pts in Conference play and 15.0 overall
Jarrod Peterson- 13.3 pts in Conference play and 15.6 overall

The WIAC doesn't have the "WOW" players offensively this year as they have had the past few years. Obviously Tillema had it before his injury, but now we don't know what might of been. The league is young right now as you look at the 20 leading scorers and only a handful are seniors. You could say WIAC fans were spoiled from 2007-2011 with offensive play. You had Tony Mane (LAX all-time leading scorer), Jake Smith (SUP all-time leading scorer), Chris Davis, and then players like DJ Marsh, Curt Hanson, Matt Miller, Miles McKay, Eric Hostetter, and others that could score in bunches.

I hope my information is somewhat accurate since I actually tried to do a little research 

[voice]

Superior's Jarrod Peterson appears on the way to becoming the WIAC's leading scorer this season. He enters Saturday's game vs. RF averaging 16.8 points per game. Stout's Alex Oman ranks second at 14.6 per game.

The last time the conference's leading scorer finished under 20 pts per game was in the 07-08 season when Dan Byer (EC) and Miles Webb (Stout) led the WIAC at 19.0 pts per game.

In 06-07 Pete Rortvedt (SP) led the league with a 16.9 point average.

Does the lack of big scorers tell you anything about the WIAC this season?

I dont know if you are talking about overall season stats or just conference statistics, but looking at the school websites the scoring stats are as follows........

Chas Cross- 17.9 pts in Conference play and 15.5 overall
Alex Oman- 16.2 pts in Conference play and 15.0 overall
Jarrod Peterson- 13.3 pts in Conference play and 15.6 overall

The WIAC doesn't have the "WOW" players offensively this year as they have had the past few years. Obviously Tillema had it before his injury, but now we don't know what might of been. The league is young right now as you look at the 20 leading scorers and only a handful are seniors. You could say WIAC fans were spoiled from 2007-2011 with offensive play. You had Tony Mane (LAX all-time leading scorer), Jake Smith (SUP all-time leading scorer), Chris Davis, and then players like DJ Marsh, Curt Hanson, Matt Miller, Miles McKay, Eric Hostetter, and others that could score in bunches.

I hope my information is somewhat accurate since I actually tried to do a little research 

StoutFan,

Thanks for the "heads-up" on my quoted WIAC statistics from this year. Following your post I checked the WIAC Men's Basketball Website. For some reason the season statistic's page hasn't been updated since January 17th.

Even with Jerrod Peterson now leading the WIAC at 15.6 pts per game (all games) its unlikely the WIAC will have a 20 pt per game (all games) season average.

[Just Bill]

Voice,

You might need to refresh the page. I can see the stats updated through January 31.

http://www.wiacsports.com/custompages/mbasket/1213/confstat.htm?path=mbball

[Greek Tragedy]

I find that I have to do that a lot when I visit that page. Simply hitting refresh updates the page.

In the last two weeks, I've thought about Tillema and if he would get a medical. He's now missed 12 games(?). He has played in 9. There are 4 conference games left, 2 or 3 conference tourney games possible and a maximun of 6 NCAA tourney games to play. Thats a max of 13 and a min of about 6. Does Tyler even want to come back? Is he on course to graduate in 4 years? It a big commitment to come back to school fulltime just to play basketball.