2008 Woodie Awards
Men's team endures 29-'Point' defeat
Cherome Owens
Issue date: 2/20/08 Section: Sports
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In a game where the Warhawks scored the first six points and held a 30-29 lead at halftime, the ninth-ranked UW-Stevens Point Pointers used a 26-6 second-half run to upend No. 2 UW-Whitewater, 76-47, Saturday afternoon in front of 2,425 fans in Quandt Fieldhouse.
"Even with the lead, I didn't think we were playing well or in very good position [to win]," Warhawks' Head Coach Pat Miller said. "We didn't make shots, and they just got their game going in the second half."
Almost every shot went in for the Pointers, as it shot 61 percent in the second half, while the Warhawks shot just 25 percent on 5-for-20 shooting.
Miller said his team didn't change its game plan Saturday, but credits the Pointers' shooting and the Warhawks' recent stretch of road games reasons for the defeat.
"They just made shots," Miller said. "I just thought our level of execution on both the offensive end and defensive end was not very good. I thought we played a little bit tired. I don't know if the four road games in a row took a toll on us, [but] the intensity wasn't there. Clearly, we were a step slow."
Juniors Matt Goodwin and Myles McKay were the only Warhawk players to score in double figures, with 14 and 13 points, respectively. Conversely, the Pointers had five players in double-digit scoring.
"For the most part we played well through [the road trip]." Miller said. "We just ran out of gas."
Miller is not concerned about the team's loss because the 'Hawks are still on top of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and made sure of that after last Wednesday's 70-66 victory UW-Platteville.
"The Platteville game was more important of the two just because of the records going into the week," Miller said. "The bottom line is that we're still in a position where we can control our own destiny in terms of conference seeding. If we win both games next week we'll be the No. 1 seed and at least have our share of the conference championship."
UW-Whitewater, UW-Stevens Point and UW-Oshkosh are tied for the WIAC lead with 11-3 records, while UW-Platteville is a game back at 10-4.
The Warhawks will look to bounce back with a pair of home games to close out the regular season. The team will play UW-Oshkosh tonight at 7 p.m. and UW-River Falls Saturday at 3 p.m. in Kachel Gymnasium. If the team can hold on to first place, they will host the first round of the WIAC tournament, beginning Monday at 7 p.m. in Kachel Gymnasium.
"We still have a lot to play for," Miller said. "Midway through the second half [against UW-Stevens Point], it was evident that we were not going to win the game. It's one of those things where we know we didn't play well, but we've played well the last six weeks. You just have to put it behind you and move forward."
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