2004-05 UW-Oshkosh Men's Basketball News

Capelle Earns All-Region Honor

UW-Oshkosh's Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) has been named as a third team selection on the 2005 NCAA Division III All-West Region Men's Basketball Team by D3hoops.com.

This year's NCAA Division III All-West Region squad consisted of 15 players, with five being selected to each of the three teams. The West Region includes schools in the WIAC, Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, Northwest Conference and Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Capelle was one of six WIAC players named to the All-West Region squad, with the others being Nick Bennett and Jason Kalsow of UW-Stevens Point, Casey Drake of UW-Eau Claire, Angelo Griffin of UW-Whitewater and Brad Reitzner of UW-Platteville.

Capelle earned All-WIAC first team honors for the second consecutive season after averaging 14.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. He started all 27 contests for the Titans this past year and ranked sixth in the WIAC in free-throw percentage (.831), ninth in scoring, rebounding and three-point field goal percentage (.390) and 12th in field goal percentage (.425).

Capelle scored 14 or more points in 15 games this past season, including a career-best 28 in UW-Oshkosh's 81-71 win over Cardinal Stritch University on Dec. 30. He also scored 26 points in the Titans' 77-71 overtime win over UW-Superior on Jan. 22. Capelle recorded one double-double, a 21-point, 11-rebound performance in UW-Oshkosh's 67-60 victory over UW-Eau Claire on Feb. 16.

Capelle started all 27 games for the Titans during the 2003-04 season and averaged a team-leading 13.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest.

Capelle, Jahnke Named All-WIAC First Team

UW-Oshkosh had two players named to the first team and another gain honorable mention status on the 2005 All-WIAC Men's Basketball Team.

UW-Oshkosh players voted to the 10-member first team by the league's nine head coaches were Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) and Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc).

Capelle started all 27 games for the Titans during the 2003-04 season and averaged a team-leading 13.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest.

Jahnke, who transferred to UW-Oshkosh last fall after playing two seasons at NCAA Division I Youngstown State University (Ohio), received All-WIAC first team honors after averaging a team-leading 14.6 points per contest. He started all 27 games for the Titans this past year and listed third in the WIAC in three-point field goals (63), eighth in scoring, 13th in three-point field goal percentage (.364) and 14th in field goal percentage (.417).

Jahnke scored 12 or more points in 17 games this past year, including a career-best 29 in UW-Oshkosh's 77-72 victory over Carroll College on Dec. 22. He also scored 24 points in the Titans' 74-59 win over defending NCAA Division III champion UW-Stevens Point on Feb. 19. Jahnke grabbed eight or more rebounds in five games, including nine in wins of 88-61 win over Purdue University-North Central (Ind.) on Dec. 29 and 65-59 over UW-River Falls on Jan. 29.

Joining Capelle and Jahnke on the first team were Casey Drake of UW-Eau Claire, Joe Werner of UW-La Crosse, Brandon Temperly and Brad Reitzner of UW-Platteville, Nick Bennett and Jason Kalsow of UW-Stevens Point, Laron Reed of UW-Superior and Angelo Griffin of UW-Whitewater.

UW-Oshkosh's Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) was one of eight players earning honorable mention recognition.

Gibson started all 27 games for UW-Oshkosh this past season and averaged 11.7 points and a team-leading 6.5 rebounds per contest. He led the WIAC in blocked shots (77) while ranking sixth in the league in rebounding, 12th in free-throw percentage (.752) and 17th in scoring.

The seven-foot-one Gibson had double-figure scoring in 18 games this past year, including a career-best 26 points in UW-Oshkosh's 77-72 overtime win over UW-Eau Claire on Feb. 22. He also scored 22 points in the Titans' 97-92 overtime win over UW-Whitewater on Jan. 26. Gibson grabbed seven or more rebounds in 15 games, including a career-best 11 in UW-Oshkosh's victory over Cardinal Stritch University.

Gibson started 20 of the 27 games that played in for the Titans last year and averaged 5.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest. He also totaled 68 blocked shots to lead the WIAC.

In addition to Gibson, other honorable mention picks were Dan Archambault of UW-Eau Claire, Mark Gossens of UW-Platteville, Jeff Holt of UW-River Falls, Eric Maus of UW-Stevens Point, Adam Chandler of UW-Stout and Jeremy Manchester and Melvin Williams of UW-Whitewater.

Kalsow was named the WIAC Player of the Year, while Drake was selected as the winner of the WIAC's Max Sparger Scholar-Athlete Award. UW-Platteville's Paul Combs was chosen as the WIAC Coach of the Year.

UW-Oshkosh finished the 2004-05 season with a 19-8 record, including a third-place 11-5 mark in the WIAC.

Pointers Edge Titans In WIAC Tournament Semifinal

Meeting for the 10th time in three years and second time in six days, the UW-Stevens Point and UW-Oshkosh men's basketball teams saved the best for last.

The two teams put on a classic showdown as UW-Stevens Point outlasted UW-Oshkosh, 65-59, in a semifinal round game of the WIAC Tournament held Thursday (Feb. 24) in Stevens Point. It was the third straight year that the two teams have played in Stevens Point in the semifinal round of the WIAC Tournament

UW-Stevens Point (23-3), ranked third in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, advances to host the championship game of the WIAC Tournament. The defending NCAA Division III champion Pointers will host UW-Whitewater (19-8) in the title game on Saturday (Feb. 26) at 7 p.m. UW-Whitewater qualified for the championship contest by ousting top-seeded UW-Platteville (19-7), 89-76, on Thursday

Both teams hit one clutch shot after another as neither held bigger than a four-point lead in the last 16:52 of the game until a pair of free throws in the final seconds accounted for the final score.

After a somewhat sluggish first half that saw the Pointers hold a 23-18 halftime lead and limit the Titans to 29.6 percent shooting, the teams and intensity heated up after halftime. The best stretch of the game started at the 8:56 mark of the second half when UW-Stevens Point’s Tamaris Relerford drained a three-pointer from the corner for a 39-37 lead, sparking an extraordinary flurry of five straight three-pointers over a 1:24 span.

Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) answered with a three-pointer for the Titans and Nick Bennett followed with a three on the other end. Then it was Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) from deep behind the three-point line and Bennett hit a closely-guarded bomb to put the Pointers back ahead 45-43.

The teams moved inside and continued to trade blows, settling into their sixth tie of the second half at 55-55 with 3:28 left. UW-Stevens Point missed a three-pointer on its possession, but Kyle Grusczynski swiped the ball on the Titans’ possession and passed ahead to Relerford for an uncontested layup, giving the Pointers a 57-55 lead with 2:27 left.

The Titans pounded the ball into seven-footer Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) to try to tie the game, but he missed an inside shot and Nick Bennett pulled down the rebound. Nick Bennett was fouled away from the ball on the other end and made two free throws for a four-point lead, however, Gibson followed with a dunk set up by penetration by Jahnke to cut the lead to 59-57 with 1:25 left.

Nick Bennett missed a three-pointer on the next possession, but Grusczynski came flying into the lane from the perimeter to retrieve the miss and keep the possession alive. Jason Kalsow was then fouled with 46 seconds left and made both free throws for a 61-57 lead.

UW-Oshkosh’s Chad Doedens (So. • Cedarburg) drove the length of the court and scored a quick layup to trim the lead back to two points and the Titans chose not to foul the Pointers, who ran the shot clock down before Kalsow found Eric Maus under the basket for an easy layup with 14 seconds left.

The Titans (19-8), ranked 25th nationally, missed a three-pointer at the other end and Bennett hit two free throws with 2.6 seconds left to finish off the game.

Nick Bennett hit four three-pointers and was eight-for-eight from the line. Kalsow added 12 points and Maus had 10 points, all in the second half. The Pointers made 20 of 22 free throws, including all 17 attempts in the second half.

Jahnke led the Titans with 15 points, while Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) and Gibson each scored 13 points. Fernholz finished the contest with six points, seven rebounds and six assists. Fernholz was playing in his 115th game for the Titans, including the last 94 as a starter.

Titans Post Overtime Win In WIAC Tournament Opener

Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) scored 12 of his career-high 26 points in overtime as UW-Oshkosh rallied to defeat UW-Eau Claire, 77-72, in a quarterfinal round contest of the WIAC Men's Basketball Tournament held Tuesday (Feb. 22) in Kolf Sports Center.

UW-Oshkosh (19-7) advances to the semifinal round of the eight-team WIAC Tournament, where the third-seeded Titans will play at second seed UW-Stevens Point (22-3) on Thursday (Feb. 24). The Pointers qualified for their semifinal round contest with UW-Oshkosh by routing seventh seed UW-Superior (14-12), 88-68, on Tuesday.

UW-Oshkosh and UW-Stevens Point have met twice this year, with the Pointers winning 69-44 on Jan. 18 in Stevens Point and the Titans winning 74-59 on Feb. 19 in Oshkosh. UW-Stevens Point enters Thursday's contest ranked third in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com and UW-Oshkosh 25th.

Other quarterfinal round results in the WIAC Tournament on Tuesday had top-seeded UW-Platteville (19-6) rout eighth-seeded UW-River Falls (8-17), 70-55, and fourth-seed UW-Whitewater (18-8) edge fifth-seeded UW-Stout (13-11), 82-78 in overtime. UW-Platteville will host UW-Whitewater in a semifinal round matchup on Thursday.

Pounding the ball into the paint, the Titans scored an enormous lift from Gibson. With UW-Eau Claire center Tyler Birkel on the bench after fouling out late in regulation, Gibson owned the overtime.

"That mentality of going at them was going to work. Go right at them and don't kick it out," said Gibson, who also finished the game with eight rebounds and five blocked shots. "Our game plan was working, to go right at the big guys, and all they could do was foul."

Gibson scored UW-Oshkosh's first five points in overtime, but clutch shooting by Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) sealed he game. With the game tied 70-70, Fernholz drained a three-pointer with less than a minute remaining and scored two free throws with 14 seconds left.

The Blugolds and UW-Oshkosh exchanged baskets like a pair of dueling heavyweights in the first half. UW-Oshkosh led 10-3 early, but never separated itself by more than seven points.

Poor shooting limited the effectiveness of both offenses early as UW-Eau Claire shot 21 percent in the first half and UW-Oshkosh 35.

"Luckily they were shooting worse than we were, so we had a lead going into the half," said Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc), who finished with 19 points. "But we just kept battling, hoping the shots would fall."

Pulling ahead on a three-pointer by Will Jefferson early in the second half, UW-Eau Claire maintained its lead throughout most of regulation. The lead was exchanged a couple of times in the final four minutes, but in the final 20 seconds with the game tied, UW-Oshkosh's Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) missed a pair of free throws that likely would have sealed the game.

Casey Drake led the Blugolds with 19 points with Jefferson and Oshkosh West graduate Dan Archambault scoring 18 each.

Fernholz finished with a double-double for the Titans, scoring 10 points with 11 rebounds.

Titans Knock Off Top-Ranked Pointers

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team held UW-Stevens Point to its worst shooting performance in 155 games as it defeated the defending NCAA Division III champion and top-ranked Pointers, 74-59, on Saturday (Feb. 19) in Kolf Sports Center.

Saturday's contest was the regular season finale for both teams, with the loss dropping UW-Stevens Point (21-3/13-3 WIAC) into a tie for the WIAC championship with UW-Platteville (18-6/13-3 WIAC) and the win giving UW-Oshkosh (18-7/11-5 WIAC) a third-place WIAC listing.

UW-Stevens Point and UW-Oshkosh both return to the hardwood on Tuesday (Feb. 22) when they host quarterfinal round games of the WIAC Tournament. UW-Stevens Point is seeded second in the eight-team tournament after losing the top ranking to UW-Platteville on a tiebreaker. UW-Stevens Point will host seventh-seeded UW-Superior (14-11/5-11 WIAC) in its first game of the WIAC Tournament, while third-seeded UW-Oshkosh opens with a visit from sixth-seeded UW-Eau Claire (13-12/6-10 WIAC).

UW-Stevens Point shot just 31.6 percent (18-57) from the field against UW-Oshkosh, including a dismal 25 percent (8-32) in the second half. It was the Pointers' lowest shooting percentage since they shot 30.8 percent (16-52) against Edgewood College in the fourth game of the 1999-2000 season.

UW-Oshkosh, which has held 47 of its last 52 opponents under 50 percent field goal shooting, converted on 51.2 (22-43) percent of its own field goal attempts to become just the second team to shoot over 50 percent from the field against UW-Stevens Point this season. The Pointers entered the contest allowing just 36.4 percent field goal shooting on the year, the second-best mark in the NCAA Division III.

Both teams displayed excellent skill at the free-throw line as UW-Stevens Point made 17 of 18 attempts for 94.4 percent and UW-Oshkosh 20 of 22 attempts for 90.9 percent.

UW-Stevens Point opened the game with one of its only hot shooting stretches of the night, hitting four of its first seven shots as Jason Kalsow and Nick Bennett hit back-to-back three-pointers for a 10-2 lead.

UW-Oshkosh came back to tie the game at 12-12 before Kyle Grusczynski hit two three-pointers to put UW-Stevens Point back ahead 20-15 with 11:23 left. However, the Pointers made just one of their next seven shots and Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) and Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) hit consecutive three-pointers to cap a 13-3 run and put the Titans ahead and in control at 28-23.

Eric Maus hit a layup to pull the Pointers within 31-27 with 5:57 left, but it was UW-Stevens Point's last field goal of the half as UW-Oshkosh went on a 12-3 run and eventually led 43-32 at halftime. UW-Oshkosh shot 60.9 percent (14-23) from the field in the first half and recorded nearly as many points as it did in its first meeting with the Pointers, a 69-44 loss on Jan. 18.

Kalsow opened the second half with a three-pointer for the Pointers, but the eight-point deficit was the closest UW-Stevens Point came the rest of the way as Jahnke answered with a three-pointer on the ensuing possession to put the Titans ahead 46-35 with 17:53 to play.

UW-Stevens Point cut the lead to nine points twice in the final two minutes, but UW-Oshkosh made its final 10 free throw attempts of the contest to snap a five-game losing streak to the Pointers.

Jahnke led UW-Oshkosh in scoring with 24 points, including 13 in the first half. The Titans also received 17 points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots form Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson), 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists from Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) and nine points and two rebounds from Kyle Johnson (So. • Milwaukee).

Kalsow paced UW-Stevens Point with 23 points and six rebounds, while Bennett added 12 points, four assists and three rebounds.

UW-Oshkosh won the rebounding battle, 36-25, but lost the turnover count to UW-Stevens Point, 10-6.

Saturday's contest was played in front of 2,604 fans, UW-Oshkosh's largest home crowd of the season.

Titans Knock Off Blugolds

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team has a formula for success.

"We're trying to get to 20 wins," said UW-Oshkosh head coach Ted Van Dellen. "I think 20 wins is an outstanding season. Now, 17 isn't a bad season, but 20 is always the benchmark we try to gauge our people with.

"That's what we're battling for and every game is important."

The Titans (17-10/10-5 WIAC) moved a step closer to 20 wins with a 67-60 victory over UW-Eau Claire on Wednesday (Feb. 16) at Kolf Sports Center. Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) paced the Titans with his first double-double, scoring a team-high 21 points with 11 rebounds.

"Jimmy shot the ball really well," Van Dellen said. "He's really starting to play better now."

A barrage of 3-pointers elevated the Titans early. UW-Oshkosh drained three consecutive 3-pointers as converting a three-point play for a 14-6 lead.

However, sustaining momentum has been a problem for the Titans. Instead of closing the door, they allowed UW-Eau Claire back in to game with UW-Oshkosh ahead 25-22 at halftime.

"We had some great looks in the first half, we just couldn't get them in the hole," Van Dellen said. "That game could have easily been way out of reach if we could have hit a few shots."

The Titans' offense struggled through several key stretches, but received a healthy boost from Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem). He finished with 13 points, including a huge 3-pointer with time expiring on the shot clock with 2:29 remaining for a 57-50 lead.

"He's not really a 3-point shooter, that's usually Capelle or (Andy) Jahnke (Sr. • Manitowoc)," said UW-Eau Claire head coach Terry Gibbons. "And to be honest, that's who we wanted to have the ball."

One of the Titans objectives was to shut down Casey Drake and Dan Archambault. Instead, the duo ran wild through UW-Oshkosh's defense, combining for 45 points.

"They're both good player and we'll probably see these guys again in the tournament, I'd imagine," Van Dellen said.

"But I don't think anybody else had hardly any points."

Drake scored all of the Blugold points in the final 10 minutes of the first half. Coupled with Archambault, they were the only UW-Eau Claire players scoring in double figures.

The Titans secured a No. 3 seed for the upcoming WIAC Tournament.

J.J. Jumper To Visit Kolf Sports Center

J.J. Jumper, the official basketball mascot of the NCAA, will visit UW-Oshkosh's basketball doubleheader against UW-La Crosse on Saturday (Feb. 5) in Kolf Sports Center.

J.J. Jumper's purpose is to increase enthusiasm and awareness of NCAA Basketball, while engaging and educating youth on healthy physical, emotional and educational values. J.J.'s mission is to represent both genders and all races.

J.J. Jumper is an attention-getting six-foot, five-inch green creature with orange hair, size 26 shoes and a big heart that motivates youth to do their best on and off the court. J.J. appears at men's and women's basketball games, giving away NCAA Basketball promotional items and performing skits during timeouts and/or halftime.

The 2004-05 basketball season is the fifth for J.J. Jumper. During the past four seasons, J.J. has made more than 300 visits at NCAA institutions, appearing at almost 600 basketball games. J.J. performs at regular season basketball games in all three NCAA divisions, conference tournaments and all NCAA basketball championships.

J.J. Jumper's appearance in Kolf Sports Center is also a part of the NCAA's Take A Kid To The Game Program. Kids, ages 12 and under, will receive FREE ADMISSION to the basketball doubleheader with the purchase of an adult ticket. Ticket prices for the doubleheader are $8 for adults and $4 for students (elementary through high school) and senior citizens. UW-Oshkosh students will be admitted FREE with their university identification card.

UW-Oshkosh's basketball doubleheader against UW-La Crosse begins at 5 p.m. with the women's game and concludes at 7:30 p.m. with the men's contest.

Titans' Balance Downs Blue Devils

UW-Oshkosh took the lead from the very beginning and never relinquished that lead, going on to a 77-63 win over UW-Stout, Wednesday (Feb. 2) in Menomonie.

The Titans (16-5, 9-3) took advantage at the line in the first half, and again down the final stretch to snag the win.

UW-Oshkosh dropped in 9-of-12 free throws in the first half and finished making 17-of-20 charity shots for the game. UW-Stout (12-6, 7-4), in contrast, did not go to the line in the first half and was only there for three total attempts, making two.

After UW-Stout tied the game at 5-5 with 16:19 left in the first half, the Titans went on a 15-3 run over the next four minutes and carried a 41-35 lead into halftime. The Titans' Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells), who finished the game with 13 points, dropped consecutive 3-pointers to get the run started.

Three-pointers were raining in the first half. UW-Stout connected on 7-of-12 first half bombs, while the Titans put down 6-of-12 treys.

UW-Stout pulled to within two points early in the second half on a jumper by Terry Farmer, but that would be as close as UW-Stout would get.

Despite a good defensive effort by the Blue Devils, several times the Titans knocked down shots just as the 35-second clock was nearly running on empty.

Both teams shot near the 50 percent range from the floor. The Titans made 26-of-53 field goal attempts (49.1 percent) and Stout made 26-of-56 (46.4 percent).

UW-Stout's Ryan Stangl led all scorers with 18 points, while teammates Farmer added 13 and Adam Chandler finished with 10. The Blue Devils' Jacob Nonemacher had a game-high 10 rebounds.

The Titans had five players in double figures, led by Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) with 15 points. Capelle and Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) each had 13 points. Chad Doedens (So. • Cedarburg) pocketed 12 points and Pete Warning (So. • Shiocton) came off the bench to score 11.

Titans Survive Falcons' Three-Point Assault

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team withstood 32 three-point shots from UW-River Falls as it defeated the defending WIAC champion Falcons, 65-59, on Saturday (Jan. 29) in River Falls.

UW-River Falls (6-13/2-9 WIAC) attacked UW-Oshkosh (15-5/8-3 WIAC) with 18 three-point shots in the first half, including 12 in the first 11 minutes of play, and 14 in the second. UW-Oshkosh fired 14 three-point shots in the game, including 10 in the first half.

UW-River Falls jumped to an 18-10 lead over UW-Oshkosh at the 11:50 mark of the first half as six three-point baskets (10 attempts) accounted for all of the Falcons' scoring. UW-Oshkosh closed the first half with a 14-7 scoring run to cut its deficit to 25-24 at intermission.

UW-River Falls overcame an early 28-25 deficit in the second half by staging a 17-8 scoring run to take a 42-36 lead with 9:44 to play. The Titans answered back with 11 straight points to build a 47-42 advantage with 7:56 left.

Tied at 49-49, UW-Oshkosh scored 16 of the next 26 points to put UW-River Falls away. The Titans iced their second win of the 2004-05 season over the Falcons by sinking five of six free-throw shots in the final 48 seconds of action, including four straight by Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells).

Capelle led UW-Oshkosh in scoring with 16 points, while Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) added 12, Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) 11 and Pete Warning (Jr. • Shiocton) nine. Jahnke and Nathan Wesener (So. • Hilbert) both collected nine rebounds to the Titans, while Capelle and Gibson grabbed eight each.

Jeff Holt scored 25 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead UW-River Falls in both categories. The Falcons also received 12 points and five rebounds from Hans Hoeg and 11 points from Dan Torrez.

UW-Oshkosh concluded the game shooting 45.8 percent (22-48) from the field, including 54.5 (12-22) in the second half. The Titans also shot 21.4 percent (3-14) behind the three-point line and 75 percent (18-24) from the free-throw stripe.

UW-Oshkosh finished the contest shooting 32.7 percent (18-55) from the field. The Falcons also shot 34.4 percent (11-32) behind the three-point line and 75 percent (12-16) from the free-throw line.

UW-Oshkosh outscored UW-River Falls in the paint, 32-8, and recorded a 19-6 advantage in second-chance points. UW-Oshkosh had 12 turnovers in the game and UW-River Falls just seven.

Titans Rally To Capture Yellowjackets

Despite all the wins, what the UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team noticed most are the back-to-back losses.

"You can say it as much as you want, but confidence is a fragile thing. Going into this game, we might have pumped up and talked confident, but I don't think we were a real confident team," said Titans' head coach Ted Van Dellen. "It's tough. How do you regain confidence without experiencing success? A lot of times confidence is the key to success."

"So, you need to get a win and that usually cures a lot of things."

All of the Titans' ailments were exorcised with a 77-71 overtime with over UW-Superior on Saturday (Jan. 22) at Kolf Sports Center. Ranked 25th in NCAA Division III according to D3hoops.com, UW-Oshkosh to 13-5 overall, 6-3 in the WIAC.

"This was extremely important and it was probably better that it was an overtime win, just barely a win," Van Dellen said. "That's even better than a win where you get after somebody and beat them by 20."

"This is going to help us immensely in the last seven ball games we have."

Explosive in the opening minutes, the Titans led most of the game. They shot 50 percent from the field and four of their first five baskets were 3-pointers.

Then Oshkosh lost its mo jo.

"To their credit, they threw a couple of defenses right there to break our momentum, and they did," Van Dellen said.

"We had a rhythm going and they broke the rhythm and we needed to find it."

"I never felt we really got back into a good flow the second half, but in overtime, we found our flow."

With a 55-43 lead late in the second half, the Titans ineffectively executed their offense. A pair of costly turnovers sent what looked like a blowout victory into overtime against a Superior team that's not even treading water in the WIAC.

"They're going to play a physical up-tempo game," said Titans' Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells). "They've lost all their conference games but they won all their non-conference games."

"It's not like they're a bad team. They played tough and we just ended up on the high side."

That almost wasn't the case.

After sputtering through the final minutes of regulation, Capelle resurrected the Titans' dying offense. He finished with nine of UW-Oshkosh's 16 points in overtime.

"UW-Oshkosh is a very skilled team and very fundamentally sound," said UW-Superior head coach Jeff Kaminsky.

"When we didn't have intense pressure on them, they were able to break us down."

Capelle scored a team-high 26 points, while Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) added 12. UW-Superior's Laron Reed led the Yellowjackets with 26 points and a game-high six assists.

Titans Fall To Defending National Champion

When the other team is in a zone, sometimes the best move is to go into one of your own.

As UW-Oshkosh jumped out to a quick early lead, the UW-Stevens Point men’s basketball team switched to a zone defense and handled the Titans the rest of the way in posting a 69-44 victory on Tuesday (Jan. 18) in Stevens Point.

The Titans opened up a 13-2 lead and led 18-7 with 10:12 left in the first half when UW-Stevens Point (14-1/7-1 WIAC) tried to slow UW-Oshkosh (12-5/5-3 WIAC) with the zone. The move paid huge dividends with the Pointers forcing six straight missed shots and four turnovers while scoring 14 straight points to take the lead and closing the half with a 24-5 run for a 31-23 halftime lead.

UW-Oshkosh chipped away at the lead in the second half and closed to within 39-36 on a basket by Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells). Kyle Grusczynski followed with a three-pointer to put the Pointers ahead 42-36 before another Capelle basket cut the deficit to four points with 12:12 remaining.

UW-Stevens Point went back to the zone defense and took over from that point, outscoring the Titans 18-1 over the next eight minutes and holding UW-Oshkosh without a field goal until 35 seconds remained in the game as the Titans missed 10 straight shots. Leading 48-38 with 8:07 left, Grusczynski hit another big three-pointer for the Pointers to push the lead to 13 points.

The Pointers also put the game away at the free throw line, hitting all 16 attempts for the game and all nine in the second half.

UW-Stevens Point held UW-Oshkosh’s top two scorers, Capelle and Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc), to a combined 13 points on five-for-20 shooting, including just one-for-10 from three-point range. The pair entered the game averaging a combined 32 points per game, however, were stymied by a Pointers’ defense that leads the NCAA Division III in scoring defense at 51.6 points per game.

The Pointers also rank second in the country in field goal percentage defense and held the Titans to just 34.8 percent, including just two-for-16 three-point shooting. UW-Stevens Point shot 46.9 percent from the field, including 54.2 percent in the second half.

Jason Kalsow had 22 points, seven rebounds and five assists to lead the Pointers, while Nick Bennett added 21 points with three three-pointers. Seven-foot-one center Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) paced the Titans with a career-high 18 points along with six rebounds.

UW-Stevens Point entered the contest as the top-ranked team in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, while UW-Oshkosh was ranked 25th. UW-Stevens Point is the defending NCAA Division III champion.

Strong Start Helps Titans Topple Yellowjackets

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team held UW-Superior to just 22 points and 27.6 percent (8-29) field goal shooting in the first half as it defeated the Yellowjackets, 71-61, on Saturday (Jan. 8) in Superior.

UW-Oshkosh (12-3/5-1 WIAC) made it difficult for UW-Superior (9-5/0-5 WIAC) right from the opening tip by jumping to a 22-6 lead just 8:42 into play. Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) sparked the Titans' early scoring run by compiling eight of his game-high 20 points.

After UW-Superior tallied seven straight points to cut its deficit to 22-13 with 9:18 left in the opening period, UW-Oshkosh staged a 16-9 scoring run to take a 38-22 lead to intermission. The Titans shot 48.1 percent (13-27) from the field in the first half while making nine of their 11 free-throw attempts.

UW-Superior opened the second half with a 19-5 scoring spree to slice its deficit to 43-41 with 10:11 left in the game. Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) then followed the Yellowjackets' charge with eight straight points to increase the Titans' advantage to 51-41 with 7:30 remaining to play. UW-Oshkosh led by seven-plus points the rest of the contest, including a 71-59 tally with 17 seconds left. Gibson paced the Titans in the second half by totaling 10 points, six rebounds and four blocked shots.

Jahnke scored his 20 points for UW-Oshkosh on 7-of-13 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 shooting from the free-throw line. He also made four three-point baskets in the game, dished off four assists and grabbed two rebounds. The Titans also received 14 points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots from Gibson and 13 points, six rebounds and two assists from Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells).

Laron Reed totaled 13 points, four rebounds and four steals to lead UW-Superior, while Marc Rothschadl added 12 points and Leonard Cobb 10 points and eight rebounds.

UW-Oshkosh concluded the game shooting 41.7 percent (20-48) from the field and 83.9 percent (26-31) from the free-throw line. The Titans made five of their 18 shots (27.8 percent) behind the three-point line and conquered the rebounding, 36-34. UW-Oshkosh had 18 turnovers in the contest.

UW-Superior finished the game shooting 39.3 percent (24-61) from the field. The Yellowjackets shot just 55.6 percent (10-18) from the free-throw line and 25 percent (3-12) behind the three-point arc. UW-Superior had 12 turnovers in the contest.

First Half Scoring Run Keys Titans' Win

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team ended the first half with a 27-10 scoring run to pull away and defeat UW-Platteville, 82-60, on Tuesday (Jan. 4) in Kolf Sports Center.

UW-Oshkosh (11-3/4-1 WIAC) went the first six minutes of action without a point before rallying to take the lead for good at 12-10 on a three-point play by Kyle Johnson (So. • Milwaukee) with 9:21 left in the first half. UW-Oshkosh proceeded to score 20 of the next 28 points, including eight by Johnson, to take a 32-18 advantage to intermission.

UW-Oshkosh suffocated UW-Platteville's offense during the last 10 minutes of the first half as the Titans held the Pioneers to just two field goals and six free throws. UW-Platteville (7-5/2-2 WIAC) ended the first half shooting 15.4 percent (4-26) from the field after missing 14 of its last 16 shots.

UW-Platteville fell behind 50-28 in the second half before pulling to within 11 points at 62-51 with 8:52 to play. The Titans quickly cancelled the Pioneers' momentum when they scored 20 of the game's remaining 29 points. UW-Oshkosh kept its second half lead over UW-Platteville by making 13 of its 22 shots (59.1 percent) from the field and 21 of its 23 attempts (91.3 percent) from the free-throw line.

Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) led UW-Oshkosh in scoring with 18 points, while Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) added 14, Johnson 13 and Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) 11. Johnson had all 13 of his points in the first half, while Jahnke had all 14 of his points in the second. Capelle and Jahnke each grabbed eight rebounds to pace the Titans.

Brandon Temperly scored a season-high 23 points to lead UW-Platteville, while LeVon Crawford added 13 and Brad Reitzner 11. Temperly also collected a team-best six rebounds.

UW-Oshkosh shot 51.2 percent (22-43) from the field for the game, including 42.9 (6-14) behind the three-point line. The Titans, who won the rebounding battle, 34-26, also shot 88.9 percent (32-36) from the the free-throw line.

UW-Platteville concluded the contest shooting 32.1 percent (18-56) from the field. The Pioneers, who were playing their fifth straight road game, also shot 31.3 percent (5-16) behind the three-point line and 70.4 percent (19-27) from the free-throw stripe.

Titans Capture Wolves

Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) scored 14 of his career-high 28 points in each half to lead the UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team to an 81-71 victory over Cardinal Stritch University in the fifth-place game of the Clarke College Holiday Tournament held Thursday (Dec. 30) in Dubuque, Iowa.

UW-Oshkosh (10-3), which won for the 78th time in its last 86 regular season non-conference games, finished the eight-team tournament with a 2-1 record. In addition to its victory over Cardinal Stritch University (9-9), UW-Oshkosh also lost 60-59 to North Central College (Ill.) in the tournament and won 88-61 over Purdue University-North Central (Ind.).

Capelle recorded 28 points against Cardinal Stritch University on 8-of-15 shooting from the field, including 5-of-8 behind the three-point line, and 7-of-8 shooting from the free-throw line. His also recorded seven rebounds, three assists and two steals.

UW-Oshkosh also got 16 points and three assists from Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc), nine points and 11 rebounds from Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson), nine points, six assists and five rebounds from Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) and eight points, eight rebounds and four assists from Chad Doedens (So. • Cedarburg).

Tied 63-63 with 3:36 remaining in the contest, Capelle counted 10 points during an 18-5 scoring run that gave UW-Oshkosh an 81-68 lead with 28 seconds left. UW-Oshkosh, which led 43-33 earlier in the second half, forced the 63-63 tie by rallying from a 60-55 deficit with 7:57 to play.

UW-Oshkosh and Cardinal Stritch University exchanged the lead five times in the first half. The Wolves scored the first five points of the contest and held a 27-22 advantage before the Titans scored 19 of the next 25 points to take a 41-33 lead to intermission. UW-Oshkosh had three eight-point leads in the first half, all in the final 2:22 of the period.

Cardinal Stritch University had four double-figure scorers in the game. Nick Moran led the Wolves with 26 points, while Matthias Cordier added 12 and Linnie Balfour and Ronald Bell 11 each. Bell and Moran both grabbed eight rebounds to pace the first-time opponent of the Titans.

UW-Oshkosh finished the game shooting 43.3 percent (29-67) from the field, including 40 (10-25) behind the three-point line. The Titans also shot 81.3 percent (13-16) from the free-throw line.

Cardinal Stritch University concluded the contest shooting 47.6 percent (30-63) from the field, 36 percent (9-25) behind the three-point line and 50 percent (2-4) from the free-throw line.

UW-Oshkosh, which has held 38 of its last 40 opponents under 50 percent shooting from the field, outrebounded Cardinal Stritch University, 43-32. The Titans had just seven turnovers in the contest.

Titans Mangle Panthers

Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) scored 21-plus points for the third consecutive contest as the UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team advanced to the fifth-place game of the Clarke College Holiday Tournament by defeating Purdue University-North Central (Ind.), 88-61, on Wednesday (Dec. 29) in Dubuque, Iowa.

UW-Oshkosh (9-3), which opened the eight-team tournament with a 60-59 loss to North Central College (Ill.) on Monday (Dec. 27), meets Cardinal Stritch University (9-8) on Thursday (Dec. 30) in the fifth-place game. Cardinal Stritch University also owns a 1-1 record in the tournament after losing to Tri-State University (Ind.), 99-93, and defeating Siena Heights University (Mich.), 80-69.

Jahnke scored his 21 points against Purdue University-North Central on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 shooting from the free-throw line. He also grabbed a career-high nine rebounds and dished off one assist.

UW-Oshkosh played its entire 14-man roster in the game, with Pete Warning (Jr. • Shiocton) contributing 12 points and four rebounds, Jordan Johnson (Fr. • Waupaca) nine points and two rebounds and Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) eight points, five rebounds and three blocked shots.

Matthew Martinez led Purdue University-North Central in scoring with 22 points, while Steve Fox added nine and Drew Dixon and Kevin Potchen seven each. Drew also collected a team-high five rebounds for the Panthers, a first-time opponent of the Titans.

UW-Oshkosh scored 15 seconds into play on a pair of free throws by Gibson and led Purdue University-North Central the remainder of the game. The Titans built a 35-20 lead before the Panthers scored six straight points to cut their deficit to 35-26 with 2:17 left in the first half. UW-Oshkosh ended the opening period with a 7-1 scoring run to take a 42-27 advantage to intermission.

UW-Oshkosh led by double-digits the entire second half, including a 67-36 count with 9:48 left in the game. The Titans took their 67-36 lead after scoring 19 consecutive points, including five by Jahnke and four each by Gibson, Warning and Nathan Wesener (So. • Hilbert).

UW-Oshkosh concluded the game shooting 51.7 percent (31-60) from the field and 73.3 percent (22-30) from the free-throw line. The Titans shot just 28.6 percent (4-14) behind the three-point line.

Purdue University-North Central finished the contest shooting 42.2 percent (19-45) from the field and 68 percent (17-25) from the free-throw stripe. The Panthers shot 35.3 percent (6-17) beyond the three-point arc.

UW-Oshkosh also won the rebounding battle, 39-25, and the turnover ratio, 10-14.

Titans Fall On Basket In Closing Seconds

Mike Wilson's three-point basket with 10 seconds to play gave the North Central College (Ill.) men's basketball team a 60-59 victory over UW-Oshkosh in an opening round contest of the Clarke College Holiday Tournament held Monday (Dec. 27) in Dubuque, Iowa.

North Central College and UW-Oshkosh both return to action in the eight-team tournament on Wednesday (Dec. 29), with the Cardinals (8-1) playing Clarke College (8-2) in the semifinal round of the championship bracket and the Titans (8-3) battling Purdue University-North Central (7-8) in semifinal round of the consolation bracket. Clarke College advanced to the semifinal round of the championship bracket after defeating Purdue University-North Central, 79-68, on Monday.

UW-Oshkosh led North Central College most of the second half, including a 38-31 count with 14:45 remaining in the game. The two teams then played to ties of 48-48 and 51-51 before Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) gave UW-Oshkosh a 54-51 lead on a three-point basket with 4:32 to play.

North Central College answered Capelle's bomb with four straight points and took a 57-55 lead on a jump shot by Anthony Simmons with 49 seconds remaining in the game. UW-Oshkosh worked the shot clock down on the ensuing possession and grabbed a 59-57 advantage on a three-point basket by Capelle with 24 seconds left. Wilson gave North Central College the win with his three-point basket 14 seconds later, but the Cardinals couldn't celebrate the victory until Capelle's three-point shot at the horn missed its mark.

UW-Oshkosh opened the game by taking a 10-5 lead at the 14:42 mark of the first half. North Central College then scored 20 of the next 30 points to take a 25-20 advantage to intermission. The Cardinals' biggest lead of the first half was a 21-14 count with 4:11 left in the period.

Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) led UW-Oshkosh in scoring with 21 points, while Capelle added 15 and Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) 10. Behind a game-high 10 rebounds from Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem), eight from Jahnke and seven from Gibson, UW-Oshkosh won the rebounding battle over North Central College, 41-22.

Simmons and Daniel Walton both scored 13 points to lead the Cardinals, while Wilson scored nine points, grabbed nine rebounds and dished off four assists.

UW-Oshkosh concluded the game shooting 40.7 percent (22-54) from the field, including 39.1 (9-23) behind the three-point line. Gibson made all six of UW-Oshkosh's attempts from the free-throw line.

North Central College finished the contest shooting 48.1 percent (26-54) from the field, including 40.0 (6-15) behind the three-point stripe. The Cardinals shot just 28.6 percent (2-7) from the free-throw line.

Titans Hold Off Pioneers

Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) scored a career-high 29 points, including 19 in the second half, as the UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team edged Carroll College, 77-72, on Wednesday (Dec. 22) in Kolf Sports Center.

Jahnke, a first-year transfer from NCAA Division I Youngstown State University (Ohio), registered 22-plus points for the third time this season by making nine of 16 shots from the field and six of eight attempts from the free-throw line. He also grabbed six rebounds, dished off three assists and recorded one steal.

In addition to Jahnke's performance, UW-Oshkosh (8-2) also received 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists from Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem), 11 points, four rebounds and two assists from Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) and 11 points from Nathan Wesener (So. • Hilbert).

With exception of ties at 15-15 and 17-17, UW-Oshkosh led Carroll College (5-1) the entire first half. The Titans scored the first eight points of the game and held advantages of 25-17 and 27-19 before taking a 36-32 lead to intermission. UW-Oshkosh escorted Carroll College to the break despite shooting 36.7 percent (11-30) from the field.

In the second half, UW-Oshkosh increased its lead to 54-45 before Carroll College scored 11 straight points to take a 56-54 advantage with 7:18 to play. The two teams exchanged the lead five times the rest of the game, with UW-Oshkosh taking the advantage for good at 69-67 on a three-point basket by Capelle with 2:53 left. The Titans held off the Pioneers down the stretch by making six of eight free throw attempts, including three conversions by Fernholz in the last 65 seconds of play.

Carroll College, which last played UW-Oshkosh during the 1990-91 season, had three players reach double-figure scoring. Ben Hickethier and Jason Trimborn each scored 14 points for the Pioneers, while Jason Scheper added 12.

UW-Oshkosh, ranked 21st in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, concluded the contest shooting 46.9 percent (23-49) from the field. The Titans also shot 37.5 percent (9-24) behind the three-point line and 71 percent (22-31) from the free-throw line.

Carroll College finished the game shooting 44.4 percent (24-54) from the field, 22.2 percent (4-18) behind the three-point line and 80 percent (20-25) from the free-throw line.

UW-Oshkosh, which presented head coach Ted Van Dellen with his 250th coaching victory, captured the rebounding battle, 36-30, but lost the turnover decision, 14-9.

Vikings Win Battle Of Nationally-Ranked Teams

Lawrence University overcame 34 percent (17-50) shooting from the field to defeat UW-Oshkosh, 52-46, in a contest of two nationally-ranked men's basketball teams held Saturday (Dec. 18) in Albee Hall.

Lawrence University (4-1) entered the hardwood debate ranked 10th in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com and UW-Oshkosh (7-2) 17th. It was just the fourth meeting between the two Fox Valley schools since the 1956-57 season.

Lawrence University led UW-Oshkosh the final 28:56 of the game after taking a 15-12 advantage on a three-point basket by Dan Evans. Evans went on to score 17 points in the contest, including a jump shot from the lane with 24 seconds left to play that put the Vikings ahead 48-44. Lawrence University then forced a UW-Oshkosh turnover with 12 seconds remaining, and added four free throws to secure the victory.

UW-Oshkosh trailed 31-22 early in the second half before scoring eight straight points to cut its deficit to 31-30 with 17:04 remaining in the contest. Lawrence University then scored six consecutive points to take a 37-30 lead with 15:03 left and stayed in front by at least two points the rest of the way.

Lawrence University took a 29-22 advantage to intermission after leading by as many as nine points on three occasions in the first half. The Vikings trailed only once in the game, a 3-2 count with 3:51 gone in the first half. The contest was tied twice in the opening period, counts of 2-2 and 12-12.

Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead UW-Oshkosh in both categories. The Titans also received nine points, four rebounds and four assists from Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) and eight points, seven rebounds and five blocked shots from Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson).

Besides scoring 17 points, Evans also grabbed four rebounds, dished off three assists and recorded two steals for Lawrence University. The Vikings also received nine points, 11 rebounds and three steals from Chris Braier.

UW-Oshkosh shot 43 percent (18-41) from the field, but made just one of its 10 attempts (10 percent) behind the three-point line. The Titans made nine of their 10 tries (90 percent) from the free-throw-line.

In addition to shooting 34 percent from the field, Lawrence University also shot 30.8 percent (4-13) behind the three-point line and 82.4 percent (14-17) from the free-throw line. The Vikings recorded steals on 11 of UW-Oshkosh's 20 turnovers while limiting the Titans to just five offensive rebounds.

Titans Stroll Past Defending WIAC Champion

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team pulled away late in the first half and paraded to a 62-51 victory over defending WIAC champion UW-River Falls on Saturday (Dec. 11) in Kolf Sports Center.

UW-Oshkosh (7-1/3-1 WIAC) registered the first point of the contest and held the lead until UW-River Falls (3-4/0-3 WIAC) tied the score at 10-10 with 14:06 left in the first half. Following 10 straight points by the Titans and then eight consecutive points by the Falcons, UW-Oshkosh staged a 15-6 scoring run to take a 35-24 lead to intermission.

UW-Oshkosh shot 50 percent (12-24) from the field in the first half and had an assist on all 12 of its baskets. The Titans were deadly behind the three-point line in the opening period as they made all six of their tries. Meanwhile, UW-River Falls shot a paltry 34.6 percent (9-26) from the field in the first half, with 14 of its 26 attempts coming from beyond the three-point stripe.

UW-Oshkosh scored the first seven points of the second half and pushed its lead to 48-28 with 14:18 to play. The Titans had their advantage cut to 52-36 before they reeled off 10 straight points to take a 62-36 lead with 4:12 remaining in the game. UW-River Falls counted 15 points and held UW-Oshkosh scoreless the rest of the way to make the final outcome somewhat respectable.

UW-Oshkosh's Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) led all scorers with 12 points. He also grabbed four rebounds, dished off one assist and blocked one shot. The Titans also received 10 points, three steals and two assists from Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc), 10 points off the bench from Pete Warning (Jr. • Shiocton) and nine points, seven assists and five rebounds from Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem).

UW-River Falls didn't have a player score in double digits, but Jeff Holt and Dan Torrez did tally nine points each. Hans Hoeg led the Falcons with five rebounds.

UW-Oshkosh, ranked 14th in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, ended the game shooting 44 percent (22-50) from the field and 80 percent (12-15) from the free-throw line. The Titans, who won the rebounding battle, 35-32, missed all six of their three-point shots in the second half to end the game at 50 percent (6-12).

UW-River Falls shot just 33.9 percent (19-56) from the field for the game, including only 30.4 (7-23) behind the three-point line. The Falcons, who had just eight turnovers in the contest, shot 85.7 percent (6-7) from the free-throw line.

Titans Dealt First Loss Of Season

UW-Eau Claire scored 18 consecutive points in the second half to rally from a 10-point deficit and defeat the UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team, 64-54, on Tuesday (Dec. 7) in Eau Claire.

UW-Oshkosh (6-1/2-1), which entered the contest ranked 14th in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, trailed 25-22 at halftime before going on a 15-2 scoring run to take a 37-27 lead with 13:39 left in the game. Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) counted 10 points during UW-Oshkosh's scoring run, including a pair of three-point baskets.

UW-Oshkosh increased its advantage to 40-30 on a three-point play by Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) with 12:58 remaining in the game. UW-Eau Claire (4-3/2-1 WIAC), which had lost its six games to UW-Oshkosh, then proceeded to score the next 18 points to take a 48-40 lead with 6:15 to play. Casey Drake sparked the Blugolds' scoring spree by netting 11 points, including a pair of three-point baskets and a three-point play.

UW-Eau Claire held UW-Oshkosh off the rest of the way as Dan Archambault scored 12 of the last 16 Blugold points, including seven from the free-throw line. Archambault scored 13 of his 15 points in the second half.

UW-Oshkosh began the game with a 7-2 scoring run before UW-Eau Claire scored the next seven points to take a 9-7 lead with 12:48 left in the first half. The Blugolds took a 13-11 lead on a layup by Will Jefferson and held the advantage the final 9:53 of the first half.

Both teams were hampered by poor shooting in the first half as they combined to make only 16 of their 62 shots (25.8 percent) from the field, including just one of 16 tries (6.3 percent) behind the three-point line. UW-Eau Claire shot 26.5 percent (9-34) from the field in the opening stanza, while UW-Oshkosh shot 25 percent (7-28).

Capelle led UW-Oshkosh in scoring with 18 points, while Gibson added 13 and Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) 10. The Titans had only nine turnovers in the game, but were out rebounded by a 51-34 tally. Gibson, who also had four blocked shots, led UW-Oshkosh with eight rebounds.

Drake led UW-Eau Claire in scoring with a season-high 23 points. The Blugolds also received 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds from Buck Smith. Like UW-Oshkosh, UW-Eau Claire had just nine turnovers in the contest.

UW-Oshkosh finished the game shooting 32.8 percent (19-58) from the field, including just 25 percent (5-20) behind the three-point line. The Titans shot 73.3 percent (11-15) from the free-throw line.

UW-Eau Claire concluded the contest shooting 33.3 percent (20-60) from the field, including just 28.6 percent (4-14) behind the three-point arc. The Blugolds shot 83.3 percent (20-24) from the free-throw stripe.

Titans Tame Lions

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team ended the first half with a 34-9 scoring run to pull away and defeat Finlandia University (Mich.), 85-67, on Saturday (Nov. 27) in Kolf Sports Center.

The two teams played to four ties during the early stages of the contest before Finlandia University (2-2) built an 18-11 lead with 12:15 remaining in the first half.

Faced with a seven-point deficit, its largest of the young 2004-05 season, UW-Oshkosh (4-0) reeled off 18 unanswered points during a 34-9 scoring run to take a 45-27 lead to intermission. Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) sparked the Titans' half-ending scoring spree by counting 16 of his team-high 18 points.

UW-Oshkosh increased its advantage to 65-41 in the second half on Kyle Johnson's (So. • Milwaukee) three-point basket with 11:01 left to play. Finlandia University, behind 10 points from Ryan Artley, refused to go away and battled back to make the score 79-67 with 2:33 remaining. The Titans secured their fifth straight win over the Lions by finishing the game's scoring with six free throws, including four by Kyle Pederson (Jr. • Waukesha).

UW-Oshkosh had 14 players appear in the contest, with 11 of them scoring. In addition to Jahnke's 18 points, four rebounds and three steals, the Titans also received 14 points and seven rebounds from Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson), 10 points, five rebounds and two steals from Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) and eight points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals from Chad Doedens (So. • Cedarburg).

Kyle Miron, who hit five three-point baskets, led Finlandia University in scoring with 18 points. The Lions, who defeated UW-Eau Claire (94-93) one day earlier, also received 15 points from Artley and 12 from Victor Harrington.

UW-Oshkosh, which has defeated 90 of its last 100 regular season non-conference opponents, shot 47.5 percent (29-61) from the field and 67.7 percent (21-31) from the free-throw line. Finlandia University shot 40.8 percent (20-49) from the field and 90 percent (18-20) from the free-throw line. The Titans posted a 43-29 rebounding advantage and committed four less turnovers (16-20) than the Lions.

Titans Slay Green Knights

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team jumped to an 18-point halftime lead and then held off a three-point barrage by St. Norbert College in the second half for a 65-51 victory over the Green Knights on Wednesday (Nov. 24) in Kolf Sports Center.

UW-Oshkosh (3-0), which defeated Marian College just 24 hours earlier, led St. Norbert College (0-1) from start to finish. The Titans counted the first eight points of the game and kept the Green Knights scoreless for nearly the first four minutes of play.

Leading 10-9, UW-Oshkosh delivered a hard punch to St. Norbert College when it scored 23 of the next 29 points over the final 12:17 of the first half to take a 33-15 lead to intermission. Seven players registered points for the Titans during their scoring run, including Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) who tallied seven.

UW-Oshkosh shot 63.6 percent (14-22) from the field in the first half, while St. Norbert College shot just 25.9 percent (7-25). The Green Knights made just one of their 12 three-point shots in the opening period and missed both of their free-throw tries.

UW-Oshkosh opened the second half with six straight points to take a 39-15 lead with 17:33 to play. The Titans had their advantage sliced to 41-22 when the Green Knights' Austin Washington connected on a three-point shot with 15:28 remaining in the period. Washington's three-point basket was the first of eight for the Green Knights over the next 13 minutes as they pulled to within 57-48 with 2:36 left. UW-Oshkosh fought off St. Norbert College the rest of the way by going on a game-ending 8-3 scoring run, includimg six points from the free-throw line.

Four players scored in double figures for the Titans. Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) led the way for UW-Oshkosh with 14 points, while Andy Fernholz (Sr. • West Salem) chipped in 13, Jahnke 11 and Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) 10. Capelle also had seven rebounds and three assists, while Fernholz contributed seven rebounds and one assist and Gibson six rebounds and five blocked shots.

Eric DeJardine came off the bench to score 18 points for the Green Knights as he made six three-point baskets. Washington added 11 points and shared team honors by collecting four rebounds. Brandon Hansen, who received All-Midwest Conference first team honors last season after averaging 18.5 points per game, was held to just two points in the contest on 1-of-14 shooting from the field.

UW-Oshkosh shot 56.8 percent (25-44) from the field, including 41.7 (5-12) behind the three-point line. The Titans were 10-of-18 (55.6 percent) from the free throw line. St. Norbert College shot 30.8 percent (20-65) from the field, including 31.3 (10-32) behind the three point line. The Green Knights, who committed just nine turnovers in the game, made one of their four (25 percent) shots from the free throw line.

Van Dellen Becomes Titans' Winningest Coach

UW-Oshkosh head coach Ted Van Dellen became the winningest coach in the 107-year history of the school's men's basketball program on Tuesday (Nov. 23) as his Titans defeated Marian College, 51-43, in Fond du Lac.

The victory was the 244th in Van Dellen's 15-year coaching career at UW-Oshkosh, erasing Robert Kolf's decades-old mark of 243 coaching wins that he registered with the Titans from 1925-56. Van Dellen, who ranks eighth among the winningest men's basketball coaches in WIAC history, has posted a 244-133 coaching record at UW-Oshkosh.

In a game that saw five ties, five lead changes and plenty of defense, UW-Oshkosh (2-0) used a 12-2 scoring run late in the second half to open up a tight contest with Marian College (0-3).

UW-Oshkosh went the first 5:41 of the game without a field goal, but managed to trail only 6-4 midway through the first half. The contest went back-and-forth the next several minutes until UW-Oshkosh scored the last five points of the first half to take a 22-18 lead to intermission. The Titans took their four-point halftime lead despite shooting 29.4 percent (5-17) from the field and committing seven turnovers.

The contest remained close well into the second half, with the final tie coming at 31-31 on a three-point basket by Marian College's Jake Harmsen with 14:13 to play. Leading 34-33, UW-Oshkosh took control of the contest by putting together a 12-2 scoring run to take a 46-35 lead with 6:54 remaining. UW-Oshkosh's scoring spurt included a pair of three-point baskets from Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) and an alley-oop dunk from Jahnke to Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson). The closest the Sabres got after that was a 47-41 tally with 15 seconds left.

Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) totaled 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists to lead the Titans in all three statistical categories. UW-Oshkosh also received nine points, five rebounds and two assists from Jahnke and nine points, five rebounds and one blocked shot from Gibson.

Casey Wuest had 11 points for Marian College, while David Whitenack contributed seven points and four rebounds.

UW-Oshkosh, which defeated Marian College for the 16th straight time, shot 38.5 percent (15-39) from the field and 62.1 percent (18-29) from the free-throw line. Marian College shot just 28.8 percent (15-52) from the field and 75 percent (9-12) from the charity stripe. The Titans won the rebounding battle, 39-29.

Hot-Shooting Titans Top Eagles In Season Opener

The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team shot a blistering 65.1 percent from the field as it defeated Edgewood College, 77-68, on Friday (Nov. 19) in Kolf Sports Center. It was the inaugural game of the 2004-05 campaign for both teams, with UW-Oshkosh winning its season opener for the 20th time in 21 years.

UW-Oshkosh (1-0) made 28 of its 43 field goal attempts against Edgewood College (0-1), including 15 of its 21 tries (71.4 percent) in the second half. The Titans also connected on nine of their 15 shots (60 percent) behind the three-point line, including seven of their nine attempts (77.8 percent) in the first half. Despite its impressive marksmanship from the field, UW-Oshkosh was just 12 of 19 shooting (63.2 percent) from the free-throw line.

UW-Oshkosh began the game with seven straight points, forcing an Edgewood College timeout just 94 seconds into play. However, the Eagles rallied back behind six baskets and a free throw by Charlie Averkamp to tie the contest at 23-23 with 7:50 left in the opening period. UW-Oshkosh closed the first half with a 16-10 scoring run to lead 39-33 at intermission.

The Titans extended their advantage to 61-47 with nine minutes left in the game, but the Eagles again stormed back to cut their deficit to 71-66 with 28 seconds remaining. UW-Oshkosh held off Edgewood College in the closing seconds as Jim Capelle (So. • Wisconsin Dells) made four free throws and Andy Jahnke (Jr. • Manitowoc) added a layup.

Jahnke, a transfer from NCAA Division I Youngstown State University (Ohio), was impressive in his UW-Oshkosh debut as he scored a game-high 23 points and dished off two assists. Jahnke made eight of his 12 shots from the field, including five of his six tries behind the three-point line. Jahnke sparked the Titans in the first half by scoring 16 points, including four three-point baskets.

Capelle contributed 16 points, three assists and two rebounds to UW-Oshkosh's winning effort, while Kerry Gibson (So. • Jefferson) scored a career-high 13 points, grabbed eight rebounds and blocked three shots. UW-Oshkosh also received eight points, five assists and four rebounds from Chad Doedens (So. • Cedarburg), three points and five rebounds from Kyle Pederson (Jr. • Waukesha) and eight points and four rebounds from Kyle Johnson (So. • Milwaukee).

Averkamp led Edgewood College with 21 points, including 17 in the first half, while Gregory Blaska added 14 points and Seth Cooper 13. Averkamp also grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.

Edgewood College, which lost for the 11th time in 12 meetings with UW-Oshkosh, shot 43.9 percent (25-57) from the field, 36.4 percent (4-11) behind the three-point line and 73.7 percent (14-19) from the free throw line. The Eagles were outrebounded by the Titans, 33-20.

2004-05 Season Preview

After registering 177 victories, five NCAA Division III Tournament appearances and one WIAC championship during the past nine seasons, the UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team looks to put the finishing touches on a highly successful decade this winter.

UW-Oshkosh returns all five starters from last year's team that posted a 14-13 record (7-9 WIAC), including forward Jim Capelle (Wiscondin Dells), guard Chad Doedens (Cedarburg) and center Kerry Gibson (Jefferson) who were listed in the everyday lineup as freshmen. The Titans also welcome back senior guard Andy Fernholz (West Salem) and junior forward Kyle Pederson (Waukesha) as starters.

In all, UW-Oshkosh inherits nine lettermen from the 2003-04 team, with the group being completed by sophomore guard Ryan Lallensack (Manitowoc), junior center Pete Warning (Shiocton) and sophomore forwards Nathan Wesener (Hilbert) and Nate Zepnick (Green Bay).

Talk of the returning veterans begins with Capelle, who received All-WIAC first team honors as a rookie a year ago. Capelle averaged 13.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game last season while shooting 39.6 percent behind the three-point line and 85 percent from the free throw stripe. He surpassed 20 points in a game three times last year and was the first freshman to lead UW-Oshkosh in scoring since the 1974-75 season.

UW-Oshkosh's most experienced player is Fernholz, who enters the upcoming season with 76 career starts, including seven in NCAA Division III Tournament play. Last year, Fernholz averaged 8.3 points, 3.9 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game while shooting 37.3 percent behind the three-point line and 83.6 percent from the free throw mark.

Pederson returns as another performer with plenty of experience. Pederson has played in 58 of UW-Oshkosh's 59 games the past two years, including 30 as a starter. Last year, Pederson averaged 9.5 points and a team-leading 7.2 rebounds per contest while shooting 80.2 percent from the free throw line. Pederson had three double-doubles for the Titans last year, including 25 points and 13 rebounds in a 73-65 win over St. Norbert College.

In the low post, Gibson will again create a physical presence with his seven-foot, one-inch frame. Last year, Gibson averaged 5.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per game while blocking a school-record 68 shots. He had 10 or more rebounds in a game three times last season and five or more blocked shots in a contest five times.

Doedens is the last of the returning starters to be mentioned. Last year, he averaged 5.0 points and 2.4 rebounds per game while directing the Titans' offense. Doedens scored in double figures three times last season, including 16 points in a 63-55 loss to UW-Platteville.

UW-Oshkosh also returns the services of Lallensack, Warning, Wesener and Zepnick.

Warning and Wesener played in all 27 contests for the Titans last season, with Warning averaging 5.7 points and 1.7 rebounds and Wesener 3.1 points and 1.9 rebound per game. Warning came off the bench to score a team-high 18 points in the Titans' 52-49 road win over UW-Whitewater in last year's WIAC Tournament. Zepnick and Lallensack saw very limited action for the Titans last year, but still managed to average 1.1 and 0.4 points per game, respectively.

A key addition to the Titans this season is junior guard Andy Jahnke (Manitowoc), who transferred from NCAA Division I Youngstown State University (Ohio). Jahnke played in 52 contests for Youngstown State University the past two seasons, averaging 4.8 points per game during the 2003-04 season and 4.1 in 2002-03. Jahnke scored a career-best 19 points during the Penguins' 85-78 loss to the University of Loyola (Ill.) on Jan. 3 of this year.

Besides the returning lettermen and the incoming transfer of Jahnke, a total of nine other players will compete to don the Black and Gold for the first time.

True freshmen candidates are Kerry Berglund from St. John's NW Military Academy, Jordan Johnson from Waupaca High School, Jon Lica from Winona (Minn.) High School and Johan Quie from Eden Prairie (Minn.) High School. A red-shirt freshman hopeful is Ryan Johnsen of Greendale High School.

Other transfers competing to join the UW-Oshkosh roster are Kenosha native Jeremiah Randle from Trinity Valley Community College (Texas), Milwaukee native Kyle Johnson from Lane College (Tenn.) and Ashwaubenon native Jordan Wypiszynski from St. Cloud State University (Minn.).

UW-Oshkosh head coach Ted Van Dellen enters his 15th season at his alma mater with a career coaching record of 242-133, including a 7-5 mark in the NCAA Division III Tournament and an 11-4 ledger in the WIAC Tournament. Van Dellen is just two victories shy of replacing Robert Kolf as the winningest coach by victories in UW-Oshkosh history.