Titans Win Hard-Fought Battle With Vikings
Eddie Muench led four Titans starters in double figures with 21 points, Levi Borchert had a double-double and the nationally ranked UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team held on for an 80-74 victory over Lawrence University on Wednesday (Nov. 17) in Appleton.
UW-Oshkosh (4-1), ranked 17th in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, took the lead for good at 29-28 with 5:35 left in the first half following one of Muench's five 3-pointers and maintained a 71-61 advantage after a Borchert layup at the 5:38 mark of the second period. However, the Borchert basket in the paint was UW-Oshkosh's last field goal of the game as Lawrence University pulled within 72-70 with 2:13 to go and 74-72 with 33 ticks remaining.
The Titans preserved their sixth consecutive win in the series by going 8-for-11 at the free throw line over the final 52 seconds of the contest. A pair of Hunter Plamann makes at the charity stripe extended UW-Oshkosh's lead to 74-70 before Muench made 3 of 4 tosses at the foul line during the last nine seconds to turn a precarious 77-74 edge into an 80-74 triumph.
Lawrence University falls to 1-3 on the year under first year head coach Casey Korn, who spent the previous three season as the top assistant at UW-Oshkosh. Despite the setback, the Vikings own a 33-20 lead in a series that began with the Titans in 1903.
Muench shot 5-for-14 from 3-point range on the way to leading the Titans in scoring for the fourth time this season.
Borchert, a 2021 D3hoops.com Third Team All-American, had 18 points and 14 rebounds, including six on the offensive end, to notch his third double-double of the year and 11th career.
UW-Oshkosh received all but five of its points from starters as Quinn Steckbauer added a career high 15 points, Plamann 12 and Eric Peterson nine. Peterson collected eight rebounds while Muench and Plamann dished out a team best three assists. JT Petrie chipped in four points in 14 minutes off the Titans bench.
The Titans shot 46.6% (27-58) from the field, 36.4% (12-33) from beyond the 3-point arc and 66.7% (14-21) at the free throw line. The Titans owned slim advantages of 36-34 in rebounds, 7-8 in turnovers, 4-3 in steals and 3-0 in blocks. Both teams were credited with 13 assists.
Lawrence University went 30 of 36 (.455) from the floor, 9-for-24 (.375) from 3-point range and 5-for-7 (.714) at the free throw line.
The Vikings' Brad Sendell paced all player with 27 points on 10 of 22 shooting from the floor to go along with four assists.
Lawrence University also received 13 points off the bench from Matthew Kaznikov, and nine points and eight rebounds from starter Adnan Sarancic.
The Vikings raced out to an 18-9 lead following a Sendell 3-pointer with 11:13 to go in the first half, but a trio of Muench 3-pointers cut the UW-Oshkosh deficit to 25-24 at the 7:23 mark before Muench's fourth of five long range jumpers during the opening period gave the Titans the lead to stay just under two minutes later.
UW-Oshkosh led by as many as 12 points in the second half, building a 67-55 advantage after a Borchert free throw with 8:02 left. The Vikings pulled within 72-70 on a Sendell layup to cap a 15-5 run that featured a pair of Kaznikov 3-pointers.
Lawrence University had a chance to tie or take the lead twice while trailing, 72-70, but Sendell's 3-point attempt was off the mark with 92 seconds left before a Sendell offensive foul with 55 ticks remaining preceded Plamann's pair of free throws three seconds later.
The Vikings once again made it a one possession game at 74-72 following a Sendell layup. Muench split a pair of free throws to up UW-Oshkosh's lead to 75-72 with 29 seconds left. Sendell then missed a jumper, and Borchert collected the rebound and drained two free throws for a 77-72 advantage to all but clinch the win with 19 seconds to play.
UW-Oshkosh returns home to host Carthage College on Saturday (Nov. 20) in Kolf Sports Center.