Titans Snap Five Game Skid Against Pointers
STEVENS POINT, Wis.- The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team secured its first conference win on the road at UW-Stevens Point on Saturday night (Jan. 20) with a final score of 72-67.
Oshkosh (8-7, 1-5 WIAC) led the Pointers shooting 48.9 percent (23-of-47) from the field and 38.9 percent (seven-of-18) from three, while UW-Stevens Point (8-9, 2-4 WIAC) led with 88.9 percent (eight-of-nine) from the field over the Titans' 67.9 percent (19-of-28). The Titans also led in bench points (21-17), on court points (50-35), and rebounds (37-30).
Jay Dalton (Fr. • Fond du Lac) led the team with 16 points, six rebounds, and two assists. Will Mahoney (Sr. • Appleton) followed with 15 points for the Titans with five rebounds and three assists and shot 100 percent (five-of-five) from the line. Michael Metcalf-Grassman (Fr. • Shawano/Waukesha) and Tristan Johanknecht (Fr. • Oshkosh) both scored 11 points with 11 and four rebounds, respectively.
Johanknecht started the first half with a layup to secure the Titans their first points. Oshkosh gained a quick seven-point lead before the Pointers scored a layup to get on the board. Stevens Point closed the gap to just three points with a jump shot before Carter Thomas (So. • Neenah) scored on a layup with an assist from Mahoney to bring the score to 9-4. At the 15-minute mark, Dalton converted a jump shot and Johanknecht made a free throw for an eight point lead. The teams traded points and the Titans continued to hold a steady lead over the Pointers. With 30 seconds left in the first half, Mahoney made a layup and two free throws for a 15-point lead going into halftime.
In the second half, the Pointers went on an early 11-0 spurt to decrease the deficit to four points before the Titans responded with a jump shot from Quinn Steckbauer (Sr. • Merrill). Stevens Point scored a layup before Steckbauer made another shot for the Titans. The Pointers made a layup to make it a one-point game before Johanknecht also registered a layup to push Oshkosh's lead to three points. Stevens Point gained a two point lead after a made layup and three-pointer. The Titans responded with two made free throws from Dalton to tie up the game. Oshkosh gained the lead again on two Mahoney layups and a free throw while Johanknecht made another layup to bring the score to 59-52. With eight minutes left in the game, a three-pointer from UW-Stevens Point brought the score to a four-point game before Johanknecht responded with a layup and a free throw. The teams went back and before the Pointers gained a one-point lead with 2:54 left in the game before a free throw from Dalton tied it up and four good free throws from Mahoney and Dalton put the Titans back in the lead. With 14 seconds left in the game, Dalton converted a free throw to secure the five-point win.
The Titans return to the Kolf Sports Center for a home game on Wednesday (Jan. 24) against UW-Eau Claire. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Written by Emily Buffington, UW-Oshkosh Sports Information