Titans Nip Pointers To Move Into WIAC Lead
Taylor Schmidt led all players with 21 points and five assists as UW-Oshkosh held on for a 61-59 victory over UW-Stevens Point in a battle of nationally ranked women's basketball teams on Saturday (Jan. 30) in Stevens Point.
Despite owning the lead for the last 26 minutes of the contest, the Titans had to withstand an 11-2 scoring run by the Pointers during the final 6:02. UW-Stevens Point regained possession with less than five seconds to play, but a steal by Marissa Selner with one tick remaining secured the win.
UW-Oshkosh (16-3, 7-1 WIAC), ranked 11th in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, sits alone atop the league standings with six games remaining. The Titans, 14th-ranked UW-Stevens Point (15-4, 6-2 WIAC) and 18th-ranked UW-River Falls (15-4, 5-2) entered the day tied for the conference lead, but 17th-ranked UW-Whitewater (16-3, 5-3) defeated UW-River Falls, 62-59, on Saturday in Whitewater.
Schmidt made 8 of 13 shots from the floor, including 2 of 3 from 3-point range, and both of her attempts from the free throw line.
UW-Oshkosh's Alex Richard scored 11 of her 13 points in the first half, while Eliza Campbell added eight points – all in the second half – and Ashley Neustifter chipped in seven points.
The Titans extended their winning streak to seven games by shooting 47.2 percent (25-53) from the field and holding advantages of 20-11 in turnovers, 13-8 in assists and 12-6 in steals. UW-Stevens Point outrebounded UW-Oshkosh, 30-19.
Neither team led by more than four points during the opening period. UW-Oshkosh scored the first four points of the game before UW-Stevens Point answered with four straight. A layup by Morgan Kokta gave the Titans a 13-12 edge, but the Pointers closed the first quarter with the last five points for a 17-13 lead.
UW-Oshkosh knotted the score at 23 on a 3-pointer by Neustifter and reclaimed the lead for good at 25-23 on a layup by Schmidt with just over six minutes remaining in the second quarter. The Titans added another layup by Schmidt and a basket by Richard to cap a seven-point surge for a 27-23 advantage.
UW-Stevens Point cut its deficit to 32-29 on a layup by Mickey Roland, but a 3-pointer by Schmidt extended the Titans lead to 35-29 at halftime. The Titans outscored the Pointers, 22-12, during the second period.
Campbell and Schmidt combined to score UW-Oshkosh's first 11 points of the second half as the Titans pushed their lead to a game-high 13 points at 46-33 with 5:47 left in the third period. UW-Stevens Point whittled the Titan lead down to 48-44 when Sarah Gamillo split a pair of free throws with 1:29 to play in the third quarter before Campbell drilled a 3-pointer that provided UW-Oshkosh a 51-44 advantage entering the fourth frame.
A layup by Richard put UW-Oshkosh ahead, 59-48, with 6:02 to go and a jumper by Kokta gave the Titans a 61-53 edge with just under three minutes left.
Five Pointer free throws cut the Titans advantage to 61-56 with 81 seconds left, and a three-point play by UW-Stevens Point's Allie Miceli trimmed the Pointer deficit to 61-59 with 54 ticks remaining.
Following a foul by UW-Stevens Point and a timeout by UW-Oshkosh, Miceli grabbed the rebound of Schmidt's missed jumper with three seconds left. Both teams called timeouts before Selner stole the ball from Taylor Mix to thwart the Pointers' comeback bid.
The Titans, who defeated the Pointers by a 60-46 score on Jan. 16, have won 53 of their last 55 games when holding opponents to less than 61 points, including a 15-0 mark this season.
Miceli led the Pointers with 13 points and seven rebounds. Lauren Anklam and Gamillo added 11 and nine points, respectively, for UW-Stevens Point.
UW-Oshkosh heads to UW-Platteville on Wednesday (Feb. 3). The Titans won an 83-51 decision over the Pioneers on Jan. 9.