Pioneers Oust Titans In Overtime
UW-Platteville's Maiah Domask had 14 points and 12 rebounds, including the go-ahead jumper with 1:55 left in overtime, as the Pioneers pulled out a 69-65 win over the UW-Oshkosh women's basketball team on Wednesday (Jan. 29) in Kolf Sports Center.
UW-Platteville (11-8, 3-5 WIAC) trailed, 56-52, with 18 seconds remaining in regulation before Jai Clemons drove for a layup that cut the Pioneers' deficit to 56-54. UW-Oshkosh's Nikki Arneson then split a pair of free throws to extend the Titans' lead to 57-54 with 10 seconds left, but Allison Heckert banked in a running 3-pointer to knot the score at 57 with two-tenths of a second to play in the fourth quarter.
UW-Oshkosh (11-8, 4-4 WIAC) took its last lead of the night at 59-57 following an Arneson layup on the first possession of overtime. However, Heckert tied the game at 59 with a jumper of her own, and Domask gave the Pioneers the lead for good at 61-59 on her jumper with 1:55 to go. UW-Platteville later built four-point leads at 63-59 and 66-62, but UW-Oshkosh responded both times with 3-pointers – by Karsyn Rueth and Leah Porath – to close within one point. Porath's 3-pointer trimmed the Titans' deficit to 66-65 with 10 seconds remaining.
UW-Platteville's Katie Asche went 1-for-2 at the free throw line for a 67-65 edge, and the Titans committed a turnover on the ensuing possession with four ticks left. Domask created the final score on two free throws with two seconds remaining.
Domask, who entered Wednesday pacing the WIAC with 8.7 rebounds per game and 88 free throw attempts, shot 5-for-9 at the foul line on the way to recording her league-leading ninth double-double of the season.
Heckert led the Pioneers with 15 points while Asche added 14 points off the UW-Platteville bench and starter Morgan Horstman chipped in 10 points, six rebounds and three assists. Rachel Emendorfer dished out a game-best four assists for the Pioneers, who snapped a 15-game losing streak to the Titans.
Arneson finished with a game-high 18 points and two steals for the Titans, who also received 15 points, 10 rebounds and three assists from Porath; nine points and two steals from Rueth; eight points, six rebounds and three assists from Olivia Campbell; six points from Brooke Freitag; and five points and seven rebounds from Emily Miller.
Porath, the WIAC's leading scorer at 19.1 points per game heading into the night, scored in double figures for the 23rd consecutive game and registered her second career double-double.
UW-Platteville broke the WIAC's longest active losing streak to a league opponent by shooting 43.3 percent (26-60) from the field, 30 percent (6-20) from 3-point range and 55 percent (11-20) at the free throw line. The Pioneers, who owned advantages of 15-10 in assists and 10-18 in turnovers, defeated UW-Oshkosh for the first time since a 68-63 decision Jan. 25, 2012.
Defending WIAC champion UW-Oshkosh shot 23 of 60 (.383) from the floor, 5-for-19 (.263) from beyond the 3-point arc and 14 of 17 (.824) at the foul line. The Titans held edges of 45-32 in rebounds, 7-4 in steals and 2-1 in blocks. UW-Oshkosh went into the matchup leading the NCAA Division III at 11.4 turnovers per game and ranked 14th nationally with a 1.14 assist-to-turnover ratio.
UW-Oshkosh, which had its three-game winning streak end, has an 11-0 record when holding opponents to less than 60 points this season and a 0-8 mark when allowing at least 60 points.
The Titans raced out to a 10-2 lead during the opening six minutes of the game and did not trail until early in the third quarter. UW-Oshkosh led, 18-15, after the first period and went into intermission with a 28-26 edge before UW-Platteville claimed its initial lead at 31-30 following a three-point play by Domask with 7:06 remaining in the third period.
The Pioneers built their largest lead of six points on two occasions during the third period, including at 38-32 with 2:30 left in the quarter. The Titans responded with seven unanswered points, including five from Porath, to reclaim a 39-38 advantage before Horstman drove for a layup that provided the Pioneers a 40-39 edge entering the fourth period.
Arneson drilled a 3-pointer that gave the Titans a 54-52 lead with 1:58 left in regulation and marked the seventh lead change during the fourth quarter. Rueth later sank a pair of free throws to extend the UW-Oshkosh cushion to 56-52 with 18 seconds to go in the fourth period.
The Titans play at UW-Eau Claire next Wednesday (Feb. 5). UW-Oshkosh suffered a 62-60 setback to the Blugolds during their first meeting this season Jan. 15 in Oshkosh.