Titans Lead The Entire Way In Win Over Nationally Ranked Blugolds
Nikki Arneson, Jenna Jorgensen and Leah Porath combined for 52 points and 18 rebounds to lead the UW-Oshkosh women's basketball team to a 60-53 wire-to-wire victory over nationally ranked UW-Eau Claire on Wednesday (Jan. 26) in Kolf Sports Center.
UW-Oshkosh, which boasts one of the top scoring defenses in the NCAA Division III, led the entire way after Arneson drilled a 3-pointer to open the scoring less than two minutes into the contest. The Titans, ranked seventh nationally by limiting opponents to 48.2 points per game heading into to the night, held UW-Eau Claire scoreless for nearly the first five minutes of the game and without a field goal until the 4:12 mark of the first quarter.
The Titans, winners of their last 13 home games, went on to own leads of 13-6 after one period, 32-20 at intermission and 41-36 entering the final quarter. UW-Oshkosh's victory avenges a 70-57 setback at UW-Eau Claire on Dec. 1.
UW-Oshkosh improved its record to 13-4 this season, including a 3-3 mark in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference while UW-Eau Claire, ranked 16th in the nation by D3hoops.com, falls to 15-5 overall and 6-3 in league play.
Arneson paced all players with 22 points on 6-for-10 shooting from the field, including 4-for-7 from 3-point range. Wednesday marked Arneson's third game this season with at least 22 points.
Jorgensen and Porath added 17 and 13 points, respectively, for the Titans, who also received five points from Julia Silloway, and seven rebounds, three assists and three steals from Abby Kaiser. Jorgensen knocked down three 3-pointers en route to finishing one point shy of a career high and producing her sixth double-digit scoring effort of the year.
Porath, the two-time WIAC Player of the Year and 2021 D3hoops.com First Team All-American, collected a team-leading eight rebounds in addition to scoring at least eight points for the 63rd straight games that have featured 57 double-figure performances.
Arneson, Jorgensen and Porath went a combined 8-for-15 from 3-point range Wednesday. Jorgensen now ranks second in the league in 3-point percentage at .453 while Arneson is third at .440 and Porath is fifth at .388 as UW-Oshkosh leads the WIAC by shooting 33.7% overall from beyond the arc.
UW-Oshkosh shot 34% (17-50) from the field, 36.4% (8-22) from beyond the 3-point arc and 85.7% (18-21) at the free throw line. The Titans, who went into the night leading the country at 11.4 turnovers per contest, held advantages of 11-8 in assists, 10-12 in turnovers and 4-3 in steals. UW-Oshkosh has now committed 10 or fewer turnovers on seven occasions this season.
UW-Eau Claire went 22 of 59 (.373) from the floor, 4-for-18 (.222) from 3-point range and 5-for-6 (.833) at the charity stripe. The Blugolds outrebounded the Titans, 37-33, and had a 5-0 edge in blocks. UW-Eau Claire entered the game leading the country with 120 blocks and ranked second nationally at 11.4 turnovers per contest.
Jessie Ruden scored 13 of her team-best 19 points during the second half for the Blugolds. Ruden, the second leading scorer in the WIAC at 17.4 points per game, shot 7-for-14 from the field but just 1-for-3 from beyond the arc after entering the game with a league-high 55 made 3-pointers.
Jade Ganski had 17 points, 10 rebounds, two steals and one block for UW-Eau Claire, which also received 10 points from Tyra Boettcher, and nine boards and a pair of blocks from Kylie Mogen. Ganski headed into the night with a division-high 74 blocks.
UW-Oshkosh scored the first six points of the game and extended its advantage to 13-4 following a Jorgensen 3-pointer with 2:01 left in the first quarter. UW-Eau Claire missed its first six field goal attempts and committed three turnovers until Courtney Crouch hit a jumper to cut the Blugolds' deficit to 8-4 at the 4:12 mark of the opening period.
The Titans built their largest cushion of 16 points at 32-16 on a Porath jumper with 79 seconds remaining in the first half. However, UW-Eau Claire pulled within two points on a pair of occasions during the third quarter as Ganski's jumper cut the deficit to 34-32 before a Boettcher basket trimmed the UW-Oshkosh lead to 38-36 with 39 seconds to go.
Arneson answered with a 3-pointer to cap the third-quarter scoring for a 41-36 UW-Oshkosh lead, and the Titans led by at least four points for the remainder of the game.
UW-Oshkosh and UW-Eau Claire had split their previous eight meetings.
The Titans remain at home to host UW-River Falls for a nonconference contest Saturday (Jan. 29) in Kolf Sports Center.
Photo by Steve Frommell, UW-Oshkosh Athletics