Titans Ride Comeback to Win Second Consecutive Conference Title
OSHKOSH, Wis.- The UW-Oshkosh men's basketball team secured their second consecutive and third conference championship in five years on Saturday night when they defeated UW-La Crosse at home for the season sweep. The Titans have now earned the No. 1 seed in the WIAC conference tournament and will receive a first round bye. They will face the lowest remaining seed after the first round at home on Wednesday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m.
The last time Oshkosh won back to back regular season conference championships was the 1967 and 1968 seasons.
First Half Summary
The teams stayed close early, changing leads seven times until La Crosse made a layup to take a 20-19 lead with 11:47 remaining in the half. The Titans trailed by as much as seven until four-straight points tied the game back up at 37 with 2:25 left. The lead changed two more times before halftime, ending with a buzzer-beating layup by senior forward Levi Borchert. The score sat at 46-45 at the half.
First Half Leaders
The Titans shot 51.9 percent (14-of-27) from the field, 37.5 percent (three-of-eight) from three and 71.4 percent (15-of-21) from the line in the half. Borchert led all players with 15 points, going five-of-six from the field and five-of-10 from the line and eight rebounds (four offensive). Senior guard Hunter Plamann also recorded double-digit points with 10. Senior guard Will Mahoney went a perfect five-of-five from the line.
The Eagles shot 50.0 percent (17-of-34) from the field, 41.7 percent (five-of-12) from three and 75.0 percent (six-of-eight) from the line in the half. Senior forward Austin Westra paced La Crosse with 13 points, going four-of-four from both the field and the line as well as one-of-one from three. Freshman guard Dustin Derousseau recorded four rebounds.
Second half Summary
La Crosse took the lead back with the first points of the half off a layup from senior guard Craig Steele. The Eagles kept the lead until Mahoney made a three with about 14 minutes left to take a 56-55 lead, capping a five-point run by the Titans. Freshman forward JJ Paider took the lead back for La Crosse six minutes later with two made free throws, breaking a 66-all tie. Seven points from Oshkosh, led by Mahoney with five gave the Titans the final lead of the night with four minutes left. A three by sophomore guard Jake Gross pulled the game to 88-89 with seven seconds left, but two more free throws from Mahoney at two seconds sealed the win for the Titans, ending with a score of 91-88.
Full Game Leaders
The Titans finished the game shooting 49.1 percent (26-of-53) from the field, 38.1 percent (eight-of-21) from three and 77.5 percent (31-of-40) from the line in the game. The 31 made free throws was the most the Titans have recorded all season. Plamann led all scorers with 25 points, going eight-of-14 from the field, five-of-eight from three and four-of-four from the line. Borchert and Mahoney followed with 24 and 22 points, respectively. Borchert's season-high 24 points were joined by 11 rebounds, recording him the 37th double-double of his career. Mahoney tied career-highs with 10 made free throws and seven rebounds, also setting a season-high in points.
The Eagles ended with a 50.0 shooting percentage (33-of-66) from the field, a 45.8 shooting percentage (11-of-24) from three and a 78.6 shooting percentage (11-of-14) from the line. Westra led the Eagles with 17 points, going six-of-nine from the field, one-of-one from three and four-of-four from the line. Three other Eagles scored double-digit points. Derousseau paced La Crosse with six rebounds.
Looking Forward
Oshkosh will wrap up the regular season on the road at UW-Stevens Point on Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. on Bennett Court at Quandt Fieldhouse. The Titans defeated the Pointers at home in their first meeting of the season by a score of 81-45 on Jan. 18.