The UW Oshkosh men’s basketball team went 1-1 over the past week, beating UW-La Crosse and dropping the contest against UW-Stevens Point.

@ UW-Stevens Point

As the Titans continue to make a late push for the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season title, they had to travel to conference leader, UW-Stevens Point, on Wednesday.

After a defensively intense contest, the Titans fell to Stevens Point 77-73.

On the night, Stevens Point standout, Canon O’Heron went for 16 points, five rebounds, and three assists.

Coming into the game, head coach Pat Juckem knew they would have to key in on O’Heron, as he led the Pointers in scoring, assists and rebounds in the first matchup against Oshkosh.

“O’Heron has really emerged here in conference play,” Juckem said. “They’re really playing through him in the post, and he’s a willing passer. He’s a tough matchup one-on-one. He’s 240 pounds with good feet, so he’s a unique player and a tough matchup.”

The game began with both teams playing at a frantic pace. Both the Titans and Pointers had two possessions in the first 30 seconds.

Sophomore Adam Fravert started the scoring early for the Titans as he made two layups on back-to-back possesions to put the Titans up 4-2 early in the game.

Stevens Point was hot from the field in the first half shooting a scorching 55.6 percent from the field.
At the end of the half, the score was 39-30 in favor of the Pointers.

After the break, the Titans endured a three minute and 52 second scoreless streak near the beginning of the second half.

Stevens Point’s hot shooting carried over into the second half as it opened up a 15-point-lead at the 14:30 mark.

Oshkosh trimmed away at the lead and got it down to five with three and a half minutes left to go in the game.

Down the stretch, the Titans had to foul to try to get back in the lead but Stevens Point put Oshkosh away with some stellar free-throw shooting. The Pointers made 13 free throws in the last two and a half minutes which salted away the game.

The Titan starters shouldered the bulk of the load scoring wise as they scored all but five of UW Oshkosh’s points.

Junior Ben Boots led Oshkosh in scoring and assists with 21 points and eight dimes.

Vs. UW-La Crosse

The Titans took on the La Crosse Eagles on Saturday in Kolf Sports Center. UW Oshkosh never trailed in the game and ended up coming with a win.

UWO sophomore Jack Flynn led all scorers in the contest with 21 points in just 22 minutes of action. Nine of those 21 points came off of free throws as Flynn was constantly near the basket and getting fouled.
The team shot 27 free throws to La Crosse’s 12, which was a big point of emphasis for the Titans coming into the game.

“Every game we have a goal where we want to make more free throws than the other team attempts,” senior Charlie Noone said. “We like to get in the bonus early, and it’s definitely a product of attacking the rim, being aggressive and being physical.”

Juckem used his two-headed monster in Flynn and sophomore Brian Wilman at center to control the boards, and made it a point to get his big guys the ball. Wilman led the game in offensive rebounding with four.
Fravert also played a big role in the victory recording eight points, eight rebounds, three blocks and two steals.

Boots said he was proud of the effort the Titans gave against a team who was second-to-last in the WIAC standings but shouldn’t be overlooked.

“I think it was just getting off to a good start defensively, offensively establishing our post guys,” Boots said while explaining how the Titans got out to a fast start against La Crosse.

“Really it’s just mentality at this point. When you have a team that you think you’re better than, you just have to go and impose your will on them early on.”

Two Titans reach scoring milestone

Noone and Boots achieved scoring milestones in the game against La Crosse as both eclipsed the 1,000-point mark in their careers. Coming into the game, Boots needed two points to reach 1,000 and achieved his mark by hitting a pair of free throws in the second half.

Noone had a little more work ahead of him as he needed all 15 of his points he scored against the Eagles to break the 1,000-point threshold.

Noone attributes his success to the guys that surround him every day in practice.

“My teammates and coaches, I would not be where I am without those guys,” Noone said. “Putting hard work in the gym and having a guy like Ben next to me, who’s working out with me all the time, and teammates that push me all the time are all things that have helped me over the years.”

Boots also gave credit to his teammates and coaches for the success he has seen here at UWO.
“I’m really fortunate to have great teammates who have pushed me,” Boots said. “Also great coaches who have pushed me and who have given me opportunities and situations that have allowed me to thrive and have success.”

Juckem praised both the players’ work ethics day in and day out at practice.

“If I had to point to one thing [that led to this milestone], it’s the work ethic of Charlie and Ben,” Juckem said. “They are both young men who have made themselves into good players. They push each other, and they have helped raise the bar for their teammates and our program.”