UW Whitewater slipped past the UW Oshkosh men’s basketball team 59-56 on Wednesday night at the Kolf Sports Center.
The Titans (9-6, 0-4 WIAC) shot well on the night, converting 21 of their 46 attempted field goals (45.7%) to the Warhawks’ 21-of-51 (41.2%). Oshkosh also outshot Whitewater from beyond the arc, cashing in eight of its 21 3-balls (38.1%) to the Warhawks’ 5-of-18 mark from 3-point land (27.8%).
Carter Thomas led the way for the Titans by scoring a season-high 22 points on 7-of-14 from the field, including five triples. Reed Seckar scored a career-high of 13 points while adding on 6 boards as he made his first career start in yellow and gold.
The Warhawks came out of the gates fast starting with a 17-6 run within the first five minutes of tip-off. Oshkosh climbed back, tying the game at 19-19 with 8:46 to go in the first half. In the following six minutes, the teams traded baskets, knotting themselves at 30-30 at 1:59. Whitewater then closed out the first half on a 5-2 run to head into the locker room up 35-32.
The first five minutes of the second half were close with neither team able to pull away and the score remained tied at 44-44 with 14:52 to go. Over the next six minutes, Oshkosh jumped ahead and gained its largest lead of the night at 51-45 with just under nine minutes remaining in the matchup (8:50). The Warhawks willed their way back into the contest, going up by a point after a pair of free throws to put them ahead 57-56 with just 2:19 to go, and they closed out the contest by sinking two more free throws to get the win.
The Titans will head to UW-La Crosse to take on the Eagles on Saturday at Mitchell Hall Fieldhouse at 5 p.m.
