The first half of the UW Oshkosh men’s basketball game at UW-Stevens Point on Wednesday night saw the lead change hands six times, however a 15-5 run for the Titans put them on top and they never let up. UWO earned its first WIAC win of the season by a 60-43 score.
The Titans shot 45.2%from the field including 38.5% from the field and 85% from the line while the Pointers went 29.6%, 11.8%, and 75% respectively. Oshkosh also held edges in rebounds (42 to 23), assists (five to two), bench points (14 to eight), points off turnovers (15 to 11), and points in the paint (28 to 24). The Pointers’ 43 points is the lowest Oshkosh has allowed in WIAC play this season.
With 16 points each, Carter Thomas and Joey LaChapell led all scorers at Quandt Fieldhouse on Wednesday. Thomas shot 5-of-10 from the field with a 3-pointer and 5-of-6 from the line while LaChapell went 5-of-8 from the field, 4-of-4 from three, and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe.
Brandon Beck recorded a team high nine rebounds while Matt Imig had a pair of assists, Jonah Rindfleisch blocked two shots, and seven Titans earned a steal.
Thomas scored the first points of the game after the teams traded four scoreless possessions following the opening tip. Stevens Point then scored four straight points to swap the lead for the first time of the night. UWO set the tone early, limiting Stevens Point to just 29.6 percent shooting (8-of-27) in the first half.
The Titans never allowed the Pointers to lead by more than two points and The Titans led 29-20 at halftime, building momentum behind strong play from Rindfleisch, who started the 15-5 run with a layup with 5:55 remaining in the half.
While Oshkosh slowly extended its lead at the start of the second half, neither team strung together more than two baskets. Between 13:19 and 9:53, Stevens Point was held scoreless and the Titans put together a 10-0 spurt behind seven points from Thomas, a Beck dunk, and a Mx Tutas free throw. With just under 10 minutes to play, UWO led the Pointers, 48-29.
Stevens Point decreased the deficit to 14 points with a short 5-point run however the gap was too large to close and LaChapell put the Titans up by a game high 21 points (58-37) on a three with 3:25 remaining. Tyshawn Teague-Johnson scored all six of the Pointers’ final points of the game and Connor Jenkins converted a pair of free throw attempts after the minute mark for a 60-43 final score.
The Titans will host UW-River Falls (7-10, 1-5 WIAC) on Saturday at Kolf Sports Center. The game is set to tip off at 5 p.m. and men’s basketball alumni in attendance will be recognized at halftime. The Falcons took both games of the 2023-24 season and Oshkosh won the 10 from 2017-18 to 2022-23.
