The UW Oshkosh men’s basketball team took down the Warhawks of UW-Whitewater 54-49 on the road Wednesday night.
Oshkosh (12-8, 3-6 WIAC) was efficient from the floor, hitting 42% of its shots from the floor to Whitewater’s (9-11, 3-6 WIAC) 33% from the field. The Titans also looked great from the charity stripe, burying 84% of their free throws. The Titans also pulled down 36 rebounds to Whitewater’s 32.
Oshkosh was led by Carter Thomas, who recorded 16 points, two rebounds and added an assist in 40 minutes, his second consecutive 40-minute game. Joey LaChapell had an impressive outing, going a perfect 3-of-3 from downtown with 13 total points on the night.
The Titans jumped out to an early 12-point lead by starting the contest with a 14-2 run, which included two LaChapell 3-pointers, giving the Titans the lead with 13:48 to play in the half. Whitewater then produced an 11-2 run to get back within three points at 16-13 with 8:08 to go. Oshkosh then extended its lead with a 10-5 run over the next four-and-a-half minutes, with Jonah Rindfleisch scoring five points over that span to put the score at 26-15 with 3:40 left in the first half. The Warhawks then closed the half with a 4-1 run, but the Titans had the lead heading into the locker room 26-19.
The first four minutes of the half were even between the teams with each scoring eight points and the Titans maintaining their lead. An 8-2 Whitewater spurt cut the deficit to a single point and the Warhawks were ready to take their first lead of the night until the Titans answered with a 12-6 run over the next 5 minutes. Thomas added six points over that span and Oshkosh led, 48-41, with 6:40 remaining. Whitewater outscored UWO 8-6 to close out the contest, however it was too little, too late, and the Titans stayed on top for the 54-49 win.
The Titans are scheduled to wrap up their two-game road trip in River Falls as they take on the Falcons at Don Page Arena at 5 p.m. on Saturday. Oshkosh won 81-68 in the first game of this season’s series at Kolf Sports Center Jan. 25.
