Oshkosh earns a little extra break
Titans net bye in WIAC tourney
UW-Oshkosh earned a coveted bye in the first round of the WIAC tournament as the Titans got 23 points from Charlie Noone in a 73-55 victory over UW-Stout on Saturday in Menomonie.
Leading at halftime, 37-31, Oshkosh (16-9, 9-5 conference) gradually pulled away in the second half, leading by as many as 20 against the Blue Devils (13-12, 4-10).
The Titans began the day tied with UW-Whitewater and UW-Eau Claire for second in the conference but owned all the tiebreakers. Thus they avoided a first-round game and will get two extra days of rest before hosting a second-round game Thursday.
UW-Whitewater 70, UW-Eau Claire 68 (OT): Chris Jones and Derek Rongstad each scored five points in overtime, helping the Warhawks (20-5, 9-5) beat the visiting Blugolds (18-7, 8-6) in a battle for third place in the WIAC.
Jones scored a gamehigh 19 points while Rongstad finished with 17 points and 15 rebounds.
UW-Stevens Point 88, UW-La Crosse 78: Bryce Williams’ 21 points helped the Pointers (14-10, 8-8 WIAC) take care of the visiting Eagles (13-12, 5-9).
UW-River Falls 65, UWPlatteville 61: Alex Herink had 18 points for the Falcons (22-3, 12-2 WIAC), who rallied from a 12point halftime deficit to thwart the host Pioneers (8-17, 1-13).
UW-Parkside 92, Indianapolis 84: The host Greyhounds (15-10, 12-5 GLVC) led by two with 9:35 remaining when Chavares Flanigan’s threepointer sparked a 13-0 run that put the Rangers (20-6, 12-5) in control.
St. Norbert 73, Beloit 62: The regular-season champion Green Knights (19-4, 16-2 Midwest Conference) woke up in the second half, breaking a 37-all tie with a 27-6 run against the Buccaneers (6-17, 4-14) in Green Bay.
Ripon 85, Knox 66: The Red Hawks (18-5, 14-4 Midwest) shot 56.7% from the floor despite Ty Sabin, the conference’s leading scorer, hitting just 4 of 15 shots in a victory over the Prairie Fire (2-21, 2-16) in Galesburg, Ill.
Lake Forest 79, Lawrence 55: Reserve Ben Peterson scored 13 points for the Vikings (9-13, 10-8 Midwest), who got rolled over on the road by the Foresters (13-10, 11-7).
Benedictine 78, Lakeland 67: The Muskies (817, 6-14 NACC) closed out their season by falling to the Eagles (21-4, 19-1), the conference’s regular-season champion, in Lisle, Ill., despite Brandon James’ 20 points.
Aurora 104, Edgewood 83: The Spartans (17-8, 15-5) clinched the No. 2 seed and first-round bye in the NACC tournament as they shredded the Eagles (5-20, 5-15) at home.
Wisconsin Lutheran 74, Dominican 61: Tyler De Young and Collin Kennedy each produced double-doubles for the Warriors (15-10, 12-8 NACC) as they took down the Stars (12-13, 9-11) in River Forest, Ill.
MSOE 68, Rockford 66: Dylan Sommerfeld scored 17 points to help the Raiders (12-12, 11-9 NACC) hold off the host Regents (9-16, 8-12).
Concordia 110, Concordia (Ill.) 76: Eric Kittel led five players in doublefigure scoring for the Falcons (15-10, 14-6 NACC) with 20 points as they toppled the Cougars (5-20, 416) in River Forest, Ill.
Carroll 68, Wheaton 52: The Pioneers (13-11, 8-7 CCIW) kept their slim hopes of making the fourteam conference tournament alive as they quieted the Thunder (12-12, 8-7) in Waukesha behind 18 points from Ben Widdes.
Carthage 99, Millikin 66: Mike Stevenson tallied 20 points and Mike Kjeldsen added 16 for the Red Men (17-7, 10-5), who clinched a spot in the CCIW tournament with their win over the Big Blue (3-21, 1-14) in Decatur, Ill.
Cardinal Stritch 85, Saint Xavier 82 : Carlos Knox’s layup with 40 seconds remaining broke the 17th tie of the game and put the Wolves (14-16, 1010 CCAC) in front of the Cougars (16-14, 11-9) for good in Chicago.
Maranatha 95, Lincoln Christian 90 (OT): Micah Shepard’s 23 points helped the host Sabercats (9-15) rally past the Red Lions (5-22).