Sun 4-Feb-2001

Long-range bombs lead UW-SP to victory
By JESSE HORNE
CW Sunday staff writer

UW-SP's Kalonji Kadima drives to the hoop during the Pointers' win against the Pioneers Saturday.

STEVENS POINT - There is an old saying which UW-Stevens Point men's basketball head coach Jack Bennett has said throughout the 2000-2001 season - "You live by the 3-pointer and die by the 3-pointer."

For the Pointers, they acted as a firing squad and killed the Pioneers with an early and frequent barrage of long-range baskets as UW-SP defeated Platteville 72-61.

The win improves the Pointers' record in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference to 7-5 and 15-5 overall.

UW-SP nailed 52.6 percent (10-for-16) of its 3-pointers compared to just 31.6 percent (6-for-19) of Platteville's attempts.

"I thought we definitely lived by the 3-pointer in the first half," Bennett said. "But you can't just live strictly by the perimeter game."

Josh Iserloth nailed a 3-pointer two minutes into the first half to begin a long-range attack for the Pointers. UW-SP sank seven 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes of action with Iserloth hitting four out of seven attempts from behind the arc.

Iserloth was the top scorer in the first half with 17 of 25 total points.

Despite the numerous baskets from 3-point range by the Pointers, Platteville (4-9 WIAC, 11-10 overall) kept the score close with opportunities to shoot at the charity stripe.

The Pioneers hit 11 out of 16 free throw attempts in the first half, compared to only two shots - which were made - by the Pointers.

"If you don't go to the free throw line and the other team is there frequently, you're not going to put distance between yourself and your opponent," Bennett said.

As he did in the first half, Iserloth drained a 3-pointer and the UW-SP lead was up to its largest margin of the second half at 60-54 with seven and a half minutes to play in the game.

With a four-point lead and 5:29 remaining, Iserloth committed what could have been a fatal foul. He put Brad Stangel at the line for three free throws. Stangel, who finished with a team-high 19 points, sank all three and the Pointer deficit was cut to 62-61.

"I can live with that foul considering how Josh played overall tonight," Bennett said. "That just goes to show how many obstacles we had to overcome to win tonight."

But UW-SP held Platteville scoreless and scored the game's final 10 points. The rally was highlighted by a slam dunk by Iserloth with 25 seconds remaining in the game.

Joe Zuiker broke a first-half scoring snide with 17 points in the game's final 20 minutes and wound up with 19 points. Jay Bennett tallied 12 points.

The Pointers are back in action Wednesday when they travel to Eau Claire - a team which beat the Pointers 70-60 at home on Jan. 3. With just one more home game left on the schedule, every game becomes a must win for UW-SP, Bennett said.

"I think that that is going to be a great game Wednesday," he said. "When that one is done, we'll move on and get ready for Oshkosh."

Tip-off against the Blugolds is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Zorn Arena.