Pointer men lose on a last-second shot
By Jesse Horne
Journal staff

UW-SP's Jay Bennett gets tangled up with Platteville's Tyler Selk Tuesday night at Quandt Gym. (Journal photo by Doug Wojcik)

Last season, the UW-Stevens Point mens basketball team stormed past its opponents and secured a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title. However, their march for an NCAA title was cut short by a 3-pointer from conference rival Eau Claire.

The 2000-2001 version of the Pointers was strikingly similar to the 1999-2000 edition as they defeated their opponents by an average of 11 points per game and grabbed a second straight WIAC title.

But, in the same manner they exited last season, UW-SPs season was cut short Tuesday on a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Bryan Stangel drained a 30-foot shot to give Platteville a 57-56 win and eliminate the Pointers from the playoffs. Stangel scored the Pioneers final five points of the game and finished with 13.

This is just too much, especially coming off the heels of that shot last year, said an emotional UW-SP coach Jack Bennett. If life teaches you anything, it teaches you that in the deepest and toughest times, you have to hang on to your hope.

It really hurts right now but we will get over this loss with time.

The Pointers were ahead, 56-54, with 6.5 seconds to play when the Pioneers committed a foul to send Kalonji Kadima to the line. The junior guard who entered the game hitting 75 percent of his free throw attempts missed the front end of a one-and-one situation. Platteville grabbed the rebound and sent Stangel streaking down the floor.

As soon as he got that rebound, I saw him take the momentum and I just felt a bit of a sinking feeling, Bennett said. I really feel hurt for Kalonji because I know he is going to have to live with this.

I do believe that he will come back and continue to do well for us.

The Pointers possessed an 11-point lead with 5:36 remaining in the game, when Platteville went on a 10-0 run.

Tyler Selk, who finished as the games leading scorer with 25 points, hit two 3-pointers in the run. His second shot from long range trimmed the UW-SP lead to 51-50 with 1:14 remaining in the game.

UW-SPs three seniors each finished in double-digits, with Jay Bennett leading the attack with 22 points, including five 3-pointers. Joe Zuiker scored 15 points while teammate Brent Larson finished with 12.

My pain right now is for those three seniors because they gave everything they could to this program, Jack Bennett said. The younger guys in this team will come back, but they will not get a second chance.

The Pointers finish the season with an 18-7 record. Platteville moves on in the WIAC tournament to face Oshkosh. The sixth-seeded Titans defeated third-seed River Falls, 95-87, in overtime.