January 9, 2002

Pointers' Iserloth burns nets with 40
Point total sets school record in win against River Falls
Stevens Point Journal

RIVER FALLS - Anytime a University of Wisconsin-River Falls men's basketball player was whistled for a foul he had to be treated for third-degree burns.

That indicates just how hot UW-Stevens Point was in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic showdown on Wednesday night.

No one was on fire more than Josh Iserloth, who poured in a school-record 40 points in the Pointers' 94-79 win at the Karges Center.

Iserloth broke the record of 39 shared by Brant Bailey (twice) and Mike Hughes. 

Iserloth connected on a sizzling 14-18 field goal attempts, including a perfect 8-8 performance from behind the arc.

"I knew we're good shooting team, but tonight all the planets must have been aligned right," said Pointer coach Jack Bennett, whose team raised its record to 4-2 in the WIAC and 13-2 overall.

"That was probably the most phenomenal shooting display I've ever seen, and I've seen my share of Division I and pro games."

Iserloth wasn't the only Pointer with a hot hand.  Ron Nolting contributed 19 points, while Jason Kalsow added 12 and nine rebounds.

Stevens Point also set the school mark for 3-pointers made in a game with a 17-for-26 effort from behind the arc.

The Pointers cam out on fire, hitting 71 percent of their shots from the field in the opening half (17-24).  But UWSP only held a slim 48-44 lead.

The score remained close until a 9-minute stretch of the second half when the Pointers outscored the Falcons 22-8 to put the game out of reach.

"The key to the game was our defensive performance in the second half.  We became more aggressive and double-teamed their big kid (Rich Melzer) in the post," Bennett said.

"More important, this was a huge win for us in this league.  We're playing some of our best basketball."