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March
12, 2005 - NCAA Sectional Final
Pointers Edge Trinity
to Book Return Trip to Final Four
It didn�t take a buzzer beater this time,
but it nearly did to get the UW-Stevens Point men�s basketball team back to the
NCAA Division III semifinals.
The Pointers, who had their three
previous sectional championship games decided on shots at the final horn, fought
off a pesky Trinity (Texas) team in the final minutes to secure a 61-55 victory
on Saturday at the Quandt Fieldhouse. UW-Stevens Point advances to face York
(Pa.) in the national semifinals on Friday at 8 p.m. Eastern time in Salem, Va.
�To be able to win a game like this, that
was a true definition of a gut-check,� Pointers� coach Jack Bennett. �I can�t
say enough about the way these guys executed down the stretch.�
With the game tied at 50-50 with 2:28
left, Pointers� senior Kyle Grusczynski hit a left-handed scooping layup in the
lane to put the Pointers ahead. Trinity worked the ball into 6-10 center Sean
Devins, who missed a short shot and Nick Bennett rebounded for the Pointers.
Bennett then drove the baseline and,
while being fouled, tossed up a shot with two seconds left on the shot clock
that sat on the rim for nearly two full seconds before falling through. He
converted the free throw for a 55-50 lead with 1:41 remaining. Jason Morris hit
two free throws for the Tigers to pull Trinity within three and the Tigers had a
chance to tie after forcing a turnover with 48 seconds left.
Morris, who had a team-high 20 points,
then had an open look from the top of the key, but missed and Krull grabbed the
rebound with 36 seconds remaining.
UW-Stevens Point sealed the game at the
free throw line, hitting all seven attempts in the final 1:41 of the game.
�It was one of those grind-it-out kind of
games,� Pointers� forward Jason Kalsow said. �We have total confidence in our
system and people stepped it up and made plays.�
UW-Stevens Point finished the season 18-0
at home and Saturday�s game was the first decided by fewer than 10 points. In
fact, it was only the Pointers� second game all season - win or lose - decided
by eight points or less. However, Jack Bennett alluded to the Pointers� close
games in previous tournaments and another raucous crowd to carry them through.
�You can�t be this good under pressure
without being in the fire,� Jack Bennett said. �We ignited it with some plays,
but this crowd took it over the top.�
�We�ve never played in front of anything
like this,� Morris said of the crowd. �I just tried to use this energy and
pretend they were cheering for me rather than against me.�
UW-Stevens Point opened up an early lead
and led 28-19 with 2:52 left in the half, but Trinity closed the half with five
straight points as Chad Stroberg hit a three-pointer at the buzzer. The Tigers
had nine offensive rebounds at the half, but just two in the second half.
Trinity took the lead on a three-pointer
by Morris at 33-32 with 14:16 left on the first of eight lead changes in the
second half. Neither team led by more than four points until Bennett�s
three-point play put the Pointers up by five points.
Bennett had 28 points and was named the
tournament Most Valuable Player while passing Terry Porter for fourth place on
the school�s all-time scoring list. Kalsow and Eric Maus were also on the
all-tournament team. Kalsow finished with eight points, 10 rebounds and seven
assists, but had a streak of 63 games scoring in double figures come to an end.
Morris also was an all-tournament pick
along with Peter Murray, who had 12 points and seven rebounds. Devins had six
points and 10 rebounds while affecting nearly every inside play by the Pointers.
For UW-Stevens Point, it will be the
Pointers� second trip to the semifinals as they look to become the first team to
repeat as champion since UW-Platteville in 1998-99. The Pointers are now 14-3 in
NCAA tournament games in Jack Bennett�s nine seasons.
�This is really special,� Nick Bennett
said. �I remember when I was a senior in high school and talking with my dad we
hoped we could get our program to this kind of level. I really feel like we have
one of the best programs in the country and it�s great to be able to play at
this level.�
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