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Kalsow Sets
All-Time Scoring Record and Bennett Stars in Win
Box Score
Jason Kalsow became UW-Stevens Point�s all-time
leading scorer in the first half of Wednesday�s 75-64 men�s basketball
victory over UW-Whitewater, but it was teammate Nick Bennett who stole the
show in the second half.
Kalsow had 20 points and 10 rebounds to give him
1,661 for his career and surpass Tim Naegeli as the school�s all-time
scoring leader. Naegeli totaled 1,649 points from 1983-87. Kalsow
accomplished the feat while starting all 110 games of his four-year career.
His 10 rebounds moved him with 26 of a 46-year old school rebounding record
held by La Vern Luebstorf.
He reached the mark with 2:43 left in the first
half, but it took longer than expected. Kalsow was four-for-11 from the
field after missing a layup, but got his own rebound and was fouled going
back up for the shot. He missed the first free throw and then made the
second to eclipse Naegeli�s mark. His performance comes just 15 days after
Amanda Nechuta became the school's all-time leading women's basketball
scorer.
�The record means a lot, but I�m glad to have it
overwith,� said Kalsow. �My main focus tonight was winning this game,
though. This was a big win for us.�
In fact, the victory kept the Pointers in a first
place tie with UW-Platteville, which defeated UW-Oshkosh to put a three-game
distance between the top two teams and third place.
The second-ranked Pointers are
now 19-2 overall and 11-2 in the WIAC, avenging a 71-63 loss to the Warhawks
in their first meeting this year.
Despite Kalsow�s milestone night, it was Bennett who robbed Kalsow of
some of the limelight on Wednesday, pouring in 31 points, including 24 in
the second half. The senior missed his first five shot attempts of the game
and then was on fire the rest of the way, finishing 10-for-17 from the field
and five-for-seven from three-point range. In fact, Bennett did some moving
on the all-time scoring list as well, climbing two spots into ninth place
with 1,429 points for his career.
Bennett and Kalsow weren�t the only ones who
started the night cold as UW-Stevens Point missed its first seven shots and
was two-for-14 from the field at one point, while UW-Whitewater was
two-for-12 at one stage.
The Pointers closed the first half with an 8-2 run
as Brian Bauer drained a three-pointer with four seconds left in the period
for a 31-23 advantage.
UW-Stevens Point built the lead in the second half
and pushed it to 14 points at 51-37 with 12:38 left. However, the Warhawks
rallied by driving the ball to the hoop and getting to the free throw line.
UW-Whitewater went on a 12-2 run, scoring eight of its next 10 points from
the line to cut the lead to four.
The Pointers led 55-52 with 5:41 left when Bennett
hit a closely guarded three-pointer on the next possession. Bennett then had
a steal and passed to Eric Maus for a layup and an eight-point lead. After
two more Warhawks� free throws, Bennett hit another layup and two free
throws to cap a 9-2 run and give the Pointers a 64-54 lead with 3:43 left.
After UW-Whitewater�s Craig Anderson cut the lead
to 64-59 on a three-pointer from the corner with 2:46 left, Kyle Grusczynski
drilled a three-pointer to give the Pointers a 67-59 lead. Angelo Griffin
then missed two free throws, snapping a string of 20 straight made free
throws by the Warhawks, who were 24-for-28 at the line for the night.
UW-Stevens Point also had a big night at the
line, hitting their final eight attempts to seal the win and finishing
21-for-25 for the night. The Pointers shot 59.1 percent from the field and
were six-for-nine from three-point range in the second half after shooting
32.3 percent in the first half.
Griffin and Rob Dixon each had 14 points for the
Warhawks, who shot 37.0 percent and were held to their second-lowest point
total of the year by the nation�s top scoring defense. |
