The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point men’s basketball team survived both an emotion-charged atmosphere and talented Upper Iowa University on Friday night.

It came down to the final second of play before the Pointers were able to turn back the Peacocks, 84-82, before 1,213 fans in the 15^th annual Terry Porter Tip Off Classic at Quandt Fieldhouse.

The victory advanced UW-SP into the men’s division championship game at 7 tonight against Viterbo College of La Crosse which got by Carroll College of Waukesha, 70-66. Upper Iowa and Carroll meet in the consolation game at 3 p.m.

In addition to the challenge presented by a formidable opponent, the Pointers had to battle their emotions following a 15-minute pregame ceremony which paid tribute to former teammate Kurt Hoerman of Antigo, who was killed in an automobile accident last summer.

Pointer co-captain Derek Westrum, Hoerman’s former roommate who delivered a moving tribute prior to the game, said Hoerman "will always be on our minds."

"But I told the guys in the locker room before the game that we had to make a separation after that ceremony and just go out and play hard like Kurt did. He wouldn’t want us to be sad just go out there and give it everything we had."

There was no question that the Pointers played hard, but so did the Peacocks who still had a chance to toe with six tenths of a second showing on the clock.

The Pointers, leading 84-81, had a chance to put the game away with :04.2 left, but freshman Kalonji Kadima, who had an outstanding collegiate debut, missed two freethrows.

Kadima, however, then made what coach Jack Bennett later called a smart play.

He fouled Thomas Chatman just as he crossed the time line but before the junior guard could launch a 3-point attempt.

Chatman made the first free throw, then deliberately missed the second as Upper Iowa hoped for a game-tying tip-in. In the scramble for the rebound, however, the ball rolled out of bounds as the game ended.

Just before Kadima was fouled, the Peacocks had another chance with :08.6 left. Bennett, however, had UW-SP come out in a 1-3-1 zone and Joe Zuiker mad a huge defensive play by stealing the in-bounds bounce pass under the basket.

"We have a ways to go but we will get better," Bennett said. "To come out with a win after battling our emotions and such a strong opponent says a lot about our kids. I know Kurt is smiling and I just want to thank the many people from Antigo who turned out, especially his parents (Larry and Rosy) for making this such a special night."

The Pointer played well, but only in spurts. After getting off to a 20-9 lead midway through the first half, UW-SP saw the Peacocks surge back with a 16-3 run which opened a 25-23 lead with 6:45 left in the half.

Making use of a deep bench and sparked by the all-around play of the 6-2 Kadima and the long-range bombing of 6-0 sophomore Jay Bennett, the Pointers regained the lead. A 3-point jumper from the top of the key by guard Nate Vosters gave UW-SP a 45-36 intermission advantage.

Despite some horrendous free throw shooting (UW-SP missed its first seven tries in the second half), the Pointers seemed home free after an 8-0 run opened a 69-58 margin with 7:10 remaining.

Upper Iowa, however, failed to go away. Behind the scoring and rebounding of 6-4 Reginald, 6-2 Joshua Bausal, and 6-2 Michael Spencer, the Peacocks slowly but steadily closed the gap.

UIU never got the lead but closed tot 80-79 with 2:12 left on Baulsal’s three-point play. Two free throws by Bennett at 1:59 and one by Brant Bailey at 1:29gave UW-SP a four-point lead but Alexnader’s two gift shots with :19.8 left set the stage for the dramatic finish.

"Their quickness bothered us," Jack Bennett said. "You never knew where they were coming from. We were a little hesitant as a result."

"You can’t play tentatively against a quick team but there is a fine line between being aggressive and under control. It’s a tough thing to find, especially early in the season."

Although not pleased with his team’s defense, Bennett felt there were extenuating circumstances.

"So much for our increased emphasis on defense," he said. "Maybe we’ll just have to concentrate on outscoring teams. Where we got in trouble is when we tried to play too fast. When we slowed down a little and made them set up, our defense was better.

"But Iowa is an extremely talented, multifaceted offensive team."

The Pointers shot the ball well, helping atone for an unexpected, poor 24-for-40 night at the foul line.

UW-SP connected on 26 of 55 floor attempts, including 8 of 17 from beyond the arc. UIU had a 39-34 rebounding edge and turned the ball over just five times in the second half.

Kadima, a redshirt freshman from Milwaukee (King), led UW-SP with 23 points and seven rebounds in 26 minutes.

"Kalonji is a gamer who knows what to do is big situations," coach Bennett said. "He gave us a huge lift and so did Jay with his shooting."

Jay Bennett, who was 5 of 11 on 3-point attempts, tallied 15 of his 20 points in the first half.

Bailey came on in the second half to finish with 14 points while Vosters, who held up well against the Peacocks’s unrelenting pressure defense, chipped in 13, including 6 of 8 at the line. The 5-10 sophomore also handed out a game high 10 assists. 6-5 senior Westrum, celebrating his 22^nd birthday, ran into early foul problems but still came down with a game high eight rebounds.

"We didn’t get a lot of scoring from our interior people but the perimeter guys carried us," Jack Bennett said. "It may be just the opposite on other nights."

Upper Iowa nailed 30 of 60 shots, including 6 of 14 from long range, but lost the game at the line despite converting 16 of 22.

Bausal, a junior transfer from Chicago, poured in 25 points, 16 which came in the second half. The burly Alexander and athletic Spencer added 18 each and Chatman 10.