UW-Stout 63, UW-Superior 54 |
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MENOMONIE (January 21, 2009) - It probably had something to do with the fire alarm before the game that forced the building to empty and everyone stand out outside until the alarm was cleared.
But UW-Stout was nearly stone cold in the first half, but a trip to the locker room at halftime did the trick for the Blue Devils who picked up their first conference win with a much better second half performance that resulted in a 63-54 win over UW-Superior Wednesday at Johnson Fieldhouse.
The fire alarm delayed the start of the game by more than 15 minutes, and Superior took advantage of the delay, jumping out to a quick lead and building up to a 27-20 halftime lead.
Stout (6-10, 1-7) shot a paltry 30 percent (9-30) before the break, while Yellowjackets (9-8, 2-6) shot 40 percent (12-30) to take the seven point lead behind 10 points from Jake Smith.
Superior maintained the lead through the first 10 minutes of the second half, but Stout went on an 8-0 run to take a 50-44 lead, fueled by Eric Hostetter's (So, Stillwater, Minn) five points. The Blue Devils pushed the lead to 11 points, 57-46 on baskets by Jordan Nelson (Fr, Maple Grove, Minn) and Alex Mason (Sr, St. Paul, Minn) with a 3-pointer by Jerrod Buchholtz (So, Durand) sandwiched in the middle.
Superior cut the lead to six, 58-52, with a minute left, but Nelson scored four points in the final minute - a layup and two free throws - to seal the deal for Stout.
Stout, the WIAC's leading rebounding team, completely controlled the boards in the second half, pulling down 21 rebounds after the break, compared to seven for the Yellowjackets in the second half.
Stout shot 65.2 percent (15-23) in the second half and finished the night shooting 45.3 percent (24-53) from the floor. Superior shot 38.2 percent (21-55) for the game.
Superior's Smith led all scorers with 14 points, while teammate Shane Manor added 11 points.
Hostetter led Stout with 13 points. Mahlon Thomas (So, Brooklyn Park, Minn) closed out the night with 12 points and Buchholtz and Jerrel Enerson-Matthews (Jr, Anoka, Minn) each scored 11. Enerson-Matthews completed the double-double with 11 points. Nelson scored a collegiate-best six points.
The win was Stout's seventh consecutive win over the Yellowjackets and their 11th win in 12 meetings with Superior.
Stout will host UW-Platteville, Saturday, Jan. 24 at 1 p.m., then will be at Silver Lake College, Tuesday, Jan. 27, in Manitowoc.
