UW-Stout 88, UW-Eau Claire 87
EAU CLAIRE (January 2, 2011) -
Jerrod Buchholtz (Sr, Durand) scored 11 points in the first three minutes of the second half, then hit a key 3-pointer down the stretch to help UW-Stout to an 88-87 win over UW-Eau Claire Sunday at Zorn Arena.
Buchholtz, who would go on to match a career-high 24 points, swished a 3-pointer with 1:39 left to break a 79-79 tie and Stout (7-5, 2-2) would not trail again.
Eau Claire (6-5, 2-2) was forced to foul in the final seconds of the game, and Stout did not miss a late charity shot as
Erik Olson (So, Buffalo, Minn),
Eric Hostetter (Sr, Stillwater, Minn) and
Steve Pax (Fr, Elmwood) all made 1-and-1 free throw attempts to squirrel the game away.
The Blue Devils, who trailed 37-35 at halftime, had five players finish in double figures, led by Buchholtz's 24 points. Hostetter finished with 16 points, Pax had a career-best 15 points, Olson matched his career-high of 13 points and
Alex Oman (Fr, Lake Elmo, Minn) finished with 10 points.
Stout got a solid effort off the bench from
Jay Higgins (Fr, Maple Grove, Minn) who notched career-bests with points scored (7), rebounds (11) and minutes played (29). Over the last three games, Higgins has averaged 6.1 rebounds per contest.
The Blugolds' Amadou Fofana led all scorers with 25 points. Ivan Franklin scored 16 points and Marcus Ruh finished with 14 points.
Tonight's game was rescheduled from December 11, when a major snowstorm wiped out the game.
Stout will be at UW-River Falls, Wesdnesday, Jan. 5, then will return home, Saturday, Jan. 8 when they host UW-Platteville, at 4 p.m.
