MBB Preview: Stout to honor eight seniors after Oshkosh game Saturday

 UW-Oshkosh: Live Stats | Live Audio | Live Video

THIS WEEK'S GAMES: Following the conference bye, Feb. 5, the Blue Devils (11-9, 6-5 WIAC) will seek to reverse the outcome from the first time around when they host up-and-coming UW-Oshkosh (10-10, 5-6 WIAC), Saturday, Feb. 8 at 3 p.m. for Senior Day.  The Titans upended Stout, 63-59, in Oshkosh, Jan. 18, and Wednesday night defeated UW-Platteville, 60-57. The Blue Devils will honor seniors Alex Oman, Aaron Jenny, Josh Kosloske, Tim Butina, Jimmy Whitehead, Jay Higgins, Adam Wadzinski and Debonair Townsend after the game.

WEBCASTS: All UW-Stout home games will be available in a live video stream by Blue Devil Video, with Adam "Big Country" Lehnertz  on the call. WMEQ 880 Radio, with Jason Kenyon, Rob Silvers, Dan Schultz, Jimmie Kaska or Jake Bostrom, will broadcast and provide a live audio stream of away conference games/. Stout will provide Live Stats for all home games. Check the Blue Devil Webcast page or under details of the schedule page to see broadcasts and Live Stats available when Stout is on the road.

NEWSLETTER: During the season, the Blue Devil coaching staff produces a newsletter offering additional insight into the programs. You can download the latest newsletter here.

CAREER STATS:  Be sure to scroll to the bottom of this page to check out the UW-Stout career high for points, rebounds, and assists of each Blue Devil player.

BLUE DEVILS BY THE NUMBERS
4	games this season the Blue Devils have had two     players score 20+ points
15	combined 20+ point games for Jimmy Whitehead(8),     Alex Oman(5) and Aaron Jenny(2)
9-2	Blue Devils record this season when leading at the     half
2-7	Blue Devils record this season when tied or behind     at the half

 THE BLUE DEVILS (11-9, 6-5 WIAC): Coming into the later portion of the season, Stout currently sits in fifth place in the WIAC, a game back of La Crosse and 1.5 games back of Platteville. With five games remaining -- including match-ups against three of the top four teams in the conference in Platteville (7-4 WIAC), La Crosse (7-5 WIAC), and Stevens Point (11-1 WIAC) -- the Blue Devils hope to finish the regular season strong going into the conference tournament. After winning two straight, Stout dropped a 70-59 decision at Whitewater last Saturday. With a full week off between games, the Blue Devils have gotten a chance to allow some nagging injuries to heal and are in position to finish the year on a strong note. Aaron Jenny is coming off a 22 point outing, shooting 8-13 from the field and 5-6 from the line in the loss to Whitewater. In what has been a career year for Jenny, he has led the team in scoring in four contests and tied for team-high honors in a fifth. Coming into the season Jenny's career best points in a game was 15; he has topped that number four times so far this season. Averaging 10.7 ppg, good for third on the team, Jenny is tops on the team and eighth in the WIAC in rebounds per game, with 5.5. He also leads the team in assists, with 42 and is third in steals with 18. After dealing with a nagging ankle injury earlier in the year, senior Alex Oman has come on strong over the last nine games. Over this period, he has led or been tied for the team lead in scoring in six games while averaging 16.0 points per game. His season scoring average sits at 14.0 ppg, second on the team and 10th in the WIAC. Oman is also second on the team in steals (19) and fourth in assists (32). His 4.4 rpg are third on the team, just ahead of Josh Kosloske's 4.3 rpg. After missing only two shots over the last three games, Kosloske bumped his shooting percentage up to 54.5 percent, second on the team to Jimmy Whitehead's scorching 57.9 percent. Whitehead has been the Blue Devil's most consistent scorer this season, scoring 10+ in 13 games and 20+ in eight games so far this year. Despite missing three games and being limited in three others, Whitehead leads Stout and is fourth in the conference with 16.5 ppg. He has also been one of the Blue Devil's most consistent rebounders, grabbing an average of 5.1 per game, second on the team only to Jenny. Sharp shooter  Adam Wadzinski has been one of the Blue Devil's most versatile weapons this year, starting 10 games while averaging 23.4 minutes per game, fourth on the team behind Whitehead (31 mpg), Jenny (28.6), and Oman (27.1). He is second on the team in three-point percentage, hitting 20-48 (41.7 percent) of his treys. Against La Crosse, his three pointer as time expired gave the Blue Devils a thrilling 59-57 victory.  Wadzinski was the teams leading scorer against Oshkosh with a career-best 11, only the second time this season a Blue Devil other than Whitehead, Oman, or Jenny led the team in scoring. He is currently first on the team with 22 steals and third in assists with 34. Freshman Brett Ahsenmacher leads the Blue Devils in three-point attempts and makes, hitting 24-57 (42.1 percent) from downtown this year.  He has hit multiple three-pointers in eight games so far this year.  Debonair Townsend leads the team with 20 blocks (1.00 per game), good for fourth in the conference. Jay Higgins has started each of the last seven games for the Blue Devils and hasn't disappointed, averaging 8.5 ppg and 5.2 rpg over that span. In that same time, he has shot 72.4 percent (21-29) from the field and recorded a career-high 15 points against River Falls. Tim Butina pulls in in 2.7 rpg, but has been limited due to injury over the past few weeks. Guard Hank Kujak leads the team in assist-to-turnover ratio, with 23 assists compared to 14 turnovers.

The Blue Devils have 10 players who have started at least four games this season. As a team, Stout is outscoring their opponents 65.1-62.8. The 62.5 points per game allowed by Stout is good for third best in the WIAC, behind Whitewater (61.4) and Stevens Point (59.8). The Blue Devils also hold their opponents to a WIAC low 41.6 percent shooting. Stout is second in the conference in rebounds per game with 36.5 while allowing opponents to grab only 26.5 rpg, fewest in the conference. Despite their high rebounding totals, the Blue Devils have had only three player grab double digit rebounds in a game this year. Jenny had 10 and 12 in the first two games of the season against Mount Mercy and Crown College while Kosloske grabbed 11 against Crown. Higgins snagged 10 boards against Ashford. Stout also is third in the conference in blocked shots (2.75 per game) and tops in offensive rebounding (12.25 per game). |  2013-14 Statistics

SENIOR CLASS: This big senior class (eight members) has been a key part to the 2013-14 Blue Devils. The senior class has scored 1071 of the team's 1302 points, or 82.3 percent of the points. They are averaging a combined 53.4 of the team's 65.1 points per game. Off the glass, the seniors are pulling down 73.5 percent of the rebounds - 537 of 731 boards. This is one of the biggest senior classes in coach Eddie Andrist's career. Two years ago, the Blue Devil had no seniors.

STOUT'S LAST TIME OUT: Jay Higgins scored a career-high 15 points and the Blue Devils shot 64 percent in the second half, running away with a 67-48 victory over UW-River Falls on Jan. 29. A close first half ended with Stout on top, 27-26. Jimmy Whitehead and Higgins each had 9 second half points as Stout built a comfortable lead. Reggie Kujak celebrated his birthday by capping the game off with an alley-oop dunk from AJ Dubek. Whitehead finished with 13 while Oman and Aaron Jenny each had 9. River Falls had three players in double figures on the evening.  Ollie White lead the Falcons with 15 points and six rebounds, followed by Jay Sewer with 13 points and seven assists and Ben Gresmer with 12 points. Stout shot 52.9 percent for the game compared to 38.3 percent for River Falls.  The Blue Devils also outrebounded the Falcons 40-21 for the game. | River Falls Story and Statistics | The Blue Devils fell behind early and were unable to get any real offensive rhythm going in a 70-59 loss to UW-Whitewater last Saturday. Aaron Jenny had a game-high 22 for the Blue Devils, but Stout turned the ball over 21 times, leading to 21 Warhawk points. Trailing 41-27 at the half, Stout would get as close as seven points with a little over five minutes to go after an Alex Oman three-pointer, but Whitewater would close the game on a 14-10 run. Oman had 9 points and 5 rebounds while Jay Higgins added 5 boards for the Blue Devils. | Whitewater Story and Statistics

1000 and Counting: Blue Devil forward Alex Oman came into the season with 816 career points, 42nd on Stout's all-time scoring list. Going into the Jan. 18 contest against Oshkosh, Oman's career total sat at 994. With 2:47 remaining and Stout trailing by two, Oman came up with a lay up to tie the game and push him over the 1000 point mark, giving him 1001 for his career. After back-to-back 20+ point games against Ashford and Eau Claire and nine points against River Falls,  Oman's season point total sits at 252, giving him 1068 points for his career, currently ranking him 17th on the UW-Stout all-time scoring list just ahead of Kurt Stellfpflug's (1981-85,1060 points) and behind Zak Alwin (1991-95, 1078). Oman scored 169 points as a freshman, 258 as a sophomore and 389 as a junior.

SCOUTING UW-OSHKOSH  (10-10, 5-6 WIAC): After starting the year 5-9, Oshkosh has won five of their last six games, including their first match-up with the Blue Devils. The Titans are led by guard Jade Royston, who leads the team in scoring at 11.7 ppg. One of two Oshkosh players attempting more than three 3-pointers per game, Royston has hit 35.3 percent of his tries from downtown (24-68). He is sixth in the conference with 3.21 assists per game as well. Dylan Wurtz, the Titans other three-point bomber, is third on the team with 9.3 ppg while shooting 40.7 percent beyond the arc (41-105). Multi-talented guard Alex Olson does a little of everything for Oshkosh, as he leads the team and is second in the WIAC in steals at 1.85 per game, second on the team in rebounding with 4.8 per contest, while scoring 10.7 ppg. Olson also ranks in the top-10 in the WIAC in assists per game, with 2.4.  Taking charge on the boards is freshman Max Schebel, who pulls down 5.0 boards per game while chipping in 7.5 points. As a team, the Titans are being outscored 64.0-62.2 and outrebounded 34.4-32.0. The 64.1 points per game the Titans allow is fourth in the WIAC, right behind Stout. Oshkosh is also second in the conference with 7.6 steals per game.| 2013-14 Statistics

WHEN THEY MET LAST: UW-Stout kept finding ways to get back in the game over and over again, but didn't have quite enough at the end and fell to UW-Oshkosh, 63-59, Saturday Jan. 18. The Blue Devils trailed 32-21 at halftime, but went on a 17-5 run out of the locker room to take the lead, 38-37, and the game remained a one possession game until the Titans continued to cash in at the free throw line and built an eight point, 61-53 lead with 28 seconds left. Adam Wadzinksi hit a pair of 3-pointers to pull Stout to within two points, 61-59, with 14 seconds left. Wadzinski had a shot to tie the game with three seconds left but his 3-pointer rolled around the rim and fell off. The Titans feasted at the free throw line, draining 28-of-32 shots. Jade Roysten was particularly deadly, hitting all 11 of his free throw attempts on his way to a game-high 15 points. Max Schebel was 8-of-9 from free throwland and finished with 14 points. AJ Mueller was 4-for-4 from the line and scored 11 points. Wadzinski was the only Stout player in double figures, finishing with 11 points. Wadzinski hit three 3-pointers in the final minute of play. Stout was not as fortunate from the line, making just 8-of-18 free throws. Stout was 23-of-59 (39 percent) from the field and held the Titans to 15-of-44 shooting (34 percent).  Stout had 40 rebounds to Oshkosh's 32. | Story and Statistics

LAST TIME OUT: Alex Olson scored 18 points to tie a career scoring best for the third time in four games as Oshkosh defeated UW-Platteville, 60-56, on Wednesday in Kolf Sports Center. Olson, who tallied 12 of his points in the second half, also led the Titans with five rebounds and four assists. He finished the game shooting 6-of-11 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free throw line. Max Schebel totaled 15 points to become the Titans' other double-figure scorer. UW-Oshkosh also received nine points, four rebounds and four steals from Dylan Wurtz.. | Story and Statistics

AWARDS AND HONORS: Alex Oman was selected as the UW-Stout Northwestern Mutual athlete of the week, Jan. 28...Alex Oman was selected as the WIAC player of the week, Dec. 10...Jimmy Whitehead was the WIAC and the UW-Stout Northwestern Mutual player of the week, Dec. 3.

TEAM CAPTAINS:  Blue Devil team captains for the 2013-14 season are Aaron Jenny and Jimmy Whitehead.

THE COACHES:  UW-Stout:  Eddie Andrist (171-164 at Stout, 425-359 overall) is in his 14th year as the coach of the Blue Devils, and his 24th overall in the collegiate ranks.  Andrist led the Blue Devils to their first NCAA Division III appearance five seasons ago when Stout advanced to the second round. Andrist coached at Mount Senario for 11 seasons and won three national championships. Andrist spent two stints coaching international basketball, working with the country of Qatar. | UW-Oshkosh: Pat Juckem (17-28 at Oshkosh, 132-107 overall) is in his second season as head coach of the Titans, leading the team to a 7-18 record in his first year at the helm. Before coming to Oshkosh, Juckem was head coach at Coe College from 2006-12, where he ranks second in school history with 105 victories. He was named the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference coach of the year in 2006 and 2012.

CONFERENCES: Stout is a member of the nine team Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) along with UW-La Crosse, UW-Eau Claire, UW-Stevens Point, UW-Superior, UW-Oshkosh, UW-Platteville, UW-Whitewater and UW-River Falls.

UP NEXT: The Blue Devils will host UW-Superior on Wednesday, Feb. 12 in their final home regular season game  before going on the road against UW-Platteville Saturday, Feb 15. Both games are scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip-off.


UW-Stout 2013-14 Individual Season Highs (Updated Feb. 3, 2014)

Points: 29, Jimmy Whitehead vs. UW-River Falls, Dec. 11, 2013
3-Pointers Made: 4, Alex Oman vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014; Brett Ahsenmacher vs. UW-Stevens Point, Jan. 8, 2014;
Rebounds: 12, Aaron Jenny vs. Crown College, Nov. 16, 2013
Assists: 5, Aaron Jenny vs. UW-River Falls, Dec. 11, 2013; Jay Higgins vs. Mount Mercy, Nov. 15, 2013
Steals: 5, Aaron Jenny vs. UW-Superior, Dec. 5, 2013

UW-Stout 2013-14 Team Season Highs (Updated Feb. 3, 2014)

Points: 89, vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014
Field Goals Made: 33 vs. Mount Mercy, Nov. 15, 2013
Field Goal Percentage: .640 (32-50) vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014
3-Pointers Made: 9 vs. UW-Stevens Point, Jan. 8, 2014
Free Throws Made: 27 vs. Luther College, Nov. 25, 2013
Free Throw Percentage: .870 (20-23) vs. Ashford University, Jan. 22, 2014
Rebounds: 64 vs. Crown College, Nov. 16, 2013
Assists: 19 vs. Mount Mercy, Nov. 15, 2013
Steals: 9 (3x) vs. UW-Oshkosh, Jan. 18, 2014; vs. UW-Superior, Dec. 4, 2014; vs. Crown College, Nov. 16, 2013


UW-Stout Career Bests (updated Feb. 3, 2014)

Phil Freeman - #3
Points: 12 vs. Mount Mercy, Nov. 15, 2013
Rebounds: 4 vs. Crown College, Nov. 16, 2013
Assists: 1 (2x) vs. UW-Superior, Dec. 5, 2013; vs. Crown College, Nov. 16, 2013

Aaron Jenny - #5
Points: 24 vs. UW-Superior, Dec. 5, 2013
Rebounds: 12 vs. Crown College, Nov. 16, 2013
Assists: 5 vs. UW-River Falls, Dec. 11, 2013; 4 (5x) vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014; UW-Platteville, Jan. 11, 2014; vs. UW-Superior, Dec. 5, 2013;  vs. UW-Oshkosh, Jan. 14, 2012; vs. UW-Platteville, Dec. 10, 2011

AJ Dubek - #10
Points: 4 vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013
Rebounds: 2 vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013
Assists: 1 (2x) vs. UW-River Falls, Jan. 29, 2014; vs. Concordia Wisconsin, Dec. 30, 2012

Jarvis Ragland - #11
Points: 21 vs. Macalester, Nov. 18, 2011
Rebounds: 9 (2x) vs. Mary Hardin-Baylor, Dec. 29, 2011; vs. Whitewater, Jan. 19, 2013
Assists: 3 (2x) vs. UW-Superior, Dec. 7, 2011; vs. UW-Oshkosh, Jan. 12, 2013

Hank Kujak - #12
Points: 12 vs. Wartburg College, Dec. 1, 2013
Rebounds: 5 (3x) vs. Plattsburgh State, Dec. 30, 2013; vs. Stevens Point, Feb. 15, 2012; vs Wartburg College, Dec. 1, 2013
Assists: 3 (3x) vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014;  vs. UW-Stevens Point, Jan. 8, 2014;  vs. Eau Claire, Feb. 11, 2012

Brett Ahsenmacher - #13
Points: 14 vs. Luther College, Nov. 25, 2013
Rebounds: 4 vs. Plattsburgh State, Dec. 30,, 2013
Assists: 1 (3x) vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014;  vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 4, 2014;  vs. Mount Mercy, Nov. 15, 2013

Alex Oman - #14
Points: 28 (2x) vs. UW-Oshkosh, Feb. 18, 2012; vs. UW-Superior, Feb. 1, 2012
Rebounds: 10 vs. Mary Hardin-Baylor, Dec. 29, 2011
Assists: 6 vs. Northland, Nov. 24, 2012

Josh Watton - #15
Points: x
Rebounds: 1 vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013
Assists: x

Michael Tesch - #21
Points: 2 vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013
Rebounds: 1 (2x) vs. UW-River Falls, Jan. 29, 2014; vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013
Assists: 1 (2x) vs. Plattsburgh State, Dec. 30, 2013; vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013

Jimmy Whitehead - #24
Points: 29 vs. UW-River Falls, Dec. 11, 2013
Rebounds: 9 vs. UW-Oshkosh, Jan, 18, 2014
Assists: 4 vs. Mount Mercy, Nov. 15, 2013

Reggie Kujak - #31
Points: 4 (2x) vs. UW-River Falls, Jan. 29, 2014; vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014
Rebounds: 2 (2x) vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014;  vs. UW-Stevens Point, Jan. 9, 2013
Assists:

Jacob Nordstrom - #32
Points: 2 vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013
Rebounds: 1 (2x) vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014; vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013
Assists: x

Jay Higgins - #33
Points: 15 vs. UW-River Falls, Jan. 29, 2014
Rebounds: 13 vs. Concordia-Texas, Dec. 30, 2011
Assists: 5 vs. Mount Mercy, Nov. 15, 2013

Josh Kosloske - #34
Points: 16 vs. St. Scholastica, Nov. 16, 2012
Rebounds: 15 vs. UW-La Crosse, Jan. 18, 2012
Assists: 2 (5x) vs. UW-Oshkosh, Jan. 18, 2014; vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 4, 2014; vs UW-Oshkosh, Jan. 14, 2012; vs. UW-Superior, Dec. 7, 2011; vs. Bethel, Nov. 19, 2013

Adam Wadzinski - #35
Points: 11 vs. UW-Oshkosh, Jan. 18, 2014
Rebounds: 6 (2x) vs. UW-River Falls, Jan. 29, 2014; vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 4, 2014
Assists: 4 vs. Ashford, Nov. 30, 2013

Braxtyn Meyer - #42
Points: 2 vs. UW-Platteville, Jan. 11, 2014
Rebounds: 2 vs. Bethel University, Nov. 18, 2013
Assists: x

Debonair Townsend - #44
Points: 9 vs. Wartburg, Dec. 1, 2013
Rebounds: 9 vs. La Crosse, Dec. 8, 2010
Assists: 1 (5x) vs. Millikin, Dec. 28, 2013; vs. UW-Superior, Dec. 5, 2013; vs. La Crosse, Dec. 9, 2010; vs. Viterbo, Dec 18, 2010; vs. Superior, Feb. 9, 2011

Tim Butina - #45
Points: 13 vs. UW-Whitewater, Jan. 21, 2012
Rebounds: 13 vs. Northland, Nov. 24, 2012
Assists: 2 (4x) vs. Robert Morris, Nov. 27, 2011; vs. Northland College, Nov. 26, 2011; vs. Winona State, Nov. 16, 2009; vs. Waldorf, Nov. 20, 2009

The Last Time...(updated Feb. 3, 2014)

A Stout Individual...
Scored 30+ points:  34, Jerrod Buchholtz vs. UW-River Falls (1/5/2011)
Scored 25-29 points:  26, Alex Oman vs. UW-Eau Claire (1/25/2014)
Recorded 15+ rebounds:  15, Josh Kosloske vs UW-La Crosse (1/18/12)
Recorded 10+ assists:  11, Erik Olson vs. UW-Stevens Point (2/13/13)
Recorded 6+ steals:  8, by Jerrel Enerson-Matthews vs. Bethany Lutheran (11/21/08)

A Stout Team...
Had five players score in double digits:  vs. Luther College, Nov. 25, 2013 - Jimmy Whitehead (24), Aaron Jenny (19), Brett Ahsenmacher (14), Alex Oman (11), Josh Kosloske (11).
Had four players score in double digits:  vs. UW-Eau Claire, Jan. 25, 2014 - Alex Oman (26), Jimmy Whitehead (21), Josh Kosloske (12), Jay Higgins (10).
Scored 105+ points:  109, vs. Crown College (2/15/11)
Scored 100-104 points:  102 vs. Silver Lake College (2/17/2010)
Recorded 60+ rebounds:  64, vs. Concordia-Texas (12/11/2011)
Recorded 55-59 rebounds:  56 vs. Northland College (11/24/12)
Recorded 25+ assists:  25, vs. Silver Lake College (2/17/2010)
Won 10 or more games in a row:  10, 2005-06 season
Lost 5 or more games in a row:  7, 2011-12 season
Was held to 40 or fewer points in game: 40, vs. Plattsburgh State (12/30/13)