Pioneers fall to Pointers in final seconds

The University of Wisconsin-Platteville men’s basketball team fell to the UW-Stevens Point Pointers 60-57 on a last second chance on Wednesday in Stevens Point.

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Pioneers fall to Pointers in final seconds
January 13, 2016

STEVENS POINT, Wis. —The University of Wisconsin-Platteville men's basketball team fell to the UW-Stevens Point Pointers 60-57 on a last second chance on Wednesday in Stevens Point. 

Junior Cory Vaassen played well in the loss for the Pioneers, who fell to 6-8 on the season. Vaassen led the way with 18 points, six rebounds and two assists. 

After a continuous battle throughout the first half, the score nearly even, the Pioneers sat one point behind UW-Stevens Point at 32-31 at the half.

Coming out of the break, the battle continued. The Pioneers tied the Pointers at the 15:25 mark and took the lead with around 14 minutes left to play after a Vaassen three-pointer gave them the 40-39 advantage. 

From that point on, the gap never reached more than five points. The Pioneers soon found themselves ahead 57-52 after senior Peyton River sunk a three-pointer with 1:37 left in the game. 

The Pointers tied the game at 57 with a mere 26 seconds left to play, giving them a chance at overtime play, but they weren't quite finished. 

After a Pointer steal, the UW-Stevens Point head coach quickly called a timeout with 10 seconds remaining on the clock. 

Coming out of the timeout, the Pioneers held a strong defense, but UW-Stevens Point squeezed in a last-second three-point opportunity and suddenly boosted ahead 60-57 with one second left on the scoreboard, taking the WIAC win. 

The Pioneers continue WIAC action on Saturday at UW-Stout at 3 p.m. 

Written by: Carly Willman, University Information and Communications, 608.342.1194, willmanc@uwplatt.edu