Pioneers first half lead not enough

HOLLAND, MICH. - University of Wisconsin-Platteville fell 71-78 to host Hope on Saturday night.

The Pioneers (5-4) built an 11-point lead at halftime but weren't able to hold off the Dutch (5-3) who shot 50 percent from the field in the second half.

Senior Robert Duax and sophomore Alex Ranney each scored 10 points in the first half while sophomore Quentin Shields dished out four assists. As a team, the Pioneers shot 48.4 percent (15-of-31) from the field and 58.3 percent (7-of-12) from 3-point range in the first half.

The Pioneers shot 39.7 percent (23-of-58) from the field, 40 percent (8-of-20) from 3-point range and 85 percent (17-of-20) from the free throw line. The Pioneers won the rebounding battle 34-31 and outscored the Dutch bench 23-2.

Duax finished as the leading scorer with 20 points, senior Clay Gerds led the team with nine rebounds and Shields was the main distributor with six assists.

The Pioneers travel to Las Vegas for the D3hoops.com Classic to face Edgewood Dec. 27 and Johns Hopkins Dec. 28.