No. 18 Pioneers stay undefeated with 74-67 win over Cardinal Stritch

MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville men's basketball team (6-0) ranked No. 18 on the D3hoops.com poll, defeated Cardinal Stritch (4-5) on the road 74-67 Sunday afternoon. UW-Platteville had three Pioneers reach the 15-point mark, exchanged the lead nine times in the first half with the Wolves, and are now 6-0 start to the season, a mark that has not been reached since 2008.

First half

• UW-Platteville and Cardinal Stitch kept a margin of five or less for the majority of the first half until two minutes remaining when the Pioneers finished with a 9-2 run.
• The Pioneers went into halftime leading the Wolves 41-32.
• Two Pioneers passed double digits in the first half with junior Justin Stovall dishing out 13 points while sophomore Kyle Tuma was close behind with 12 points. 
• Overall, the Pioneers shot 60.0% (15-of-25) from the field and went 6-of-12 (50.0%) from three-point territory while the Wolves shot 44.0% (11-of-25) from the field and 2-of-7 (28.6%) from the three-point arc.
• Cardinal Stritch was able to add 8-of-8 from the free throw line while the Pioneers were 5-of-6.

Second half

• Although UW-Platteville went cold for much the half, the Pioneers were able to distance themselves and lead the Wolves by nearly 10 for much of the second half.
• In the final five minutes of play, Cardinal Stritch closed in on the Pioneers and were within one, 68-67, with two minutes to go after an 11-2 run.
• The Pioneers shot just 31.0% (9-of-29) from the field and 26.7% (4-of-15) from three-point range while Cardinal Stritch improved to 45.8% (11-of-24) from the field and 25% (2-of-8) from behind the three-point arc.
• The Pioneers were 11-of-13 from the free throw line while the Wolves also added 11-of-16.

Notables 

• UW-Platteville improved to 6-0 on the season.
• Cardinal Stritch fell to 4-5 overall. 
• Stoval led the Pioneers with 19 points, eight boards, and three assists.
• Tuma added 15 points and pulled down four rebounds.
• Junior Quentin Shields also reached the 15-point mark while going 9-of-9 from the free throw line with eight in the second half.
• UW-Platteville finished 44.4% (24-of-54) from the field and 37.0% (10-of-27) from beyond the three-point arc. Cardinal Stritch finished 44.9% (22-of-49) and 26.7% (4-of-15) from three-point territory.
• The Pioneers were 84.2% (16-of-19) from the free throw line while the Wolves shot 79.2% (19-of-24).

Remarks from Coach Gard

When asked about the win, head coach Jeff Gard said, "In a night where our shots were not falling, we did a good job of not forcing and really relied on our defense to help us out when we really needed it."

Up next

The Pioneers return to action and to Bo Ryan Court on Friday, Dec. 6 when Hope College rolls into town with gametime set for 7 p.m.