Pioneers advance to NCAA Second Round

Tickets for Saturday's Second Round game will go on sale at 10 a.m. ONLINE ONLY [click here]. In-person sales will start at 5 p.m. at the ticket window. 

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin-Platteville men's basketball team, ranked fifth by d3hoops.com, defeated Marian University 76-59  on Bo Ryan Court in the First Round of the NCAA Division III Championship. 

The Pioneers (22-5) put up 42 attempts from three-point territory, making a program single-game second best 17 three-pointers on their way to  victory over the Sabres. The Pioneers advance to the Second Round game against Calvin University on Bo Ryan Court in Williams Fieldhouse on Saturday, March 5 at 7 p.m.  

UW-Platteville is making its 14^th appearance in the tournament and fourth consecutive appearance. After the game, head coach Jeff Gard said, "The first one is always the hardest. They've been here before, but a year removed. It means a lot.

"First, give credit to Marian. Coach Diener has done a phenomenal job there, and he's just starting. You know that's going to be a team to be reckoned with in the future."

"I was proud of our guys' effort, especially in the second half, defensively. We knew what they were going to be able to do, as well as their guards can shoot it. In the first half, we got a little too comfortable. In the second half, it shows in the percentages, we got into them a little more and made them more uncomfortable offensively." 

Scoring a game-high 19, Kyle Tuma (Sr./Valders, Wis.) said, "We've been to the tournament, been here a couple of times before. For us, it all starts with defense and getting stops in a row. We didn't guard well in the first half, but came out in the second half and guarded a lot better."

"We've been here before, and it all starts with preparation, getting in and watching film on Calvin and just being ready to go."

The Pioneers never trailed in the game and the defense held Marian scoreless for the first five minutes while they jumped out to an 11-0 lead. The advantage would be short-lived and Marian only trailed 36-34 at the half. 

Fortunately, the home squad built a 13-point run at the start of the next half. Four minutes into the second half, the Pioneers extended their lead to 52-35. UW-Platteville never led my fewer than 10 for the rest of the evening. 

Adding 18 points and in his fourth tournament appearance, Quentin Shields (Sr./Chicago, Ill.) said, "(Defense) is something we hang our hats on. That's something that is going to win games. I think we did a really good job in the second half of buckling down and making things tough on them."

The Pioneers outrebounded the Sabres 44-27 with Justin Stovall (Sr./Chicago, Ill.) pulling down a game-high 11 boards.

Kyle Tuma finished 5-of-10 from beyond the arc, Ben Probst (So./Madison, Wis.) finished 5-of-8 from three-point range. 

The Pioneers shot 43 percent (28-of-65) from the field including 40.5 percent (17-of-42) from the arc. UW-Platteville made all three of free throws attempts. 

Marian (19-9) shot 40 percent (22-of-55) percent from the floor including 31.8 percent from the three-point arc. The Sabres were 80 percent (8-of-10) from the foul line. 

UW-Platteville advances to the Second Round and will face the Calvin University. The Knights defeated Saint John's University 77-71 in game one on Friday.  Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at 10 a.m. Saturday [click here]. The ticket window at the game for in-person sales will open at 5 p.m.