Pioneers Reach The Century Mark In Win Over Vikings

DE PERE, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville men's basketball team (9-1) reached a new season-high in points scored in a 101-61 win over Bethany Lutheran (2-8) in the opening game of the St. Norbert Holiday Tournament on Sunday evening inside Mulva Family Fitness and Sports Center in De Pere.

Both teams shot the ball well in the opening half, but the Pioneers held a 49-35 advantage at the break behind 13 points off the bench by junior Miles Hettinger, who was a perfect 6-of-6 from the floor. UW-Platteville shot 48.8 percent (20-of-41) from the field across the first 20 minutes and outscored the Vikings 14-0 in second-chance points.

The lead continued to grow for the Pioneers in the second half, and a 12-point run pushed the gap to 30 at 77-47 with just over 10 minutes remaining. UW-Platteville outscored Bethany Lutheran 52-26 in the half and got scoring from 12 different players. Junior Joey Fuhremann scored nine points in just over four minutes of playing time in the half, while Hettinger continued his strong performance by adding another seven points while continuing to remain perfect from the floor.

After shooting 62.5 percent (20-of-32) from the floor in the second half, UW-Platteville finished at 54.8 percent (40-of-73) shooting for the entire game. Hettinger's 20 points paced the team, while Fuhremann finished with 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting. Joining them in double figures were senior Logan Pearson (12 points) and junior Max Love (11 points).

The Pioneers outrebounded the Vikings 45-27, with Fuhremann collecting a team-high seven. Sophomore Bristol Lewis dished out a team-leading five assists, while UW-Platteville totaled 15 steals as a group, led by four by senior Ben Probst.

UW-Platteville advances to the championship game of the St. Norbert Holiday Tournament tomorrow at 7 p.m. against the winner of St. Nortbert and Lake Forest in the second game on Sunday night.