Pioneers win in stunning comeback
12/8/07
By Paul Erickson, Sports Information Director
When it came time to come up big, UW-Platteville instead went small.
Playing with a five guard lineup, the Pioneers scored 10 straight points in the final 43 seconds to stun UW-River Falls 67-66 Saturday night on Bo Ryan Court.
UW-Platteville turned a 63-57 deficit into a 67-63 advantage during the frantic final minute.
"We were so down, but coach never gave up on us," said sophomore guard Mike Shaw, who scored a career-high 25 points. "Curt Hanson never gave up on us. I never gave up on us. Nobody on the team gave up, and we came up on the up-side."
Hanson's three-point basket brought the Pioneers within 63-60, and Shaw stole the inbounds pass and scored with 37 seconds left. After the Falcons' DiJon Reese missed the front end of the bonus free throw attempt, the Pioneers had two shots at the lead. Charlie Lohoff missed from the left side, but Kyle Tetschlag came up with the offensive rebound and kicked the ball out to Hanson, who buried another three-pointer from the right side with 8.5 seconds left.
"I was off the whole game, but I hit my two before that and I knew it was going down right as I caught it," Hanson said.
The Pioneers' Jeff Skemp drew a charging foul on Reese with 2.7 seconds remaining. The Falcons fouled Josh Langenfeld, who made both free throws with 1.6 seconds left. UWRF's Willie Wright hit a three-point shot at the buzzer to account for the final 67-66 score.
UWP improved to 5-2 overall and 2-1 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, while UW-River Falls slipped to 3-5, 1-2 despite shooting 76 percent (19-25) in the second half.
The Pioneers missed 17 of their first 20 shots but still led 21-20 at the half. In the second half, the Falcons went up by as many as 12 at 43-31 and still led 55-46 with under five minutes to play. The Pioneers then went to the small lineup that forced turnovers and pumped life into the team.
"When we went to the full-court, zone-style trapping, we still gave up some looks and easy baskets, but what it did was energize us on both ends of the floor," Coach Paul Combs said. "It jump-started our offense. We were really able to make some plays, get some easy looks and get to the free-throw line. We had to maximize our possessions offensively because we were playing from behind. I couldn't be more pleased and proud of our group for the way they battled and persevered."
Shaw put the Pioneers on his back, hitting back-to-back three-point baskets, bringing the Pioneers within 55-52.
"Coach Combs told me this year that if I'm open within 50 feet of the basket, shoot it," Shaw said. "It's a bit of an exaggeration, but he gives me and Curt the green light, and we're just head on to the basket."
Reese and Langenfeld traded a pair of free throws, and then the Falcons' Nate Robertson hit back-to-back layups for a 61-54 lead. Hanson made a three-point shot with 1:11 to play, bringing the Pioneers within 61-57. UWRF's Scott Kelly scored a layup with 1:06 to play, making the score 63-57 and setting up the last-minute comeback.
Shaw, who achieved his previous high of 16 points three times, made 9-16 from the floor, including 5-9 three-point shots for his 25 points. Shaw started all 25 games as a freshman, but is flourishing as the Pioneers' sixth man.
"I'm just predicated on coming in and bringing energy," Shaw said, "but I didn't think I was going to bring as much energy as I did tonight. I didn't think I would be the difference in the game, although I don't know if I was."
Hanson added 18 points to his roommate's total, and Skemp had 10 points and six rebounds.
Wright, Reese, and Courtney Davis all had 12 points and Kelly 11 for the Falcons, who finished the game shooting 53.2 percent.
"A lot of credit goes to River Falls," Combs said. "That's as well as anybody's played us all season. To do that in Williams Fieldhouse is a credit to Jeff (Berkhof) and his staff."
The Pioneers play at the University of Dubuque Thursday at 7 p.m. then face Clarke on Bo Ryan Court Saturday at 8 p.m. (Note special time to accommodate UW-Platteville's graduation.)
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