Inside and outside, the Pointers had an incredible second half, hitting their first 10 shots and shooting 72.4 percent after halftime in blowing past the Falcons 94-66 to clinch a share of their fifth Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship. The nation’s top-ranked team is now 21-2 overall and 13-2 in the WIAC, holding a one-game lead over UW-Platteville entering Saturday’s regular season finale at UW-Oshkosh.
UW-Stevens Point poured in 52 points in the second half and was 21-for-29 from the field, including seven-for-10 from three-point range. Seniors Jason Kalsow and Tamaris Relerford were both five-for-six from behind the arc as Relerford matched a career high with 16 points and Kalsow had 16 of his game-high 27 points in the second half.
The Pointers led just 42-37 at halftime as UW-River Falls hung tough by shooting 53.8 percent from the field in the first half. However, the first five minutes of the second half were dominated by the Pointers, who scored on their first 11 possessions. Relerford and Bennett opened the half with three-pointers for a 48-40 lead. Jon Krull hit a driving layup and Kalsow drained a three-pointer to cap a 10-0 run and give UW-Stevens Point a 55-40 lead.
After Hans Hoeg hit a three-pointer for the Falcons, UW-Stevens Point went on a 15-1 run as Kalsow had a layup and then drove down the lane for a thundering two-hand dunk on the next trip down the floor. Relerford hit a three-pointer and Kalsow drove baseline for another dunk as the Pointers pushed the lead to 64-44. Eric Maus finished the stretch with a layup off a pass from Krull as the Pointers had all five starters in double figures within the first 25 minutes of the game In fact, the starting five scored all of the Pointers’ first 74 points.
UW-Stevens Point entered the night ranked 14th in the NCAA Division III in field goal percentage and sixth in three-point shooting. The Pointers improved those numbers by shooting 63.2 percent from the field and making 13 of 24 three-pointers for 54.2 percent. Over the last four games, the Pointers have shot an eye-popping 65.6 percent from three-point range in the second half (21-for-32). UW-Stevens Point also had eight turnovers, marking the sixth time in the past 10 games the Pointers have had fewer than 10 in a game.
Bennett and Maus each added 13 points for the Pointers, while Krull added 12 points. Bennett and Kalsow each recorded six assists as 24 of the team’s 36 field goals were assisted.
Hoeg scored 12 points to lead the Falcons, who cooled off in the second half by shooting just 32.0 percent and finished at 43.1 percent for the game. UW-River Falls fell to 8-15 overall and 4-11 in the WIAC.