News Release

MENOMONIE, Wis. — Adam Chandler cooled down considerably shooting-wise in the second half, but still hit the clutch shot, a 3-pointer with 1:32 left in the game to hold off another UW-Stevens Point comeback as UW-Stout went on to a 78-70 win, Thursday, Feb. 23 at Johnson Fieldhouse.

The Blue Devils (21-5) advance to the Wisconsin intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) championship game Saturday, Feb. 25 at 7 p.m. at UW-Whitewater. The Warhawks won 72-70 on a last second shot.

Just like the last time the two teams played when Stevens Point (17-10) came back from an 18 point deficit to defeat Stout, the Pointers were climbing uphill all night. They had fallen into an early hole, and Stout built a 16-0 lead before Stevens Point scored their first point with 10:18 left in the first half.

Stout built a 33-20 halftime lead - and held as much as a 19 point first half lead - as Chandler and fellow guard Ryan Stangl each scored nine first half points.

The Pointers came at Stout hard late in the first half, cutting the lead down to 10 points, 30-20, with 34 second left in the half, but Chandler buried a deep 3-pointer just before the buzzer.

It would be the Pointers turn to move in the second. Powered by 11 points by freshman Pete Rortvedt during a 17-6 run over the first four minutes of the second half, the Pointers cut the lead down to four, 41-37. Stevens Point kept coming and took the lead, 54-53, with 6:32 remaining on a 3-pointer by Steve Hicklin.

The lead either changed hands or was tied nine times over the next three minutes until Stout's Greg Chaisson drilled a pair of free throws to put Stout up 62-61, with 3:24 remaining. Neither team scored for next two minutes until Chandler buried the 3-pointer.

Terry Farmer got a wide-open dunk after Brian Buck pulled down a missed Pointer shot and Stout went on to make 11-of-12 free throws in the final 52 seconds, seven by Stangl.

Stout advances to the WIAC Championship game for the first time since 1999 and the loss snapped a Stevens Point 18-game post season winning streak, the longest in NCAA Division III history.

Chandler, who was 3-for-5 from the floor and 3-for-4 from beyond the arc in the first half, finished the game hitting 4-of-10 from the floor and 4-of-8 from 3-point range to score 12 points.

The Pointers' Steve Hicklin led all scorers with 18 points, 14 in the second half. Rortvedt finished with 14 points, 13 in the second half, Jon Krull scored 15 points, 13 in the second half, and Brian Bauer scored 11 points, eight in the second half.

Farmer led Stout with 17 points and 10 rebounds, collecting his second consecutive double-double. Stangl finished with 16 points and Jacob Nonemacher had 12 points, 10 rebounds and six blocked shots. Chaisson scored five points, but recorded 10 assists. Stout outrebounded the Pointers, 35-28.