UW-Oshkosh (9-4/3-2 WIAC) led 32-26 at halftime and increased its advantage to 41-31 before the host Blugolds cut their deficit to 41-39 with 13:11 left to play. Sparked by a pair of three-point baskets by Matt Miller, UW-Oshkosh answered the UW-Eau Claire charge with an 8-0 scoring run to push its lead to 49-39 with 10:51 remaining.
UW-Eau Claire (8-5/1-4 WIAC) crawled back into the contest and sliced UW-Oshkosh’s advantage to 54-53 with 3:36 left. The Titans hung onto their lead and held off the Blugolds the rest of the way as Capelle sank eight free throws and Andy Jahnke two in 11 combined attempts. UW-Oshkosh ended the game with a 14-5 scoring run to post its ninth victory over UW-Eau Claire in 10 meetings.
Behind three three-point baskets by Jahnke by a dunk by Kerry Gibson, UW-Oshkosh jumped out to a 17-7 lead in the first seven minutes of play. UW-Oshkosh’s lead grew to 24-13 at the 9:53 mark of the opening period before UW-Eau Claire battled back with a 13-8 scoring run to cut its deficit to 32-26 at intermission.
UW-Oshkosh had three double-figure scorers in the game as Jahnke counted 19 points, Capelle 18 and Gibson 10. Gibson also grabbed nine rebounds and blocked two shots, while Capelle collected four rebounds and recorded two steals.
Jared Bardon led UW-Eau Claire in scoring with 16 points, while Dan Ottney and Zack Ryan tallied eight each. Matt Riley grabbed seven rebounds to lead the Blugolds.
UW-Oshkosh shot 42.9 percent (21-49) from the field and 87 percent (20-23) from the free throw line. The Titans, who committed just eight turnovers, shot 30 percent (6-20) behind the three-point line.
UW-Eau Claire shot 46.9 percent (23-49) from the field, including 56.5 (13-23) in the second half. The Blugolds also shot 55.6 percent (5-9) from the free throw stripe and 46.7 percent (7-15) behind the three-point line. UW-Eau Claire won the rebounding battle, 35-25.