Issued: December 4, 2002

MEN'S BASKETBALL SOARS LATE IN CONFERENCE OPENER

EAU CLAIRE - The UW-Eau Claire men's basketball team overcame a six point deficit late in the second half to defeat UW-La Crosse 72-68 in the conference opener here at W.L. Zorn Arena.

The Blugolds improve to 5-1 on the season and 1-0 in Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play while the Eagles slip to 2-2 overall and 0-1 in WIAC action.

The Blugolds played tough on the offensive glass out-rebounding La Crosse offensively 20-2. They also stole the ball from the Eagles 11 times to La Crosse's four en route to the victory.

After a quick first half basket by La Crosse the Blugolds went on a 14-2 run to take an early ten point lead. The Eagles battled back from the deficit and pulled within two with less than nine minutes remaining in the half. Eau Claire again took control and extended the lead to nine but La Crosse scored the final four points of the half to head into the locker room trailing by just five.

La Crosse came out strong in the second half and tied the game at 32 with over 18 minutes remaining in the game. For the majority of the second half the Blugolds trailed the Eagles in a close game. Eau Claire found themselves down by six points with 1:48 to play when Andy Witte (Sr-Madison/Monona Grove) scored on a lay-up and Dan Archambault (So-Oshkosh/West) hit consecutive free-throws to pull the Blugolds within 2.

After a 30 second timeout by La Crosse the Blugolds forced an Eagle turnover on the inbound pass and regained possession. Less than 20 seconds later Jason Larson (Sr-Sugarland, TX/Stephen F. Austin) put up a three-pointer that found nothing but net and gave the Blugolds a one point advantage with under a minute to play. La Crosse missed a potential game-winning shot on the ensuing possession and Witte grabbed the defensive board. He was fouled immediately and sank the first of two free-throw attempts slamming the door on the Eagles. Eau Claire scored the final 10 points of the game en route to the conference victory.

Larson came up big for the Blugolds all night long. He notched 30 points for Eau Claire on 11-of-19 shooting including scoring 16 in the second half. His 30-point performance tonight is the second game this season in which he has scored 30 or more. Larson also played tough defensively as he posted four steals on the evening. Witte helped the Blugolds take a 39-24 rebounding edge on the Eagles as he pulled down a season-best 15 rebounds for Eau Claire while scoring 11 points. Nate Beck (Rothschild/D.C. Everest) also threw in 11 points for the Blugolds.

Eau Claire will resume action this Saturday when they travel to Menomonie to battle the Blue Devils of UW-Stout. Game time is set for 7:00 p.m.

Eau Claire-La Crosse Box