MEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY RELEASE NOVEMBER 28, 2017

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MEN’S BASKETBALL WEEKLY RELEASE DECEMBER 5, 2017

Matt Stanek, Asst. Commissioner for Media Relations * 780 Regent Street * Madison, WI 53715 * Phone (608) 265-6406 * [email protected]

THIS WEEK’S SCHEDULE

STANDINGS



WIAC OVERALL School W L H A W L H A N UW-Whitewater 0 0 0-0 0-0 6 0 4-0 1-0 1-0 UW-Oshkosh 0 0 0-0 0-0 5 0 3-0 2-0 0-0 UW-Platteville 0 0 0-0 0-0 6 1 5-0 0-0 1-1 UW-River Falls 0 0 0-0 0-0 6 1 5-0 0-0 1-1 UW-La Crosse 0 0 0-0 0-0 5 1 3-1 2-0 0-0 UW-Eau Claire 0 0 0-0 0-0 4 3 2-0 2-3 0-0 UW-Stout 0 0 0-0 0-0 4 3 3-2 1-0 0-1 UW-Stevens Point 0 0 0-0 0-0 2 2 0-1 2-1 0-0

UW-RIVER FALLS SELECTED TO WIN TITLE

UW-River Falls, the defending regular-season and tournament champion, has been selected to win the 2018 WIAC men’s basketball title, based on a preseason poll conducted by the league’s head coaches and sports information directors. The Falcons, who are ranked No. 10 in the D3hoops.com Preseason Top 25, bring back three starters from a squad that claimed the 14th regular-season crown and second tournament title in program history. UW-River Falls also made its third NCAA championship showing. Leading the returnees is senior forward Alex Herink, who claimed WIAC Player of the Year honors after placing fourth in the WIAC with 15.9 points per game and seventh with 5.9 rebounds per contest. His 30 blocked shots ranked second in the conference, while his .843 free-throw percentage (102-of-121) was third. Also back is senior guard Devin Buckley, who was third on the team with 10.6 points per game. The Falcons will play their home games in the sparkling new 2,149-seat Don Page Arena. UW-Whitewater, ranked No. 11 by D3hoops.com, returns its top-three scorers from last year’s team that made the 21st NCAA appearance in program archives. Senior guard Chris Jones had a team-best 17.9 points per contest, while senior forward Scott Tyler contributed 14.4 and junior forward Derek Rongstad had 11.1. Jones also had a team-high 88 assists, while Tyler topped the squad with 6.0 rebounds per game and 31 blocked shots. UW-Oshkosh reached the title game of the WIAC championship a year ago for the third consecutive season and made the program’s seventh NCAA championship appearance. The Titans’ lineup will feature guards Ben Boots and Charlie Noone, who combined for 149 threepoint field goals made a season ago with Boots making 70 and Noone a league-high 79. Boots led the Titans with 13.8 points per contest. UW-Eau Claire’s 18 victories a season ago were the most since the 2000-01 squad had 19 wins. The Blugolds bring back senior guard George Diekelman, who finished third in the league with 95 assists and second on the team with 14.1 points per game. UW-Stevens Point junior guard Ethan Bublitz led the WIAC with a .872 free-throw percentage (82-of-94) last year. He was the team’s leading scorer and rebounder at 14.3 points and 4.2 rebounds per contest. Bublitz also produced team highs with 55 assists and 23 steals. UW-Platteville welcomes back 15 letterwinners, including junior guard Robert Duax, who was second in the league with 16.8 points per game a season ago, while leading the Pioneers with 72 assists and 41 steals. UW-La Crosse welcomes Kent Dernbach as its interim head coach, replacing Ken Koelbl, who posted the second-most wins in program history with 201. Dernbach served as associate head coach at UW-Stevens Point since 2011. Junior forward Ben Meinholz had a conferencebest 58 steals a year ago and was the team’s leading scorer at 14.8 points per contest. UW-Stout senior guard John Keefe led the squad with 15.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per contest, 119 assists, 56 three-point field goals made and 39 steals during the 2016-17 campaign.

2017-18 Preseason Predictions--Voted on by WIAC Head Coaches and Sports Information Directors 2016-17 Record 1. UW-River Falls 25-4 overall, 12-2 WIAC 2. UW-Whitewater 22-7, 9-5 3. UW-Oshkosh 17-11, 9-5 4. UW-Eau Claire 18-8, 8-6 5. UW-Stevens Point 14-10, 8-6 6. UW-Platteville 8-17, 1-13 7. UW-La Crosse 14-13, 5-9 8. UW-Stout 13-13, 4-10

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TUESDAY, DECEMBER 5 Finlandia (MI) at #8 UW-Oshkosh, 7:00 PM THURSDAY, DECEMBER 7 UW-Stout at Silver Lake, 8:00 PM FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8 Hope (MI) at UW-Platteville, 7:00 PM Adrian (MI) at #3 UW-Whitewater, 5:00 PM-ET SATURDAY, DECEMBER 9 #8 UW-Oshkosh at Calvin (MI), 3:00 PM-ET Hope (MI) at UW-Stevens Point, 3:00 PM UW-La Crosse at Buena Vista (IA), 4:00 PM #3 UW-Whitewater at Trine (IN), 5:00 PM-ET St. Thomas (MN) at #10 UW-River Falls, 5:00 PM SUNDAY, DECEMBER 10 Finlandia (MI) at UW-Stout, 12:00 PM UW-La Crosse at #15 Wartburg (IA), 5:00 PM Poll: D3hoops.com

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK Brett Wittchow, UW-Oshkosh Junior Guard Rosendale, Wis. (Laconia) Wittchow averaged 17 points, 8 rebounds and 2.5 assists as UW-Oshkosh posted victories of 71-58 over North Park University (Ill.) on Nov. 28 and 95-89 (double overtime) over nationally ranked Augustana College (Ill.) on Dec. 2. Wittchow totaled 34 points in the two contests by making 12-of-20 (60 percent) shots from the field, 4-of-8 (50 percent) three-point shots and 6-of-7 (85.7 percent) free throws. He also compiled 16 rebounds (14 defensive), eight assists and two steals. In UW-Oshkosh’s road win over North Park, Wittchow scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for his first career double-double. He also counted five assists during his 31 minutes of action. During the Titans’ home double-overtime victory over No. 2-ranked Augustana, Wittchow scored 19 points, collected five rebounds, tallied three assists and recorded two steals in 38 minutes of activity. He helped the Titans snap a 10-game losing streak to the Vikings by converting 7-of-10 shots from the field and 4-of-5 free throws. Augustana College lost to Babson College (Mass.) in the title game of last year’s NCAA Division III Championship.

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2017-18 WIAC Men’s Basketball WIAC COACHES ALL-TIME TOP WINNING RECORDS (Updated on 12/4/17) (Based on available info.) (Ranked by number of wins)

Name School (Seasons) Years Ken Anderson EC (27) 1969-95 Dave Vander Meulen WW (23) 1979-2001 Bill Zorn EC (40) 1929-68 Dwain Mintz ST (27) 1963-89 Pat Miller WW (17) 2001-present Ted Van Dellen OSH (22) 1991-2012 Bo Ryan PLT (15) 1985-99 Rick Bowen RF (20) 1987-2006 Bob Semling STP (13) 2006-present* Burt McDonald LC (17) 1973-89 Robert Kolf OSH (32) 1925-56 Dick Wadewitz PLT (21) 1964-84 Terry Gibbons EC (16) 1996-2011 Bob White OSH (20) 1965-84 Eddie Andrist ST (18) 2001-present Jack Bennett STP (9) 1997-2005 Ken Koelbl LC (14) 2004-17 John Barth PLT (17) 1947-63 Hale Quandt STP (15) 1948-62 Ted Whereatt SUP (14) 1931-43, 47 Dick Bennett STP (9) 1977-85 Bob Parker STP (9) 1988-96 Jeff Berkhof RF (12) 2007-present Bob Weigandt WW (17) 1951-67 Bob Krueger STP (13) 1963-75 John Muraski ST (11) 1990-2000 Chick Agnew WW (21) 1922-42 Eddie Kotal STP (12) 1931-42 Jeff Gard PLT (9) 2010-present Jeff Kaminsky SUP (11) 1995-2005 Ray Johnson ST (18) 1939-56 Carl Vergamini SUP (10) 1955-63, 65 Paul Combs PLT (6) 2004-09 *Semling coached the first 11 games of the 2017 season

W-L-T 631-152 440-182 397-357 385-280 359-104 358-225 353-76 265-249 264-73 263-184 243-225 239-269 235-185 232-266 207-235 200-56 201-165 198-146 178-126 174-70 173-80 158-84 155-143 154-181 149-146 145-156 143-146 133-49 121-96 116-163 116-201 105-107 102-57

# Team Pct. .806 .707 .527 .579 .775 .614 .823 .516 .783 .588 .519 .470 .560 .466 .468 .781 .549 .576 .586 .713 .684 .653 .520 .460 .505 .482 .495 .731 .558 .416 .366 .495 .642

WIAC ACTIVE COACHES W-L RECORDS Name, School Matt Siverling, EC Kent Dernbach, LC Pat Juckem, OSH Jeff Gard, PLT Jeff Berkhof, RF Bob Semling, STP Eddie Andrist, ST Pat Miller, WW



Career 99-91 13-6 180-144 121-96 155-143 264-73 457-426 359-104

At School 70-67 5-1 75-65 121-96 155-143 264-73 207-235 359-104

D3HOOPS.COM TOP 25 - DEC. 4

WIAC Only 44-64 8-5 35-41 60-64 77-95 149-40 100-167 183-69

1. Whitman (WA) (25) 2. Middlebury (VT) 3. UW-Whitewater 4. Augustana (IL) 5. Hanover (IN) 6. Williams (MA) 7. Ramapo (NJ) 8. UW-Oshkosh 9. Whitworth (WA) 10. UW-River Falls 11. Washington (MO) 12. Lycoming (PA) 13. Marietta (OH) 14. Swarthmore (PA) 15. Wartburg (IA) 16. Skidmore (NY) 17. Rochester (NY) 18. Wesleyan (CT) 19. Ohio Wesleyan 20. Eastern Connecticut State 21. Amherst (MA) 22. Baldwin Wallace (OH) 23. New Jersey City 24. St. John’s (MN) 25. Franklin & Marshall (PA)

W-L 5-0 4-0 6-0 4-1 5-1 5-1 5-1 5-0 7-0 6-1 5-1 7-0 5-1 6-0 6-1 6-0 5-1 6-0 5-1 6-0 4-0 4-1 7-0 4-1 7-0

Prev. 1 4 5 2 7 3 8 18 13 10 9 11 6 12 14 20 15 -16 24 21 -----

Others Receiving Votes: Mass. Inst. of Tech.; Christopher Newport (VA); North Central (IL); Bowdoin (ME); John Carroll (OH); Nichols (MA); St. Norbert; Hamilton (NY); Randolph-Macon (VA); Cabrini (PA); Dickinson (PA); Illinois Wesleyan; Lake Forest (IL); Loras (IA); Colby (ME); Keene State (NH); York (PA); Emory (GA); Virginia Wesleyan; Wooster (OH); Wheaton (IL); Hobart (NY); Springfield (MA); Puget Sound (WA); Salem State (MA)

WIAC IN THE POLLS (D3HOOPS.COM)

EC LC OSH PLT RF STP ST WW Preseason -- -- RV -- 10 -- -- 11 Nov. 27 -- -- 18 -- 10 -- -- 5 Dec. 4 -- -- 8 -- 10 -- -- 3

UW-Eau Claire * UW-La Crosse * UW-Oshkosh * UW-Platteville * UW-River Falls * UW-Stevens Point * UW-Stout * UW-Whitewater Page 2

2017-18 WIAC Men’s Basketball WIAC REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS Eau Claire (18)

1938 (c), 1939 (t), 1955, 1956 (c), 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973 (c), 1974 (c), 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 (c), 1987 (c), 1989 (c), 1991

La Crosse (12)

1915, 1919, 1922, 1924, 1925 (c), 1931, 1932, 1937 (c), 1951, 1964, 1965, 2016

Oshkosh (12)

1914, 1921, 1925 (c), 1938 (c), 1939 (t), 1947 (c), 1948 (quin), 1963, 1967, 1968, 1978, 2002 (t)

Platteville (19)

1927 (c), 1928, 1943 (q), 1948 (quin), 1953, 1954, 1956 (c), 1958, 1959, 1975 (c), 1988, 1990, 1993 (c), 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2005 (c)

River Falls (14) 1916, 1917, 1920, 1923, 1927 (c), 1929, 1930, 1936 (c), 1947 (c), 1948 (quin), 1949, 1950, 2004, 2017 Stevens Point (29)

1918, 1933, 1935 (c), 1936 (c), 1937 (c), 1942 (c), 1948 (quin), 1957, 1961, 1969 (c), 1982 (c), 1983, 1984 (c), 1985, 1986, 1987 (c), 1992, 1993 (c), 2000, 2001 (c), 2002 (t), 2003, 2005 (c), 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 (c)

Stout (6)

1926, 1942 (c), 1943 (q), 1966, 1969 (c), 1975 (c)

Whitewater (15)

1943 (q), 1952, 1962, 1973 (c), 1974 (c), 1984 (c), 1989 (c), 1994, 2001 (c), 2002 (t), 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2015 (c)

Former members Superior (4)

1934 (c), 1935 (c), 1939 (t), 1941 (c)

Milwaukee (7)

1913, 1934 (c), 1940, 1941 (c), 1943 (q), 1948 (quin), 1960

c: Co-Champion t: Tri-Champion q: Quad-Champion quin: Quintent-Champion

WIAC TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS Eau Claire (1)

2001

Oshkosh (3)

2002, 2003, 2016

Platteville (1)

1999

River Falls (2)

2012, 2017

Stevens Point (8)

2000, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014

Whitewater (4)

2006, 2008, 2013, 2015

UW-Eau Claire * UW-La Crosse * UW-Oshkosh * UW-Platteville * UW-River Falls * UW-Stevens Point * UW-Stout * UW-Whitewater Page 3