After defeating University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point 60-56 in the semifinal round of the WIAC Championship Tournament, the Pioneer men’s basketball team lost in the championship game to rival University of Wisconsin-Whitewater 66-55.

UW-Platteville took control of the game against the Warhawks early, limiting them to one shot per possession with strong rebounding and forcing turnovers, while building a 22-13 lead with 4:40 left in the first half. The host UW-Whitewater was able to cut the lead down to 26-21 by halftime.

The Pioneers were led in the first half by sophomore guard Jim Stocki with seven points and junior center Chas Cross with five points and five rebounds.  Warhawk junior guard Eric Bryson led his team in the opening period, scoring seven points.

UW-Whitewater came out of the break playing cleaner, cutting down their turnovers and scoring more effectively.  At the 15:31 mark, the Warhawks took their first lead of the night, 31-30, on a jump shot from freshman forward Darnell Harris.

The Warhawks kept the momentum going on a 9-0 run that was finally broken by a layup from UW-Platteville junior guard Eric Gerber with 11:52 left in the game.  The Pioneers hit an offensive rut, missing shots and giving up nine second-half turnovers.

With four minutes left in the game, UW-Platteville found itself down six and was never able to cut the lead below that for the rest of the contest.

Harris proved to be the key for the Warhawk win, finishing with 20 points–14 coming in the second half–and 10 rebounds.

Stocki led the Pioneers with 13 points in the contest followed by Gerber with 10. Cross finished with nine points and 13 rebounds, going 4-7 from the field, but was unable to reach the free-throw line in the game, where he shot 70 percent on the season.

The Pioneers finished their season with a 19-9 record, 10-6 in the WIAC, posting an 11-2 record at Bo Ryan Court.