The No. 2 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's basketball team displayed grit and toughness in the closing seconds of a seesaw affair Wednesday night to defeat UW-Eau Claire 62-61 in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest in Eau Claire, Wis.
Senior guard Quardell Young tallied nine of his team-high 15 points in the final 3:01 of the contest, giving the Warhawks (13-2 overall, 7-0 WIAC) the lead for good with just 1.5 seconds on the clock on a driving lay-up.
The Blugolds (6-9, 2-4) led by two with 31 seconds to play. Following a UW-EC timeout, Young converted a lay-up and was fouled, and completed the 3-point play to put UW-Whitewater ahead 60-59 with 20 seconds on the clock.
UW-Eau Claire took the lead on a lay-up, and Young picked up the ball at half court and scored on the other end.
The Blugolds missed a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded, and the Warhawks posted their seventh straight win and remained tied for first place in the conference standings with UW-Stevens Point.
Senior wing KJ Evans tallied his fifth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds to go along with four steals for UW-Whitewater. Senior forward Steve Egan added 12 points and seven rebounds.
The Warhawks offset a 40.4 percent shooting performance – their second lowest mark of the season – by holding UW-Eau Claire to just 36.8 percent from the field. UW-Whitewater shot 76.9 percent (10-of-13) at the free throw line.
After the Blugolds scored the first basket of the game, the Warhawks rattled off a 13-3 run to take an eight-point lead with 14:22 on the clock following a lay-up by junior wing Xzavier Moananu.
UW-Eau Claire tied the contest at 19-19 with 6:49 remaining in the period, and the two teams traded baskets the rest of the way. Junior forward Ron Patten gave UW-Whitewater a 31-29 halftime lead with a jumper on the team's final possession of the half.
Moananu gave the Warhawks a 39-33 advantage just over two minutes into the second half, and UW-Whitewater held its lead through to the 1:46 mark.
From there, Young took over offensively and the Warhawks made one more defensive stop than the Blugolds.
UW-Whitewater continues its road swing Saturday at UW-La Crosse. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.