The No. 12 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's basketball team posted key defensive stops and hit critical shots late Friday night to hold off Calvin (Mich.) 68-63 in a non-conference affair at Kachel Gymnasium.
The Warhawks (6-0 overall) led by as many as 15 points in the second half and held a 13-point advantage midway through the period before the Knights chipped away at their deficit.
After a free throw by senior guard Dalton Menke, UW-Whitewater led 61-52 with 3:51 to play, but was held scoreless over the next three minutes as Calvin (4-4) drew to within two points with 1:06 on the clock.
Senior guard David Sachs drove hard right for a layup with 39 seconds to play and hit two free throws 15 seconds later after the Knights had made it a one-possession game.
Calvin converted again on the other end, and senior guard Andre Brown split a pair of free throws with 13 seconds remaining.
The Knights missed a 3-pointer on the other end, and Brown grabbed the rebound, drew a foul and hit both free throws with two-tenths of a second left to seal the victory.
Senior forward Melvin Brown posted a team-high 19 points to go along with five rebounds and two assists. Sachs finished with 18 points, three assists and three rebounds, and Andre Brown totaled 10 points and two rebounds.
Menke registered a game- and career-high 10 rebounds to go along with his eight points and two assists. Senior forward Derek Rongstad recorded six points, five rebounds and four steals.
The Warhawks held the Knights to 39 percent shooting and hit 19-of-28 free throws on the offensive end, including 17-of-26 in the second half. UW-Whitewater outscored Calvin 15-4 in fast-break points.
In the first half, neither team led by more than four points in a back-and-forth opening 20 minutes. Andre Brown converted a jumper in the paint with 2:00 to go in the half to give the Warhawks the lead into the break.
UW-Whitewater turns around for a second game against a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association opponent Saturday at 4 p.m. against Alma (Mich.). The game is the second half of a women's/men's doubleheader at Kachel Gymnasium.