The No. 10 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's basketball team remained undefeated for the 2018-19 season Friday night with a 114-104 victory at 20th-ranked Loras in a non-conference affair in Dubuque, Iowa.
The two teams combined for 74 personal fouls that resulted in a combined 73 made free throws and committed a combined 39 turnovers. The Warhawks (9-0 overall) hit 37-of-42 from the free-throw line, including 29-of-34 in the second half, while the Duhawks made 36-of-40, including 23-of-26 in the second.
Senior guard Malik Clements totaled a game-high 27 points and added seven rebounds, one block and one steal to lead UW-Whitewater. Senior forward Derek Rongstad collected 26 points on 8-of-9 from the floor and 8-of-8 at the free-throw line with five rebounds, three assists and three steals, and senior guard David Sachs added 24 points, six assists and two rebounds.
Senior forward Melvin Brown posted 11 points, seven rebounds and two assists, and senior guard Mitchell Pfeifer contributed 10 points, three rebounds and three assists.
The Warhawks' 114 points were the team's most since a 134-point output on Nov. 28, 2009, against Grinnell (Iowa).
UW-Whitewater took the lead for good at the 16:38 mark of the first half on a 3-pointer by Sachs. Rongstad gave the team its first double-digit advantage at 23-13 with 8:40 remaining.
Loras (8-2) closed its deficit to six by the end of the first half.
The Warhawks held onto the lead in the second half thanks to 75 percent shooting that led to 69 points in the period.
Brown's jumper with 16:40 on the clock pushed UW-Whitewater's lead back to double digits at 54-44 and grew to 19 points with 9:06 to go after a layup by Brown.
The Warhawks took advantage of a five-point possession on a 3-point play by Brown and a pair of free throws by Pfeifer on a technical foul to make it 87-69 with 5:39 left.
The Duhawks drew to within six with one minute to play, but UW-Whitewater knocked down 9-of-10 at the free throw line and made three defensive stops to close the game out.
The Warhawks conclude regular season non-conference play next Friday and Saturday, Dec. 28-29, with a pair of games in Austin, Texas. The team faces Sul Ross State on the 28th at 7 p.m. and Concordia Texas, the tournament's host, on the 29th at 7 p.m.