The Yellowjacket men's basketball team took to the road on Wednesday, traveling to River Falls, Wis. to take on the number-ten team in the country, WIAC leaders UW-River Falls.  Earlier in the season, the teams met at Mertz Mortorelli Gym to open the conference season and the Yellowjackets came within an eyelash of a victory.  The same thing happened again on Wednesday at the Karges Center.

The Yellowjackets led by as many as five points in the second half, but down the stretch Falcons' star Jake Voeltz took over, scoring 11 if his game-high 23 points in the final ten minutes, lifting River Falls to a 62-59 win.

Dan Culy (Rice Lake, Wis.) and Marcus Helland (Baldwin, Wis.) each had 14 points to lead the way for the Yellowjackets. 

The Yellowjackets started out cool from the field, shooting 35% in the first half, and trailed by as many as ten points, falling behind 16-6 in the first six minutes of play.  The shooting would get better, however, and the Yellowjackets grabbed a one-point lead with 6:45 to play when Jake Smith (Rhinelander, Wis.) hit a three-pointer, and the score was 23-22.  They were the only points of the first half for Smith, who now needs 14 points to set the school's all-time scoring record.  The Yellowjackets would then build the lead to as much as four points, a margin they would take to the locker room at halftime thanks to a jumper by Aaron Corry (Lake Nebagamon, Wis.) that fell at the buzzer, giving them a 33-29 edge.

The second half shooting was much the same for the Yellowjackets, who would build a second-half lead to five points on three different occasions.  They were never able to put the Falcons away, however, and they would come back to tie the game several times in the final seven minutes, thanks in part to the shooting of Voeltz.  The score was tied at 55-55 with five minutes to play and the Yellowjackets took a two-point lead after Smith hit a jump shot.  Voeltz answered seconds later to tie it.  Voeltz would then make a layup giving the Falcons a two-point cushion before Helland tied it at 59-59 with 3:10 to play.  Jontae Koonkaew would make it 61-59 with three minutes to play, and neither team would score again until there were 20 seconds left and Ollie White sunk a free throw to provide the final score.

Dustin Ritchie (Superior, Wis.) and Greg Roeder (Mercer, Wis.) each led the way with seven rebounds for the Yellowjackets, who were outrebounded 42-36 in the game.  Ritchie had a team-high four assists while Culy had three steals.  Corry had the lone blocked shot of the game for the Yellowjackets.

In addition to Voeltz, Koonkaew had 15 points and White 12 to lead the Falcons.