Senior day is always a special one for any collegiate basketball team.  And Wednesday night's contest proved to be no exception for the UW-Superior Yellowjackets as they hosted the UW-Eau Claire Blugolds at Mertz Mortorelli Gymansium.

Playing before a boisterous home crowd, the Yellowjackets made the night one to remember, getting a balanced all-around effort to pull away in the second half for a 65-53 victory while also honoring seniors Jake Smith (Rhinelander, Wis.), Marcus Helland (Baldwin, Wis.), Dan Culy (Rice Lake, Wis.), Ryan Pierce (Norfolk, Va.) and Greg Roeder (Mercer, Wis.).

The victory had added meaning for UW-Superior as the Yellowjackets also clinched the No. 6 seed in the upcoming WIAC conference tournament with one game remaining in the regular season.

The Yellowjackets (14-10 overall, 6-9 WIAC) got off to a fast start, scoring nine straight points during a 2:10 span of the first half to take a 9-4 lead with 16:33 remaining following two free throws from Helland, a three-pointer by Culy and four points by Smith.

UW-Eau Claire (9-15, 3-12) would rally back, eventually taking a 17-16 following a floating jumper by Marcus Ruh with 11:53 left in the opening stanza.

The rest of the half remained close before a three-pointer from Smith with 1:06 gave UW-Superior a 34-31 lead at the intermission.

The Yellowjackets would expand their lead early in the second half, taking a 40-33 lead following a driving layup by Helland with 16:39 remaining in regulation.

UW-Eau Claire fought back to within 52-49 on a layup by Ruh at the 6:31 mark of the second half.

But consecutive three point shots from Culy helped the Yellowjackets expand the lead to 58-52 with 4:05 showing on the clock.

The Blugolds never got closer than six points the rest of the way as Dustin Ritchie (Superior, Wis.) connected on a key three pointer with 1:58 left before Culy sealed matters with three free throws in the final 1:28 of play.

Offensively, the Yellowjackets were paced by Culy's game-high 19 points while Roeder added 14 points.  Smith finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds while Ritchie pitched in with 12 points.  For the game, the Yellowjackets connected on 11-of-20 from three-point range.

UW-Eau Claire was led by James Pfitzinger with 15 points.  Ruh added 14 points with Nick Craggs contributing 11.