MENOMONIE (December 1, 2013) - Jimmy Whitehead (Sr, La Crosse) scored 20 of his 26 points in the second half to lead the Blue Devils to a 64-56 win over Wartburg College in the finale of the Thanksgiving Turkey Shootout at Johnson Fieldhouse.

Whitehead, who also had a game-high nine rebounds, started off slow, hitting just 3-7 first half field goal attempts. The second half was a different story, as he hit all nine of his attempts from the field and went 2-3 from the foul line.

Stout (5-1) jumped out to an early 9-0 lead as Debonair Townsend (Sr, Milwaukee) knocked in a pair of three-pointers and Adam Wadzinski (Sr, Verona) also connected from beyond the arc. Wartburg (1-4) came charging right back, going on a 18-2 run to take an 18-11 lead with seven minutes to go in the half.

The Blue Devils would reclaim the lead on a Wadzinski layup with a 1:36 left in the first and took a 25-22 lead into the break. Stout would not trail again.

The two teams traded baskets, going back and forth for the remainder of the game. Stout would lead by as much as 11, but Wartburg refused to go quietly, battling hard until the end.

Strong free throw shooting down the stretch preserved the win for the Blue Devils, as they made 8-9 as a team in the final two minutes.

Hank Kujak (So, Blair) scored 12 points and grabbed five boards off the bench for Stout. Townsend finished with nine points and Wadzinski added eight to go along with five rebounds. Eddie Diemer led the way for Wartburg, with 11 points and four rebounds.

Stout will return to action on Wednesday, Dec. 4th when they open up the WIAC schedule at UW-Superior at 7 pm.