The Yellowjackets traveled down to Platteville Saturday, searching for a source of hope, searching for a conference victory with the hopes of staying in the WIAC playoff picture. Unfortunately, the Yellowjackets didn't get what they wanted.
 
UW-Platteville stymied the Yellowjackets offense, as the Pioneers marched their way to a 72-57 victory.
 
Superior has experienced season-long struggles in the defensive end. Tonight, however, they experienced struggles in the offensive end of the floor. This game was a lot different than the previous meeting between the two teams. In the first game, Superior found itself down 28 points at halftime. This time, Superior saw itself down only 13 points at the break, despite getting out to an 11-1 lead in the first five minutes of action.
 
With just under five minutes in the first half and the score 26-23 Platteville, Superior was outscored 18-5 to end the first half and trailed 44-31 heading into the locker room. Both teams shot above 54 percent in the first half. The main difference in the score was the amount of turnovers (Superior had eight, Platteville had two). Platteville was provided seven more shots in the half thanks to the turnovers from Superior.
 
The second half was just a struggle offensively for Superior. The Yellowjackets struggled from the field (39.1 percent) and just couldn't make any incisions into Platteville's lead.
 
A bright spot was senior Caleb Burch (Eau Claire, Wis./Altoona). He was on fire, as he finished with 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field to lead the Yellowjackets. Brian Lindblom (Spooner, Wis./Spooner) finished with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting.
 
Jake Manning hurt Superior in the first meeting, and he hurt the Yellowjackets again Saturday. Manning finished with 17 points on six-of-eight shooting from the field.
 
With the loss, Superior falls to 2-7 in WIAC play and 8-12 overall. Superior will host the UW-Eau Claire Blugolds Wednesday at Mertz Mortorelli Gym. The opening tip is set for 7:00 p.m. and can be heard live on 91.3 FM in Superior with Matt Johnson on the call.