Five players scored in double figures on opening night for the No. 24 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's basketball team, which shot a blazing 58.6 percent from the floor in a 98-82 victory at Anderson (Ind.) in a non-conference affair on Tuesday night.

The Warhawks (1-0 overall) also hit 9-of-18 (50 percent) from 3-point range and hit 21-of-29 from the free-throw line. UW-Whitewater out-rebounded Anderson 40-25 in the contest, generating a 16-5 advantage in second-chance points to offset the Ravens' 55 free-throw attempts.

Senior forward Derek Rongstad led the Warhawks with 20 points to go along with four rebounds. Senior forward Melvin Brown Jr. and senior guard Mitchell Pfeifer posted 15 points apiece, and senior guard Malik Clements and junior guard Tywon Bressler each recorded 10 points.

Brown led the team with eight rebounds, and Pfeifer added three steals on the defensive end. Senior guard David Sachs collected eight points, four rebounds and a team-best four assists.

The Ravens (0-1) tallied the first seven points of the contest and led 7-0 two minutes into the game. The Warhawks trailed by as many as 11 points before tying the game with 6:54 to play in the half.

UW-Whitewater took its first lead of the period at the 4:11 mark on a 3-pointer by senior guard Dalton Menke. Anderson scored the next 10 points to bring its advantage back to seven, but the Warhawks whittled the deficit down, tied the game at 45-45 with 15 second to play and took the lead into halftime thanks to a steal by junior guard James Fox and a layup at the other end by Pfeifer.

UW-Whitewater built its lead up to seven two minutes into the second half on a layup by senior guard Andre Brown, and continued to add onto it for a 19-8 run to start the period. Sachs capped the surge on a layup with 14:57 to go.

The Warhawks never led by fewer than eight points the rest of the way.

UW-Whitewater returns to action this Friday at 7 p.m. as it hosts No. 25 St. John's (Minn.) at Kachel Gymnasium.