EAU CLAIRE, Wis. - The UW-Eau Claire men's basketball team suffered an 89-68 loss tonight to No. 9 UW-Stevens Point.

The home team is now 11-12 overall and 5-9 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC). The Pointers are now 18-4 overall and 10-3 in conference play. It is the worst loss of the season for Eau Claire by a point. Stevens Point has won four in a row and nine of the past 10.

The Blugolds had the early 4-0 lead after Ryan Shea (Fr.-Duluth, MN/East) and Geoff Probst (So.-Moose Lake, MN) put in back-to-back shots. A pair of Pointer layups tied it before they went ahead by one on a three-point play. Probst hit a trey to put the Blugolds on top again. Stevens Point responded with a pair of threes and took away Eau Claire's last lead of the game. However, Dan Mullen (Jr.-St. Paul, MN/Tartan) tied it up with a three at 12:39 and Dan Beyer (Sr.-Waukesha/Catholic Memorial) tied it up with a jumper at 10:56. The Pointers held onto the lead the rest of the way.

At 10:06, Eau Claire got within a point. Stevens Point then put on a 10-0 run to go up by double-digits at 29-18. The lowest the margin would get the rest of the half was seven points. The Pointers went into the locker room with a 45-34 lead.

Both teams shot well in the half, with Eau Claire outperforming on the floor 59.1 percent-to-55.2 percent. Stevens Point went 5-of-13 (38.5 percent) from behind the arc and 8-of-10 (80.0 percent) from the line. The Blugolds went 2-of-4 (50.0 percent) and 6-of-8 (75.0 percent).

Eau Claire came back onto the court with a 9-2 surge that made it 47-43. By 13:43, the Pointers had shot it to 55-45. The double-digit lead remained for most of the game. At 8:29, a Beyer free throw got it within nine, but Stevens Point performed well down the stretch and won 89-68.

Stevens Point shot an incredible 18-for-25 (72.0 percent) in the half while Eau Claire shot 13-for-23 (56.5 percent). The Pointers still hit from downtown, making 5-of-8 (62.5 percent) threes.

Over the course of the game, Stevens Point outdid Eau Claire on the floor 63.0 percent-to-57.8 percent. They also made 10-of-21 (47.6 percent) from long range compared to Eau Claire's 3-of-10 (30.0 percent). The Pointers shot better on free throws 73.3 percent-to-65.0 percent. The Blugolds outrebounded the visitors 26-to-21, but gave the ball up 17 times compared to eight.

Overshadowed by the loss is Beyer's 23 points. Probst had 14 behind him and both led in boards with eight. Five Pointers were in double-figures with Pete Rortvedt's 20 leading.

The Pointers won 57-44 over Eau Claire earlier this season, so the all-time record now stands at 76-81.

Eau Claire has two games left. Next Wednesday the team travels to No. 16 UW-Platteville and on Feb. 23, the Blugolds conclude the season at home versus rival UW-Stout.

Eau Claire-Stevens Point Box Score

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