On Friday, March 14, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse’s men’s basketball team faced off against the Illinois Wesleyan University Titans.
The game was UWL’s fourth appearance in an NCAA tournament and the team’s first time making it to the Sweet Sixteen.
Before the game, Head Coach JT Gritzmacher sat down with the Racquet Press to talk about the season so far. He spoke about the hard work and dedication the men’s team has put into the season, praising them for their self-driven motivation to win.
“These guys have earned it. They come in here and work hard every day… now they’ve got a great opportunity in front of them to showcase their skills,” Gritzmacher said.
On their 22nd win of the season, the Eagles broke the school record of most games won in a single season (21 games). After Friday’s win against the Titans, the Eagles’ season record stands at 25-5.
Heading into the game against Illinois Wesleyan, Gritzmacher said, “We’re focused on one game at a time. Especially at this point when you only have 16 teams left, we know that anyone can really win it”.
Fourth-year Torin Hannah echoed Gritzmacher’s thoughts, “I just want to leave it all out there with my teammates. You never know when it’s gonna be your last [game] at this point of the season so I just want us to go out and do our best.”
The back-and-forth game against the Titans made for an exciting night. The Eagles started out strong with Sam Grieger scoring the first two points. As the half went on, the Titans fought to take the lead. However, with 10 minutes left in the first half the Eagles stayed ahead with a 19-12 score.
In the next five minutes, Illinois Wesleyan tied up the game 21-21 with a quick response. The Titans kept their lead for the rest of the half, finishing out with a 33-29 advantage against the Eagles.
Keeping their foot on the gas, Illinois Wesleyan opened up the second half with a 15-3 run, bringing their score to 48-32. Third-year Dustin Derousseau closed this gap by scoring six consecutive points for UWL.
Crucial three-point plays by Will Fuhrmann and JJ Paider cut the deficit to 55-48 with 8:27 left on the clock. A seven-point run in four minutes gave the UWL lead for the first time since the first half.
Once the Eagles surpassed the Titans, UWL maintained control and prevented any opportunity for a comeback. Derousseau sealed the deal with a demanding dunk. The Eagles won with a final score of 72-65 and a ticket to the Elite Eight.
UWL will return to action against Washington University (St. Louis, MO) Saturday, March 15, at 7:00pm in Mitchell Hall. Tickets can be bought at the door or on the UWL Athletics website.
