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RIPON, Wis. - For much of the game and the majority of the second half Saturday night, Ripon College looked to be on the verge of one of the biggest early-season upsets in college basketball this season. They led by as many as 11 points, but UW-Stevens Point, which is ranked third in the D3Hoops.com Top 25 poll, used 32 points from their bench to outlast the Red Hawks 71-67 in a game that was in doubt until the final minute of play.
Ripon (1-5) was on their game early, as they scored the first five points of the game on a 3-pointer by Scott Gillespie and a jumper by Chris Kellett. They led for the first five minutes until Bryan Beamish's 3-pointer gave the Pointers the lead. UW-Stevens Point (8-1) would control that lead, going up by as many as seven points, until Gillespie tied the game at 26 with just under five and a half minutes before halftime. The Red Hawks then went on a 7-2 run to end the half, which was capped off by a blocked shot by Andy Perrine, and his subsequent free throws at the other end.
The Red Hawks built on that lead to start the second half, using a 12-6 run to open their largest lead of 11 points with 13 minutes remaining. That run was highlighted by six points by Gillespie and four by Martin Esters. After that point, the Red Hawks let UW-SP back into the game thanks to three missed field goals and two turnovers. The Pointers cut the lead to one with nine and a half minutes left to play on a jumper by Drew Jackson. Kellett would then nail a 3-pointer to open up a four point lead, which would be Ripon's largest lead the rest of the game. The game was tied on four separate occasions in the final ten minutes of the contest, the final one coming with under four and a half to play on the first of two free throws by Matt Moses. The second of the two free throws gave UW-Stevens Point a 61-60 lead, which they would never relinquish. With the game still in doubt, Ross Rortvedt hit the back breaker, a 3-pointer with one and a half minutes remaining to put the Pointers up by six, and they would make their free throws down the stretch to ice the game.
Gillespie led all scorers with 31 points on 11-of-19 shooting. Kellett added 13, while Esters scored 11 and grabbed four rebounds. Tyler Fisher led the Red Hawks in both rebounds and assists, recording eight and three, respectively. Ripon shot 47 percent (24-51) from the field, while turning the ball over 13 times. The rebounds were even, as they pulled down the same amount, 29, as the Pointers.
UW-Stevens Point was on the money from long range all night, shooting 40 percent (8-20) from behind the arc. Five of those 3-pointers came from Ross Rortvedt, who finished with a team-high 17 points off the bench. Steve Hicklin added 13 points to go along with four assists and three rebounds. Moses and Louis Hurd each finished with 11 points. The Pointers shot 48 percent (24-50) from the field, while turning it over 10 times.
Ripon will now try to build some confidence in sunny Florida, as they'll travel to Daytona to take part in the Land of Magic Classic on December 28. They'll face St. Lawrence University (NY) at 4:00 CDT in day one of the classic, before squaring off with Ithaca College (NY) the following day at 1:00 CDT.
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