PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin-Platteville men's basketball began the 2023-2024 campaign with a strong performance en route to a 91-71 win over Saint Mary's (Minn.) inside Williams Fieldhouse at the annual Gabe Miller Classic presented by the DRA.
The Pioneers capitalized on some early Cardinals turnovers, highlighted by a fastbreak dunk by senior Logan Pearson and a three in transition by senior Ben Probst. UW-Platteville led 17-11 with just under 13 minutes to play in the first half, but Saint Mary's countered with a nine-point run to pull ahead by three. The Pioneers answered with a 19-2 run that spanned six minutes to hold a 41-32 advantage at halftime. Pearson made a pair of threes during the run and contributed on the defensive end as well with a couple of blocks.
The second half lead hovered around 10 for the first six minutes until a 14-4 UW-Platteville run pushed the score of 71-51 with just under 11 minutes to play. Probst knocked down a pair of triples during the stretch, while junior Charlie Bender turned a steal into two points on a fastbreak. Junior Brady Olson connected on a three to extend the lead to a game-high 22, and the Pioneers kept the Cardinals from getting back into the game for a 91-71 win.
Pearson scored a team-high 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting, while Ben Probst added 18 points while making four threes. Sophomore Max Love also reached double figures with 15 points.
The Pioneers shot 57.6 percent (38-of-66) from the floor in the win, including 44.4 percent (12-of-27) from beyond the arc. UW-Platteville was especially efficient in the second half, shooting 68.8 percent (22-of-32).
Senior Brad Nies led the team with five rebounds as the Pioneers outrebounded the Cardinals 31-25 in the game. Olson dished out five assists to pace the team.
UW-Platteville will play game two of the Gabe Miller Classic presented by the DRA tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m. when they host Gustavus Adolphus (0-1).
*As with every UW-Platteville win this year, the Platteville A&W will be offering a $3 Pioneer burger the day after the win and the Platteville Taco John's will be offering 10 tacos for $10 the day after each Pioneer win.
