WHITEWATER, Wis. – A slow start offensively sent the University of Wisconsin-Platteville men's basketball team (14-8, 6-5 WIAC) to a 66-51 road loss at UW-Whitewater (16-6, 7-4 WIAC) on Wednesday night inside the Williams Center.

The Warhawks scored the first seven points of the game and led by as many as eight across the opening nine minutes until a 10-2 Pioneers run evened the game at 14 apiece. UW-Whitewater closed out the first half strong, outscoring UW-Platteville 13-2 over the final four minutes to take a 29-18 lead into the break. The Pioneers shot just 25.9 percent (7-of-27) in the first half and were 1-of-10 on tries from three-point range.

Three-point makes by senior Max Love and junior Bristol Lewis helped the Pioneers shave the deficit down to eight early in the second half, but the Warhawks answered each time to maintain the double-digit edge. Later in the half, Lewis dropped seven straight UW-Platteville points to make it 56-46 with 4:56 remaining, but UW-Whitewater again scored on the ensuing possession to snap the Pioneers' momentum. The Pioneers were unable to get any closer than 11 in the final minutes as the Warhawks won 66-51.

Lewis led three Pioneers in double figures with 15 points while going 5-of-14 from the floor. Senior Joey Fuhremann recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Love added 10 points on 4-of-9 shooting. After a better shooting second half, the Pioneers finished at 34.0 percent (18-of-53) for the game and 28.0 percent (7-of-25) from beyond the arc.

UW-Platteville held the advantage on the glass 35-29 and grabbed 11 offensive rebounds compared to three for UW-Whitewater. Love and Fuhremann each had three boards on the offensive end.

For the Warhawks, Collin Madson scored a game-high 27 points on 10-of-12 shooting, while Isaac Verges added 16 points. UW-Whitewater shot over 60 percent in the second half to finish at 48.1 percent (26-of-54) for the game.

The Pioneers return home to face UW-River Falls on Saturday at 5 p.m.