STEVENS POINT, Wis. - The Illinois Wesleyan University men's basketball team closed out the 2023 portion of its schedule with a 73-60 loss as the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point pulled away in the second half. The Titans hold a 7-6 overall record after the road setback, while the Pointers pushed their record to 6-5 on the year.

Junior Marko Anderson (Park Ridge, Ill.-Maine South) put together a strong performance, posting a career-high 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Behind Anderson, juniors Harrison Wilmsen (St. Louis, Mo.-Priory) and Trey Bazzell (Fairbury, Ill.-Prairie Central) also notched double-digit outings. Wilmsen added 11 points, while Bazzell contributed 10.

Turnovers proved to be costly for the Green and White, as the Titans turned the ball over 21 times to the Pointers' 12 miscues. UWSP cashed in for a 29-6 advantage in points off turnovers. The Pointers also held the lead in fastbreak scoring, 12-5, steals, 11-7, and a 6-2 edge in three-pointers made. Behind Anderson and Bazzell, IWU registered a 39-12 lead in bench scoring along with a 32-20 advantage in points in the paint. The Green and White also led in rebounding, 39-28, with Anderson leading the way with nine boards. 

Overall, Illinois Wesleyan shot just 38.5 percent from the floor and 2-for-18 from long range. IWU finished 18-for-26 at the free throw line. UW-Stevens Points connected on 21-of-48 shot attempts (43.8 percent) and finished 6-for-17 from three-point distance. UWSP made 25-of-35 free throws.

With the game deadlocked at 10, Wilmsen fired a backdoor pass to junior Nick Roper (St. Louis, Mo.-MICDS) along the baseline, who finished the reverse layup at the rim. Junior Shane Miller (Springfield, Ill.-Springfield) followed with a swipe near midcourt on UWSP's inbounds and hit a physically contested bucket, before completing the three-point play at the free throw line. 

Illinois Wesleyan led by five, 15-10, after the quick spurt, but the Pointers pulled within one, 18-17, with just under eight minutes left in the half.

After Anderson converted a tough bucket, Bazzell used a shot fake to get his defender in the air. With his defender flying by, Bazzell drilled a triple to give IWU its largest lead of the game, 23-17, with 5:30 to go.

The Pointers responded with a 20-7 run as the home team charged ahead, 37-30, before a clutch triple from the wing by Bazzell. UWSP closed the half with a buzzer-beating three though, as the Titans stared at a 40-33 deficit at the break.

UW-Stevens Point scored the first four points of the second half, before extending its lead to 53-39, its largest of the afternoon, with 13:23 to play.

Anderson put the Titans on his back from there, clawing IWU within six. The junior forward hit a pair of free throws and then completed an and-one on a putback to trim the deficit to eight, 62-54, as UWSP called a timeout with 5:16 left on the clock. 

Out of the pause, Roper went back inside to Anderson, who overcame a double team for a hard-fought bucket.

Illinois Wesleyan had a chance to make it a one possession game, down just 62-56, but a turnover was followed by a foul to put UW-Stevens Point at the charity stripe. 

Despite a lockdown effort by the Titan defense that saw the Pointers hit just 8-of-22 shots (36.4 percent) in the second half, UWSP went 16-for-24 at the free throw line over the final 20 minutes to pull away, 73-60.

With the non-conference season in the rearview mirror, Illinois Wesleyan will refocus on College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin competition. The Titans return to action Sunday, Jan. 7, with its final stop of their five-game roadtrip at Augustana College. Tipoff is set for 4:15 p.m. and will follow the IWU women's basketball team's bout with Augie.