The Pioneer men’s basketball team continues to stay on top of the WIAC standings after a pair of wins last week. The Pioneers defeated the No. 20 UW-Oshkosh Titans on Jan. 30 at Bo Ryan Court in a battle for first place in the WIAC and followed that win with a road victory against UW-River Falls on Saturday Feb. 2.

The number 20 ranked Titans came to UW-Platteville on Jan. 30 seeking revenge for a 72-53 loss suffered on their home court back on the ninth of January. The No. 22 ranked Pioneers scored their first basket of the night after a steal from sophomore Curt Hanson that lead to a jump shot during the opening minutes of the game. Hanson would finish the game as the leading scorer for the Pioneers with a total of 16 points.

The Pioneers would continue to lead at the half, 32-24 with 10 first-half points from junior Charlie Lohoff, including two three-pointers. Lohoff ended the night with 15 points.

The Pioneers started the second half with a three-pointer from Hanson to increase the margin to a 35-25 lead. UW-P would continue to dominate the game with the help of a strong performance from their bench, who outscored the Oshkosh bench 25-3. Kyle Tetschlag came off the bench with eight points, along with Mike Shaw and Bo Richter, who had seven points each.

“The bench played a key part in this game,” head coach Paul Combs said. “We have guys who can come off the bench and make it a different game.”

The Titans would cut the lead to within eight points with three-and-a-half minutes remaining. The Pioneer defense, led by a career-high 13 rebounds from junior Jeff Skemp who also added eight points, would help lead UW-P to an impressive 71-55 victory.

Oshkosh fell to 13-6 overall, 7-3 in conference play and dropped to third place in the WIAC. The Pioneers remain atop the conference standings in a tie with UW-Whitewater.

“We beat a really talented Oshkosh team twice,” Lohoff said. “It’s a real confidence booster for our team and helps motivates us to continue being successful for the rest of the season.”

The Pioneers then traveled to UW-River Falls on Feb. 2 to take on the Falcons. The Pioneers received an early boost from Skemp and went on an 8-2 run to start the game. Skemp would continue to be a powerhouse in the game leading to his 10th career double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds. He scored 14 of his points in the second half.

“I played hard and grabbed as many rebounds as I could,” Skemp said. “I tried my best to put myself into position to score.”

The Pioneers would lead 31-22 at the half and continue to be a force on offense during the second half with Lohoff scoring 14 points and Hanson 16 points, including four three-pointers.

“In the second half of the game, Curt, Mike [Shaw], and Charlie made huge plays complementing Jeff,” Combs said. “The guards shot consistently from the outside, which made it a more balanced effort.”

The Pioneers would defeat UW-RF 71-60, knocking the Falcons down to 7-12 overall, 1-7 in conference play. The Pioneers improved to 15-4 overall, 9-2 in conference, leaving them tied with UW-Whitewater for first place in the WIAC. The Pioneers will travel to UW-La Crosse on Wednesday, Feb. 6 to defend their top spot before returning to Bo Ryan Court on Saturday, Feb. 9 to take on non-conference opponent RMC-Springfield.