Box Score
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations

Box Score

OWENSBORO, Ky. (Feb. 7, 2013)-- Led by 22 points from Colt Grandstaff the University of Wisconsin-Parkside men's basketball team seized sole possession of first place in the Great Lakes Valley Conference East Division on Thursday night, defeating No. 23 Kentucky Wesleyan College 75-70 inside the Owensboro Sportscenter for the Rangers' fifth consecutive victory.

The Rangers (15-5, 10-2 GLVC) led by 11 at the half before needing some late game heroics to escape with the road victory and earn the team's fifth win over a Top 25 opponent this season. The win additionally gives UW-Parkside a sweep of the season series after nipping Kentucky Wesleyan 60-59 on Jan. 26 inside DeSimone Gymnasium.

"The second half against KWC hasn't been pretty but we've found a way," said head coach Luke Reigel. "The guys have stepped up and made plays and we did just enough on the defensive end to get things done."

The victory puts UW-Parkside alone on top of the GLVC East Division standings after No. 10 University of Southern Indiana stumbled 63-59 at home to unranked Lewis University. The Rangers have 10 conference wins for just the second time ever and the first time since the 2006-07 season.

A Conrad Krutwig three in the opening minutes gave the Rangers an early 5-3 edge before Kentucky Wesleyan (15-5, 7-5 GLVC) scored eight of the next 11, taking an 11-8 lead five minutes into the contest. Back-to-back three-pointers off the hands of Grandstaff sparked a 13-2 run for the Rangers as a Zygimantas Riauka layup with 8:13 left gave the visitors the 21-13 edge. A Grandstaff three with 52 seconds before halftime pushed the buffer to a game-high 13 points as UW-Parkside enjoyed a 42-31 lead after 20 minutes of play.

The Panthers tallied the opening six points of the second half and continued to whittle away at the Ranger lead. A Cornbread Walker three-pointer with 10 minutes left sparked a 12-4 Kentucky Wesleyan run, pulling the homestanding Panthers to within a point at 58-57 with 6:32 remaining. A Grandstaff three touched off a 9-2 Ranger run to stake an eight-point edge with just over three minutes left.

KWC tallied the next seven points, pulling to within a point with 1:27 remaining. The Panthers generated a turnover and attempted to grab the lead before a huge block by Riauka with 55 seconds left set up a Grandstaff layup to increase the buffer to three with 48 ticks left. KWC's Dazmond Starke hit a pair of free throws with 34 seconds left to close the gap to 71-70.

A steal by Rico Ferguson gave the ball back to the hosts with 34 seconds left. A missed jumper was corralled by Bryant Smith who was subsequently fouled and sent to the line. Smith connected on both attempts with 16 seconds remaining. Kentucky Wesleyan misfired on a three with seven seconds left before turning the ball over with just two seconds left. Riauka buried a pair of free throws for the final five-point margin, giving the Rangers' their fifth consecutive victory, a stretch that includes four wins over Top 25 squads.

Grandstaff came off the bench and finished one point shy of a season-high, leading all scorers with 22 points. The junior guard connected on seven of his 11 attempts from the field while canning six threes. Mazurczak registered 13 points and four assists while Riauka added 11 points and six boards. Krutwig tallied a game-high seven rebounds while adding eight points for the Rangers who shot a blazing 60 percent (15-for-25) in the opening half, finishing the contest hitting 55.3 percent (26-for-47) of their opportunities.

Starke paced the Panthers, providing a spark off the bench with 20 points and six rebounds. Kreig Oxley and Ferguson added 12 and 10 points, respectively.

The Rangers are back in action on Saturday at 3 p.m., closing their road trip against No. 10 Southern Indiana in Evansville.