RIVER FALLS, Wis. – The No. 6 seed UW-River Falls men's basketball team opened the WIAC Tournament First Round hosting No. 7 seed UW-Eau Claire, and defeated the Blugolds 77-42.
Three Falcons scored in double figures, led by 18 points from
Noah Hanson off 7-of-13 shooting from the field.
Jake Reeck followed with 17 points, including a 5-of-7 mark from beyond the arc.
Rodrick Payne was one rebound shy of a double-double with 12 points and nine rebounds.
After the Falcons and Blugolds went back-and-forth during the first five minutes, UWRF went on a big run, outscoring UWEC 17-0 to lead 27-10 near the midway point of the first half.
UWRF led by as many as 17 twice and headed to the locker room with a 42-27 lead. The Falcons shot over 50 percent from the field in the first half.
In the second half, the Falcons limited the Blugolds to under 20 percent shooting, and opened the half with a 9-0 run to extend their lead to 24 points. UWRF led by at least 20 points for the remainder of the game.
The Falcons forced 14 Blugold turnovers, turning those into 17 points.
UWRF, now 14-9 overall, advances to the WIAC Tournament Quarterfinals to face No. 4 seed, UW-Whitewater on Tuesday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m. in Whitewater, Wis.
