The UW-Eau Claire men’s basketball team fought hard to take down UW-Oshkosh for the second time this past Saturday at Kolf Sports Center, but their efforts weren’t enough to seal the deal. The Titans walked away ahead of the Blugolds with a final score of 77-72.

Scoring only four points in the first seven minutes of the game, things started off rough for Eau Claire. It was a different story for Oshkosh: the team’s three 3-pointers assisted in their 13-0 run in the first half.

The Titans stayed consistent in their scoring and broke away from the Blugolds by double-digits. Come halftime, the Titans led 39-25.

“We didn’t get off to a very good start,” head coach Matt Siverling said, “but we had to be resilient and continue to fight hard.”

Right out the gate in the second half, the Titans scored yet another 3-pointer. The Blugolds struggled to cut down the Titan’s daunting lead. With the end approaching, less than six minutes left in the game, Eau Claire was still behind by double-digits.

Dan Becken, a senior forward, said things picked up quickly from there. George Diekelman, a senior guard, moved the Blugolds forward with a layup, bringing the score to 61-51. Soon after, Cole Rabedeaux, a second-year guard, made a 3-pointer to put the Blugolds down by seven.

“We did a good job of fighting back, following the game plan,” Becken said.

Just a minute after his 3-pointer, Rabedeaux made a layup. This closed the gap even more and made the score 63-58.

After Oshkosh missed a free throw, Chris Duff, a senior guard, responded by scoring. This brought the score up to 64-60.

The Titans were quick to retaliate and with just under a minute left in the game, Oshkosh’s Charlie Noone hit a 3-pointer. However, with just 20 seconds left in the game, Duff answered with 3-pointer of his own.

Duff’s shot wasn’t enough to build up the team’s momentum. Oshkosh ended up making two foul shots, and following one last Eau Claire timeout, Duff missed a 3-pointer. After making their last free throws, the Titans officially took the win.

All in all, Diekelman led the Blugolds with 20 points and 3 assists. Duff was close behind with 15 points. Siverling said that throughout this season, Diekelman and Duff have consistently had solid performances on the court.

With a big game coming up, Becken said the team is going to focus on shooting from the outside and putting together a complete game. To do this, he said the Blugolds need to work on their confidence through repetition and stay focused.

While the season hasn’t been what he was expecting, Becken said he and his teammates are doing what they can to have fun.

“I’m trying to enjoy my last season,” Becken said.

While the season has been disappointing in terms of wins and losses, Siverling said he’s happy with how the team always gives it their all.

Eau Claire takes on UW-La Crosse this coming Wednesday to fight for the last spot in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) tournament.