UW-Fox Downs UW-Baraboo

(Menasha) The Cyclones (8-3) downed the Fighting Saints 90-58 in the final game of the UW-Fox JUCO Classic.  Four UW-Fox players finished in double figures led by Jon Braeger’s 15 points.

A defensive play three minutes into Saturday’s action sparked UW-Fox.   Guard Trevor Krizenesky created a deflection, dove after the loose ball and pushed it ahead to a streaking Jon Braeger who converted the steal into a lay-up.  

The play ignited a 10-0 run and catapulted the Cyclones to a 53-25 half-time advantage.  It was the best half of basketball UW-Fox has played this season.  

The Cyclones shot 57% from the floor, grabbed 8 offensive rebounds, and forced 16 UW-Baraboo turnovers in the opening half.  Braeger and Jon Schlaver each had 12 points to pace the UW-Fox attack.

Krizenesky finished with 14 points, 5 assists, and 4 steals for UW-Fox.  Sam Schreiber added 11 points, Trevor Smith 6 assists, and Matt Lehner 6 rebounds for the Cyclones.  UW-Fox had a season high 24 assists and converted 47% of their three-point attempts.

UW-Fox will head into 2013 with an 8-3 overall record.  They will play host to UW-Rock on Wednesday January 9th at the UW-Fox Fieldhouse.  Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30pm.

UW-Fox Beats UW-Barron

(Menasha) The UW-Fox men’s basketball team beat UW-Barron 82-62 in the second game of the UW-Fox JUCO classic on Friday night at the UW-Fox Fieldhouse.  Jon Braeger paved the way for the Cyclones with 24 points, including 16 in the second half.

UW-Fox jumped out to a 49-33 lead early in the second half on a Sam Schreiber free-throw.  However, the Chargers put together a run that would tie the score at 54-54 with under 10 minutes to play.

That is when Braeger took over.  His 3-point field goal from the left corner gave the Cyclones back the lead at 57-54.  Over the next three minutes he would bury three more three-point field goals, convert a steal into a lay-up with a nifty crossover move, and draw a charge on defense.  

Once Braeger was done, Jordan Kaufman would hit a pull-up jumper, Trevor Krizenesky would hit a driving lay-up, and Matt Lehner converted on two lay-up attempts to seal the win for the Cyclones.

Trevor Smith aided the UW-Fox cause with 14 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists.  Kaufman was also in double figures with 11 points and 8 rebounds.  Schreiber pulled down a season high 10 rebounds.

Ryan McDermott and Murdock Smith paced the Chargers with 14 points each.

UW-Fox moves to 7-3 overall on the season.  The Cyclones will play host to UW-Baraboo tomorrow (Saturday) on day 2 of the UW-Fox JUCO Classic.  Tip-off is set for 4pm.  UW-Barron will take on Fox Valley Technical College at 2pm.  That game is also at UW-Fox.

Cyclones Fall Short Against UW-Manitowoc

(Manitowoc) With first place in the WCC-East on the line the UW-Fox men’s basketball team fell to UW-Manitowoc 82-77 in Manitowoc on Monday night.  The Blue Devils used a 43-28 rebounding advantage to defeat the Cyclones.  UW-Fox also allowed UW-Manitowoc to shoot almost 52% for the game.

The loss overshadowed the play of Jon Braeger who led UW-Fox with 29 points.  The first year guard connected on 7 of 15 three-point attempts.  Trevor Smith and Matt Lehner also chipped in with 14 points each for the Cyclones.  Tevin Taylor led the Blue Devils with 27 points.  

With the loss UW-Fox falls to 8-3 overall, 4-2 in the WCC-East, while UW-Manitowoc moves to 6-0 in the WCC-East.  The Cyclones will resume action on December 28th when they host UW-Barron in the first day of the UW-Fox JUCO Classic.  Tip-off is set for 7pm.

UW-Fox Downs UW-Fond du Lac

(Menasha) Jon Braeger poured in 26 points to lead the UW-Fox men’s basketball team to a 72-57 home victory over UW-Fond du Lac at the UW-Fox Fieldhouse.  The Cyclones were coming off of one of their worst losses since the 2008-2009 season.

UW-Fox turned up their defensive intensity to open the second half.  An 18-2 run catapulted them out to a 56-34 lead.  The run was fueled by several steals and transition baskets.  Jordan Kaufman had 5 steals and Trevor Smith 4 to lead the Cyclones.  As a team UW-Fox recorded 19 steals for the game, the most since Lee Rabas took over as head coach in 2009. 

Braeger connected on 6 three-point field goals and shot 50% for the game.  His 16 first half point helped the Cyclones jump out to a 38-32 half-time lead.

Matt Lehner chipped in with 14 points for UW-Fox.  Smith and Kaufman also added 7 and 5 assists respectively for the Cyclones. 

With the win the Cyclones move to 6-2 overall, 4-1 in the WCC-East.  They will close out their slate of games before finals with a visit to 8-1 (5-0) UW-Manitowoc on Monday December 10th.  That game is scheduled for a 7:30pm tip-off in Manitowoc.

Marauders Defeat Cyclones

(Marshfield) The UW-Fox men’s basketball team was soundly defeated by UW-Marshfield on Monday night 79-59.  The Cyclones struggled to find their rhythm offensively and were unable to deal with the Marauders size inside.

UW-Fox shot just 31% overall for the game while UW-Marshfield converted on 47% of their field goal attempts.  The Cyclones connected on only 5 of their 24 three-point attempts (20.8%).  The Marauders also pulled down 18 offensive rebounds to help their cause.

Matt Lehner and Sam Schreiber led the Cyclones in scoring with 15 and 14 points respectively.  They also pulled down 7 rebounds each to lead in that category.  Nick August also chipped in with 10 points.  Cain Trunkel led UW-Marshfield with 25 points, while Jesse Bejcek finished with 16.

With the loss the Cyclones move to 5-2 overall, and remain 3-1 in the WCC-East.  They will return to action on Wednesday night December 5th when they host UW-Fond du Lac at 7:30pm in the UW-Fox Fieldhouse.

UW-Fox Topples UW-Washington

The UW-Fox men’s basketball team defeated UW-Washington 71-43 on Friday evening in West Bend.  The Cyclones jumped out to a 43-17 first half lead on the strength of their defense and balanced scoring.

Seven Cyclones scored in the first half paced by Jon Braeger and Matt Lehner, who each tallied 9 points.  The Cyclone men hit all 8 of their free-throws in the opening half and allowed only 1 offensive rebound.  

In the second half UW-Fox controlled the tempo and pushed the lead to 59-21 on the strength of Trevor Krizenesky’s three 3-point field goals.  UW-Washington also committed 23 turnovers to aid the Cyclones cause.  

Matt Lehner led the Cyclones in scoring with 17 points and 5 rebounds.  Trevor Krizenesky and Jordan Kaufman also hit double figures with 15 and 10 respectively.  Braeger, Nick August, and Trevor Smith each scored 9 points for UW-Fox.  Smith also grabbed 7 rebounds and Kaufman recorded 5 steals.

The Cyclones improve their overall record to 5-1, 3-1 in the WCC-East.  They will hit the road again on Monday as they travel to UW-Marshfield for a 7:30pm tip-off against the Maurauders.

UW-Fox Outlasts UW-Marathon

UW-Fox recovered from a sluggish first half to post an 86-76 win over UW-Marathon on Wednesday night at the UW-Fox Fieldhouse.  The Cyclones were coming off of an eight day rest after suffering their first loss at UW-Marinette.

The Huskies jumped out to a 39-35 halftime lead on the strength of 11 offensive rebounds and some lackluster Cyclone defense.  Jon Braeger scored 11 first half points, and the Cyclones shot 47% in the opening half to keep things close.  

UW-Fox played more inspired in the second half, especially on the defensive end.  The Cyclones converted some early stops and steals into transition baskets.  A three point basket by Nick August, which was set up by a Trevor Smith screen, gave the Cyclones their largest lead of the game at 15 points.

Matt Lehner led a balanced Cyclone attack with 17 points and 6 rebounds.  Braeger finished with 16, and Trevor Krizenesky chipped in with 12 points, all in the second half.  Sam Schreiber, Trevor Smith, Jordan Kaufman, and Nick August all finished with 8 or more points.

The Cyclones improve to 4-1 overall.  They will travel to UW-Washington on Friday night for a WCC-East match-up.  Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30pm.

Cyclones Lose At The Buzzer

The UW-Fox men’s basketball team fell to UW-Marinette on Monday night 80-77.  UW-Marinette guard Brandon Roby (Milwaukee) hit the last of his 5 three-point field goals from the deep right corner as the horn sounded to give the Buccaneers the comeback win.  Roby and guard Jonte Wells (Chicago) combined to hit 9 three-point field goals for the Buccaneers.

The Cyclones led by as many as 18 points in the first half.  UW-Fox turned several steals into easy baskets and got 13 points from Jordan Kaufman (Kaukauna).  A Cyclone turnover and two bad defensive possessions allowed the Buccaneers a 6-0 run to end the half down just 39-29.

In the second half the Buccaneers scored first to cut the UW-Fox lead to single digits, but a Sam Schreiber (Appleton East) lay-up gave the Cyclones a 48-31 lead with a little more than 15 minutes remaining in the game.  

UW-Marinette would connect on 7 three-point field goals over the next 10 minutes to get back into the game.  The Buccaneers were bolstered by 14 second half offensive rebounds and a lackluster UW-Fox offense.  The Cyclones also failed to get defensive stops when they were needed. 

Jon Braeger (Wrightstown) led UW-Fox with 21 points.  Kaufman finished with a career high 16 points.  After the disappointing loss the Cyclones head into the Thanksgiving break with a 3-1 overall record, 2-1 in the WCC-East.  They will return to action on Wednesday November 28th when they host UW-Marathon.

Cyclones Defeat Cougars in Overtime

(Waukesha) For the second year in a row the UW-Fox men's basketball team gave up a late lead and let the Cougars tie the game in regulation.  But, for the second year in a row the Cyclones pulled out the win in overtime 83-78.  Trevor Krizenesky and Trevor Smith combined to hit 6 free-throws in a row over the final 6 seconds to seal the UW-Fox win.

Krizenesky led UW-Fox with 23 points while Smith finished with 21 points and 5 rebounds.  The two combined to shoot 5/10 from 3-point range and 11/11 from the free-throw line.  Appleton East grad Sam Schreiber scored 15 points on 7/9 shooting, and his tip-in basket early in overtime jump started the Cyclones in the extra period.  

Joe Perez sparked the Cyclones off the bench.  He took two charges and scored 7 points.  Two of his baskets came on offensive rebounds.  Kaukauna's Jordan Kaufman chipped in with 10 points and 4 rebounds despite missing most of the first half with foul trouble.

The Cyclones shot 56.5% for the game and forced UW-Waukesha into 20 turnovers.  UW-Fox also held UW-Waukesha to just 13 offensive rebounds after the Cougars had recorded 44 in their previous two games.  

With the win the Cyclones move to 3-0 overall, 2-0 in the WCC-East.  They will return to action next Monday (11/19) when they play at UW-Marinette.

Big Second Half Propels Cyclones

(Menasha) The UW-Fox (2-0,1-0) men’s basketball team outscored UW-Richland (1-1,1-0) 46-24 in the second half to post a 76-49 non-conference win at the UW-Fox Fieldhouse on Saturday.  The Roadrunners accounted for two of the Cyclones three losses last season.

UW-Richland jumped out to an early 11-4 lead, but a Nick August three-point field goal with just under 14 minutes remaining ignited a 12-4 Cyclone run capped off by a Trevor Krizenesky three-point field goal with 10:39 remaining in the first half.  Jon Braeger knocked down two triples of his own during the run, which changed the games momentum, and gave the Cyclones their first lead at 16-13.  One they wouldn’t relinquish.

UW-Fox grabbed 7 offensive rebounds in the opening half.  Matt Lehner converted two into easy baskets, and Krizenesky’s basket at the buzzer helped UW-Fox to a 30-25 halftime lead.

In the second half the Cyclones connected on 8 of 13 three-point field goals, and shot 48.6% overall from the floor.  Besides the warmed up shooting the Cyclones held the Roadrunners to 35.5% shooting overall and 0/4 from beyond the arc.  UW-Fox committed only 3 turnovers, which helped aid their offensive production.

Krizenesky and Braeger paced UW-Fox with 18 points each, while Lehner came off the bench to score 17 points and grab 8 rebounds.  Jordan Kaufman grabbed a game high 9 rebounds for the Cyclones.  Sam Schreiber also grabbed 5 rebounds and helped hold returning all-conference performer Daryl Stewart to only 11 points.

UW-Fox (2-0, 1-0) travels to UW-Waukesha on Wednesday night for a 7:30pm tip-off.   The Cyclones are the reigning WCC-East champions, while the Cougars won the 2012 WCC Tournament Championship.  

UW-Fox Beats UW-Sheboygan in Season Opener

The UW-Fox men’s basketball team opened the 2012-2013 campaign with a 76-61 win over UW-Sheboygan.  The game was the season opener and WCC-East opener for both teams.

The Cyclones jumped out to an early 6-0 lead as Brillion alum Trevor Krizenesky found former Olympian conference rival Jon Braeger for two transition lay-ups.  Krizenesky handed out 6 assists on the night while recording only 1 turnover.

UW-Sheboygan got their offense untracked with the help of guard Wes Meinen, who finished with a game high 24 points.  The Wombats enjoyed a few short leads during the opening half, but the Cyclones closed the half on a 10-3 run to take a 36-31 lead.

UW-Fox turned several early second half stops and turnovers into easy baskets and quickly built a double digit lead that they would maintain throughout the second half.  The Cyclones helped their cause by going 9/9 from the free-throw line, and received great contributions off the bench from Nick August and Matt Lehner.

Five Cyclones finished in double figures led by Krizenesky and Braeger who each scored 20 points.  August and Lehner came off the bench to chip in 12 and 10 respectively, while Trevor Smith grabbed 6 rebounds to go along with 10 points.

With the win UW-Fox moves to 1-0 on the season, 1-0 in the WCC-East.  They will host UW-Richland on Saturday at 3pm in the UW-Fox Fieldhouse.  The Roadrunners edged UW-Fox 70-67 in the WCC Tournament semi-finals last season to end the Cyclones season.

November Basketball Opportunities at UW-Fox

Parent-Child Clinics
Come and learn the game of basketball with your young children.  Play dribbling games, perform drills, and practice basic skills.

Sunday November 11, 2012

Kind. - 1st Grade / 2:00-3:30pm

2nd - 3rd Grade / 3:30-5:00pm

Saturday November 17, 2012

Kind. - 1st Grade / 9:00-10:30am

2nd - 3rd Grade / 10:30am-Noon

Cost:  $15 includes 1 child and 1 parent.  $5 for each additional child or parent.

Fall Skill Clinics

Come and work on your basketball skills with the UW-Fox men's basketball team and coaching staff.  Our focus will be on offensive skills, rebounding, and on ball defense.

Saturday November 24, 2012

Kind.-1st Grade (COED) / 10:00-11:45am

2nd-3rd Grade (COED) / Noon-2:00pm

4th-5th Grade (COED) / 2:00-4:00pm

Cost:  $15/participant

Discounts:  $5 if participant attended another UW-Fox Basketball camp or clinic in 2012.

For more information contact head coach Lee Rabas.  You can call him at 209.6062, or reach him by e-mail uwfoxmbb@yahoo.com and lee.rabas@uwc.edu.

2012 UW-Fox Summer Basketball Camps

The UW-Fox Men's Basketball Program will host basketball camps this summer for boys and girls in grades Kindergarten through 9th grade.  We will host 9 camps over a four week period lasting from the end of July through the middle of August.  

Our camps are run in the middle of the week freeing up family time on the weekends.  Our camps are also significantly less expensive than other camps run in the area when you factor in the total amount of time your camper will spend with us for the cost.  We look forward to working with young people who want to become better basketball players this off-season. 

For more information, or an entry form, please contact head coach Lee Rabas:
Phone - 209.6062
E-mail - lee.rabas@uwc.edu
Camp Schedule: 

July 24-26
Boys 8^th-9^th grades 9:00am-Noon  $40 

Girls 8^th-9^th grades 12:30pm-3:30pm  $40

July 31-Aug. 2 
Boys 6^th-7^th grades 9:00am-Noon  $40
Boys 4^{th -}5^th grades 12:30pm-3:30pm  $40

August 7-9 
Girls 2^nd-3^rd grades 9:00am-11:00am  $30
Girls 4^th-5^th grades 11:30am-1:30pm  $30
Girls 6^th-7^th grades 2:00pm-4:00pm  $30

August 14-16 
Boys 2^nd-3^rd grades 9:00am-Noon  $40
COED Kind.-1^st grades 12:30pm-2:30pm  $30

** take $5 off per child if signing up more than 1 family member **

Camp Features:

• Energetic and enthusiastic instruction in individual and team concepts.
• Offensive skill instruction, including a technical breakdown of shooting.
• Demonstrations of skills & drills kids can work on at home on their own.
• Contests that are skill related, and competitive games.
• Camp t-shirt for all campers.

Cyclones Earn Conference Honors

Travis Puyleart (Green Bay Preble) and Korey Jagiello (New London) have been named to the WCC-East All-Conference 1st Team for 2011-2012, while head coach Lee Rabas earned his 3rd Coach of the Year award.  The two sophomores and their coach helped lead UW-Fox to a second straight conference championship this past season, a 22-3 overall record, and a berth in the WCC Tournament semi-finals.

Puyleart averaged 13.4 points and 5 rebounds per game in WCC-East play.  He shot 35% from three-point range, and turned into a top perimeter defender.  He hit clutch shots in a 21 point effort at UW-Waukesha to seal at least a tie for the conference title, and had a career night with 38 points (13/21 shooting, 7/12 from three) to earn the title outright in beating UW-Sheboygan.

Jagiello was one of the conferences most consistent post players on both offense and defense.  He averaged 13.4 points on 61% field goal shooting, pulled down 6.8 rebounds per game, and drew 15 charges on defense.  He recorded 3 double-doubles in WCC-East play.

Rabas was named the WCC-East coach of the year for the third time in 3 years.  He helped guide the Cyclones to a second WCC-East conference championship and 22-3 overall record.  During his three seasons at the helm of the UW-Fox program the Cyclones have posted a 70-10 overall record, and a 32-4 conference record.

Cyclones Fall in WCC Semi-Final

(February 25, 2012) Wausau, WI -

The UW-Fox men's basketball team came up short in its bid to repeat as WCC Tournament champions, falling to UW-Richland 70-67 on Saturday at UW-Marathon in the tournament semi-finals.  In a game that saw 24 lead changes and 11 ties, the Road Runners made the last few plays to earn the victory over the Cyclones.

Travis Puyleart, who led the Cyclones with 21 points, connected on a 3-point play to give the Cyclones a 67-66 lead with under a minute to play.  However, on their next possession, UW-Richland guard Ervin Johnson recovered his own errant pass in a loose ball scramble, and converted a lay-up to give the Road Runners a 1 point lead.  Johnson would force a turnover on the Cyclones next possession and convert it into a lay-up with 0:12 seconds remaining, for a 70-67 UW-Richland lead.  

UW-Fox would get two shots to tie the game in the last 0:12 seconds, but neither would fall.  The Cyclones struggled shooting most of the game, converting only 10 of 31 three-point attempts.

Despite committing 12 first half turnovers, and giving up 10 offensive rebounds, the Cyclones led at the half 35-34.  UW-Fox would take much better care of the ball in the second half, and only give up 1 offensive rebound, but their shooting woes would prove to be too much to overcome.  The Cyclones shot 34% in the second half, and only 37% for the game. 

With the loss the Cyclones end the season 22-3 overall.  Despite the tournament loss the Cyclones still claimed another regular season conference championship.  The back to back titles are a first in school history, as is the third consecutive 20 win season.

2012 WCC Men's Basketball Tournament Summary

2012 Wisconsin Collegiate Conference (WCC)

MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT RESULTS

Saturday February 18, 2012 (1st Round)

#5 UW-Sheboygan 70 at #4 UW-Marinette 65

#6 UW-Washington 81 at #3 UW-Manitowoc 68

#7 UW-Fond du Lac 72 at #2 UW-Waukesha 101

#5 UW-Rock 62 at #4 UW-Baraboo 57

#6 UW-Barron 68 at #6 UW-Marshfield 74

Wednesday February 22, 2012 (Quarterfinals)

#5 UW-Sheboygan 68 at #1 UW-Fox Valley 74

#3 UW-Manitowoc 70 at #2 UW-Waukesha 77

#5 UW-Rock 54 at #1 UW-Marathon 59

#3 UW-Marshfield 73 at #2 UW-Richland 74

Saturday February 25, 2012 (Semi-finals hosted by:  UW-Marathon)

UW-Fox Valley 67 Vs. UW-Richland 70

UW-Waukesha 82 Vs. UW-Marathon 71

Sunday February 26, 2012 (Championship)

UW-Waukesha 74 Vs. UW-Richland 68 (OT)

2012 WCC All-Tournament Team

Travis Puyleart..........UW-Fox Valley

Otis Brown................UW-Richland

Will Reiche................UW-Marathon

Carl Robinson...........UW-Waukesha

Chris Prushiek..........UW-Waukesha

Cyclones Advance In 2012 WCC Tournament

(February 22, 2012)

The UW-Fox men’s basketball team battled back from an early 12 point deficit on Wednesday night to post a 74-68 win over UW-Sheboygan in a WCC Tournament quarterfinal game.  With the win the Cyclones advance to the tournaments final four, which will be held in Wausau at UW-Marathon beginning on Saturday.

Alex Nelson’s 3 pointer in transition gave the Wombats an early 22-10 lead.  Chris Searl, seeing his first action off the bench since dislocating his knee on January 28th, sparked the Cyclone offense with two assists culminating in UW-Fox lay-ups.  Those lay-ups started a Cyclone run that would see them take a 32-31 lead on a Travis Puyleart 3-point play with 4:18 left in the first half.  UW-Sheboygan countered with a run of their own to take a 38-36 halftime lead.

In the 2nd half the Cyclones got a lift off the bench from guard Adam Kaminske, who scored 14 points on the night, hitting all 5 shots he attempted.  His 3-pointer with 10:33 remaining gave UW-Fox a lead it wouldn’t relinquish, and a little later his 3 point play  would push the lead to 5 with under 8 minutes to play.  

Perhaps even bigger was the job he did defensively on reining WCC player of the year Tim Schwoerer, who scored 22 points in the first half.  Kaminske helped hold him to only 2 points in the second half, which was key to the Cyclones win.

Travis Puyleart led the Cyclones with 21 points and 7 rebounds.  Korey Jagiello and Tanner Hackl provided a nice one two scoring punch in the post.  Jagiello finished with 16 points and 7 rebounds and Hackl 10 points and 7 rebounds.  Trevor Smith handed out 3 assists and recorded 0 turnovers in 35 plus minutes of action.  All 5 of his points came in the games final minutes, including a driving lay-up with the shot clock inside of 5 seconds, and 3 free-throws in the final minute.

The UW-Fox men will play UW-Richland in a WCC Tournament semi-final game on Saturday night in Wausau at UW-Marathon.  Tip-off is set for 6pm.

Story on UW-Fox Athletics Web Page

Post-Crescent story on win over UW-Sheboygan

UW-Fox Downs UW-Manitowoc

(February 13, 2012)

In their regular season finale on Monday night the UW-Fox men jumped out to a 41-23 halftime lead, and held on in the second half for a 74-57 win over UW-Manitowoc.  With the win the UW-Fox men finish the regular season 21-2 overall, 11-1 in the WCC-East.  The win ended a grueling 8 day stretch that saw the Cyclones play 4 games, including 3 on the road.

Post-Crescent Article on victory over UW-Manitowoc

Cyclones Beat UW-Marshfield

(February 11, 2012)

On Saturday the UW-Fox men's basketball team (20-2, 10-1) defeated UW-Marshfield 64-58 at Marshfield.

The Cyclones knocked down five three-point field goals in the second half, and got 18 points after intermission from Travis Puyleart, to help key the victory.

The Cyclones held UW-Marshfield to 2/18 shooting from 3-point range (11%) and 32% field goal shooting overall.

UW-Fox finished 17/22 (77%) from the free-throw line, with Puyleart connecting on all 8 of his second half attempts.

The host Marauders had four players in double figures, but the visiting Cyclones, got 26 points from Puyleart.

Korey Jagiello and Trevor Smith also chipped in with 8 points each.

The 2012 WCC-East champion Cyclones return to action on Monday night.

The Cyclones travel to UW-Manitowoc for a 7:30pm tip-off.

Cyclones Defeat UW-Marshfield

Cyclones Clinch Outright Title

(February 8, 2012)

The UW-Fox men clinched the 2011-2012 WCC-East Division championship all for themselves on Wednesday night with a 88-74 victory over UW-Sheboygan.  It was an emotional night for UW-Fox head coach Lee Rabas, whose mom passed away in the early hours of Tuesday morning February 7th.  The Cyclones rallied around their coach to earn the win and give UW-Fox the first back to back conference championships in men's basketball history.

Travis Puyleart led the way for UW-Fox with 38 points and 7 rebounds.  He hit 7 of his 12 three-point attempts on the night.

UW-Fox Holds On To Beat Huskies

(February 1, 2012)
The UW-Fox men's basketball team held on to beat UW-Marathon 66-59 on Wednesday night.  With the win the Cyclones move to 18-1 on the season.

Cyclones Earn Thrilling Overtime Victory

January 30, 2012 (Waukesha, WI)

In a game played at an extremely high level by both teams, the UW-Fox men’s basketball team gutted out a hard fought 79-75 overtime victory at UW-Waukesha on Monday night.  The win guarantees the Cyclones of a number one seed in the East bracket of the WCC tournament, and a share of the WCC-East conference championship.  The repeat conference title is a first in the history of men’s basketball (the Cyclones won the WCC-East conference title last year). 

Despite shooting 46% (6/13) from 3-point range in the first half, the Cyclones found themselves down 42-34 at the break.  UW-Waukesha beat up UW-Fox inside in the first half.  Cougar post Josh Gierhahn was almost flawless recording 15 points and 6 rebounds.

The Cougar lead would swell to 13 on several occasions in the second half.  However, each time the Cyclones would battle back.  A Korey Jagiello basket with 10:11 remaining cut the UW-Waukesha lead to 59-49.  From there the Cyclones would close the gap and eventually take a 64-63 lead on a Travis Puyleart 3-point field goal with just over 4 minutes remaining.

Down 66-68 with just over a minute left, Puyleart came off a flare screen and buried a triple from the left wing to give UW-Fox a 69-68 lead.  After a defensive stop, Puyleart was fouled and made 2 free-throws to extend the lead to 71-68.  But, then it was the Cougars turn for some heroics.  

Cougar sharpshooter Matt Vraney, who was limited by an ankle injury, came off the bench to hit an off balance fade away 3 with 0:12 seconds left to tie the game at 71.  It was Vraney’s first shot of the game, after having not played until that point in the second half.  UW-Fox would turn the ball over on its next possession, but clamped down on defense and did not allow UW-Waukesha to get off a shot in the final :03 seconds.

In overtime the Cyclones got early stops on defense and never found themselves down.      With 1:04 left Adam Kaminske nailed a deep 3-point shot in front of the Cyclone bench to break a 75-75 tie and give UW-Fox a 78-75 lead.  

The Cyclones would get consecutive stops on defense, but were not able to convert at the free-throw line, giving the Cougars life.  Korey Jagiello came up with an offensive rebound off of a missed free-throw with :06 seconds left in OT.  He stepped to the free-throw line and made the first of two sealing the 79-75 victory for UW-Fox.

The Cyclones shot 50% (13/26) from 3-point range, and pulled down 12 second half offensive rebounds, 19 total for the game.  Despite allowing the Cougars to shoot 56% on 2-point field goals, UW-Fox held UW-Waukesha to just 3/16 shooting from 3-point range.  They also limited the host Cougars to just 7 offensive rebounds in the second half and overtime.

Puyleart led UW-Fox with 21 points and 6 rebounds, after being held to just 3 points in the first half.  Jagiello added 13 points, and Kaminske 12 points and 5 rebounds for the Cyclones.  Trevor Smith scored 8 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, and had 2 assists in 39 minutes of play.  He and Kaminske recorded 0 turnovers in almost 61 minutes of play between the two.

The Cyclones return to action on Wednesday night when they host UW-Marathon.  Tip-off is set for 7:30pm at the UW-Fox Fieldhouse.