UW-La Crosse Mens Basketball

By JEFF BROWN
Of the Tribune staff

In a one-sided Alumni Cup game, UW-L had too much talent, too much quickness, too much depth and too much scoring power for Viterbo Wednesday night. It added up to a 62-41 victory for the Eagles, and a frustrating loss for the V-Hawks.

A total of 718 spectators walked into the La Crosse Center for the game, and many were gone by halftime when UW-L opened up a 40-15 lead.

Viterbo, which once owned the Alumni Cup ð the trophy which goes to the winner of the annual battle ð for six straight seasons, has now lost the last two Cup games by an average of 24.5 points.

``We wanted to come out and prove to everyone in La Crosse there is another team that plays hard,'' said UW-L senior center Melvin Veasley. ``We play very hard defense, too. Defense is what won the game for us.''

Viterbo played hard, too, but simply was outmanned inside by the 6-foot-7 Veasley, 6-6 Eric Dudek, and 6-5 Jay Daly. The trio combined to hit 8 of 15 shots in the first half, and scored 20 of the Eagles' 40 first-half points.

UW-L added three of six 3-point field goals in the first 20 minutes, and closed out the first half by reeling off 10 straight points. Viterbo, meanwhile, had trouble hanging onto the ball. The V-Hawks had 15 turnovers in the first half, and 23 for the game.

The V-Hawks, who entered the game riding a three-game winning streak, couldn't get the ball to drop from any distance. Viterbo did not score in the final 5:30 of the first half, and was scoreless for the first 5:45 of the second.

While Viterbo was agonizing through an 11-minute, 15-second scoring drought, UW-L buried the V-Hawks.

``We just got beat by the better team. They could have killed us by 100 today,'' said Luke Maher, who led Viterbo with 16 points in 36 minutes. ``We didn't come to play as a team. None of us did.''

UW-L coach Charlie Gross played all 15 players on his roster, 11 of whom scored. The Eagles' coach liked what he saw physically, but there was something he liked even more.

UW-L's attitude.

``Viterbo, they play with an edge to them,'' Gross said. ``Tonight we had that edge. We didn't have any mental breakdowns, and our intensity is where it needs to be night in and night out regardless of who is on our schedule.''

The Eagles scored the first eight points of the second half, and led 48-15 with 15 minutes remaining. It took until nine minutes remained in the game before Viterbo had more points (22) than turnovers (21).

Viterbo coach Todd Eisner didn't stick around long after the game, and was unavailable for comment. His team fell to 4-4, and was held 28 points below its season scoring average.

UW-L boosted its record to 3-0, thanks to 12 points from Ryan Eklund, 11 from Veasley, and nine from Dudek. All of UW-L's starters took a seat on the bench early in the second half.

This particular time, it didn't bother Veasley to watch.

``We have definitely made some great strides since my freshman year,'' Veasley said. ``We believe we can't lose a game now.''

Gross said it is players like Veasley, Dudek and Chuck Simpson who are making the difference. Players who have been in the same position Viterbo was in Wednesday night.

``I'm thankful that Veasley, Dudek and Simpson stuck it out,'' Gross said. ``You hope the confidence, the desire, the interest doesn't go by the wayside. This shows what can happen when you stick with something.''

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