FAYETTE, Iowa – The Winona State University men's basketball team exploded for 58 second half points in a 90-80 road win at Upper Iowa University on Saturday evening to open conference play.
For the third consecutive contest, five Warriors scored in double digits, lifting Winona State (4-1, 1-0 NSIC) to its first three-game winning streak since the 2015-16 campaign.
Freshman Devin Whitelow continues to impress early in his rookie season, leading the Warriors with 17 points to go along with a career-high seven assists.
For the second straight ballgame, the Warriors found themselves trailing at halftime, and like last time, they responded with a dominant second half performance. Winona shot out of a cannon from the locker room, outscoring the Peacocks 22-9 over the first six minutes of the second half.
Three different Warriors teamed up to hit four three-pointers during that stretch as WSU went 5-for-10 from beyond the arc over the final 20 minutes of play. Charlie Koontz, playing in his first game of the season, knocked down the fourth shot from downtown to cap that surge to begin the half.
Koontz scored 10 points in his return to the WSU lineup Saturday.
Upper Iowa cuts its deficit to 72-65 with 6:11 remaining in the contest, but a 9-2 Winona State run followed to extend the Warrior lead back to double digits and put the game out of reach for the home team. Tommy Gathje knocked down a big three-pointer to spark the run and Whitelow closed it with four straight points in the lane.
Winona dominated the paint in the second half of the game as well, pouring in 24 points in the lane over the final 20 minutes. The Warriors out-rebounded UIU in the game, 37-26.
Upper Iowa falls to 6-3 (0-1 NSIC) with the home loss.
Mason Domask chipped in 15 points on 7-of-12 shooting for Winona, and Gathje followed with 13 points. Kevion Taylor scored 10 of his career-best 12 points in the first half.
Connor Flack led all players with eight rebounds to go along with seven points.
The Warriors, who had their share of scoring woes last season, ranking nearing the bottom of the league, are averaging 85 points per game on the young 2017-18 season.
Winona State continues its stretch of three straight road NSIC games next weekend. The Warriors open a two-game road trip at Sioux Falls on Saturday, December 1 at 8 p.m.
