By Tommy McGowan, UWEC Sports Information
LA CROSSE, Wis. (blugolds.com) - The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's basketball dropped their regular season finale Saturday afternoon to UW-La Crosse, 64-54.
The Blugolds scored the first points of the game off a layup from Cam Kuepers (Jr.-Madison, WI/Lakeside Lutheran), but the Eagles took the lead seven minutes into the first half. A run from La Crosse sent them into the halftime break up 35-21.
Kuepers and Spencer Page (So.-Rice Lake, WI) paced the Blugolds in scoring during the half, both notching six points. Kuepers also played great defense, with a pair of steals in the period.
A three from Page began the scoring in the second for Eau Claire, who would outshoot the Eagles during the half. Midway through the second, UWEC had cut the lead to just three points, but La Crosse responded with a three.
The Blugolds kept the pressure on the Eagles the rest of the way, again cutting the lead, 54-52 with three minutes left. However, a 10-2 run from the Eagles sealed the game.
Overall, Eau Claire finished the game shooting 38% and went 6-22 from three-point territory. They also held La Crosse under the 40 percent shooting threshold.
Kuepers led all scorers with 19 points on 7-12 shooting, while Cole Rabedeaux (Sr.-Poulsbo, WA/North Kitsap) had 16. Page led the Blugolds with 11 rebounds and had nine points.
Rabedeaux finishes the 2019-20 season second in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in scoring, averaging 20 points per game. Both him and Kuepers also finished in the Top 10 in field goal percentage.
Eau Claire ends the regular season at 17-8 overall and 8-6 in the WIAC. They will be the four seed in the WIAC Championships, hosting UW-Stevens Point in the first round February 25th. They beat Stevens Point twice in the regular season, including a 75-66 victory earlier this month. Follow action on Blugold Game Day or on the 'UWEC Blugolds' app from your mobile device.
