Despite 30 points and 14 rebounds by junior forward Jim Schick, the Lake Forest College men's basketball team began the season with a 76-73 double-overtime loss to visiting University of Wisconsin-Platteville on Saturday.
Schick shot 14-for-25 from the field and eight of his rebounds came at the offensive end of the court. Last year he ranked fourth in the nation with 4.2 offensive boards per game. Schick also added a pair of steals to his stat line on Saturday. He played 46 minutes in the contest.
Sophomore point guard Eric Porter finished with a dozen points, seven rebounds, and seven assists in his Forester regular season debut. He led the team with 47 minutes played in the game.
Forester freshman forward Danny Sotos was next on the team with nine points and he added nine boards as the home team out-rebounded Platteville 53-38.
Both teams shot just less than 40 percent from the field and made eight three-pointers. Lake Forest committed four more turnovers (21-17) than the Pioneers and connected on just five of 15 free throws while the visitors shot 16-for-21 from the line.
The largest lead for either team in the first half was a five-point Platteville advantage at 5-0 and again at 7-2. There were three ties and five lead changes in the first half and a three-pointer by the Pioneers with 24 seconds remaining in the period trimmed the Foresters' game-high four-point lead to one (29-28) at the break.
The lead changed hands 14 times in the second half, the last on a basket by Schick with 4:36 remaining that put the home team ahead 62-60. The 12th tie of the game came on a Platteville layup with 4:15 on the clock and neither team scored again in regulation.
A tip-in by Schick tied the game at 64 with 1:40 left in the first overtime and another Schick tip-in knotted the score at 66 with four seconds to play. A desperation three-pointer by the Pioneers was unsuccessful and the teams headed to a second extra period.
The Foresters fell behind by five before a three-pointer by Sotos with 38 seconds left made the score 72-70. After the Pioneers made just two of four free throws on their next two possessions, a three-pointer by Lake Forest sophomore forward Orlando Brown trimmed the margin to a single point with 11.6 seconds left. Forester freshman Jordan Moran stole the inbound pass but was unable to avoid a travel, giving the ball back to Platteville with 9.6 seconds to play. After a Forester foul, the visitors knocked down a pair of free throws and held on for the victory.
Lake Forest will be on the road in their next contest, a match-up with the University of Chicago Tuesday night at 7:00.
