2003-04 WIAC Men's Basketball
Athletes of the Week

Week of Feb. 16 - 22
Cody Kastern, Senior (Superior/Senior), Forward of UW-Superior
Kastern helped UW-Superior to a 61-52 road win at No. 9-ranked UW-Stevens Point on February 21. He had 19 points, eight rebounds and one blocked shot against the Pointers. The win by the Yellowjackets gave them their first regular-season sweep over the Pointers since the 1964-65 season. In a non-conference tilt against Finlandia (Mich.) on February 17, Kastern had 27 points, eight rebounds, four steals, two assists and one block in an 82-72 victory.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Will Jefferson, Junior, Inside, Wausau (East)
UW-La Crosse, Casey Taggatz, Senior, Guard, Stevens Point (SPASH)
UW-Oshkosh, David Gershenzon, Sophomore, Guard, Glenview, Ill. (Glenbrook South)
UW-River Falls, Micah Helfrey, Senior, Guard, Mesa, Ariz.
UW-Stevens Point, Eric Maus, Junior, Center, Green Bay (Southwest)
UW-Stout, Terry Farmer, Freshman, Forward, Kenosha (St. Joseph)
UW-Whitewater, Nick Smith, Senior, Forward, Greenfield

Week of Feb. 9 - 15
Rich Melzer, Senior (Minneapolis, Minn./River Falls), Forward of UW-River Falls
Melzer helped UW-River Falls to a pair of WIAC road wins this week that vaulted the Falcons into a three-way tie for first place in the league standings. In a 79-75 overtime victory at UW-Superior on February 10, Melzer played all 45 minutes and scored 32 points on 13-for-23 shooting from the field with nine rebounds. In a 72-70 win at UW-Whitewater on February 14, he poured in 36 points on the strength of 16-for-20 shooting from the free throw line. The 20 free throw attempts established a league single-game high this season. In the two games, he scored 68 points on 23-for-43 (53.4 percent) shooting from the field and 21-for-30 (70.0 percent) from the free throw line. He added 17 rebounds, four assists, five steals and three blocks. Melzer also moved into second place on UW-River Falls' all-time scoring list with 2,271 career points.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Casey Drake, Junior, Outside, Rhinelander
UW-La Crosse, Casey Taggatz, Senior, Guard, Stevens Point (SPASH)
UW-Oshkosh, Jim Capelle, Freshman, Forward, Wisconsin Dells
UW-Platteville, Brad Reitzner, Junior, Guard, Stoughton
UW-Stevens Point, Tamaris Relerford, Junior, Guard, Beloit (Memorial)
UW-Stout, Nate Templer, Senior, Forward, Beaver Dam
UW-Superior, Cody Kastern, Senior, Forward, Superior (Senior)
UW-Whitewater, Ernest Williams, Senior, Guard, Milwaukee (Marquette)

Week of Feb. 2 - 8
Casey Taggatz, Senior (Stevens Point/SPASH), of UW-La Crosse
Taggatz played all 85 minutes in two UW-La Crosse victories this week and averaged 16.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists in the two games. He had 15 points, four rebounds and three assists in a 67-66 overtime win at UW-Eau Claire, including the game-winning shot with three seconds remaining in overtime. Taggatz then tied for game-high honors with 18 points in a 74-63 victory over UW-Superior. In the two games, he was 11-for-24 (45.8 percent) from the field, including six-for-10 from three-point range and had only three turnovers.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Kale Proksch, Sophomore, Inside, Chaseburg (Westby)
UW-Oshkosh, Chad Doedens, Freshman, Guard, Cedarburg
UW-River Falls, Rich Melzer, Senior, Forward, Minneapolis, Minn. (River Falls)
UW-Stevens Point, Jon Krull, Freshman, Forward, Marshall
UW-Stout, Greg Chaisson, Sophomore, Guard, Minneapolis, Minn. (Southwest)
UW-Superior, Laron Reed, Junior, Guard, Broadview, Ill. (Nazareth Academy)
UW-Whitewater, Matt Jones, Senior, Guard, Milwaukee (Bay View)

Week of Jan. 26 - Feb. 1
Nick Bennett, Junior (Stevens Point/SPASH), Guard of UW-Stevens Point
Bennett shot a blistering 65.6 percent from the field and set a new career-high in points in three games this week. He went nine-for-12 from the field, including four-for-six on three-pointers to score a career-best 29 points in a victory over UW-Stout on January 28. Bennett was eight-for-12 against Viterbo in a 67-52 win, and added 16 points in a 70-61 victory over UW-La Crosse. For the week, Bennett was 21-for-32 from the floor, including nine-for-15 from the three-point line. He made 16 of his 18 free throw attempts, dished out 11 assists, grabbed nine rebounds and had two steals.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Casey Drake, Junior, Outside, Rhinelander
UW-La Crosse, Casey Taggatz, Senior, Guard, Stevens Point (SPASH)
UW-Oshkosh, Pete Warning, Sophomore, Forward, Shiocton
UW-Platteville, LeVon Crawford, Sophomore, Guard, Chicago, Ill. (Thornwood)
UW-River Falls, Rich Melzer, Senior, Forward, Minneapolis, Minn. (River Falls)
UW-Stout, Terry Farmer, Freshman, Forward, Kenosha (St. Joseph)
UW-Superior, Bob Riley, Senior, Forward, New Hope, Minn. (Robbinsdale Cooper)
UW-Whitewater, Angelo Griffin, Junior, Center, Milwaukee (Bay View)

Week of Jan. 19 - 25
Rich Melzer, Senior (Minneapolis, Minn./River Falls), Forward of UW-River Falls
Melzer played a key role as UW-River Falls won two of three road games this week. He scored game-highs in all three games and also led the team in rebounding in each contest. In a 71-63 victory at UW-Stout on January 21, he scored 36 points on 14-for-25 shooting from the field and eight-for-nine from the free throw line with eight rebounds. He added 34 points at UW-Oshkosh on January 24 and 26 points at Marian on January 25. Melzer finished the week with 96 points on 34-for-58 shooting from the field (58.6 percent) and 28-for-32 shooting from the free throw line (87.5 percent). He also hauled in 21 rebounds with six assists, six steals and two blocked shots. Melzer has surpassed the 30-point plateau in eight games this season.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Tyler Birkel, Sophomore, Inside, Spring Valley
UW-La Crosse, Chris Ask, Freshman, Guard, St. Charles, Minn.
UW-Oshkosh, Dain Christensen, Junior, Guard, Waupaca
UW-Platteville, Brandon Temperly, Junior, Forward, Hazel Green (Southwestern)
UW-Stevens Point, Jason Kalsow, Junior, Forward, Huntley, Ill.
UW-Stout, Jeff Vandenberghe, Senior, Guard, Coon Rapids, Minn.
UW-Superior, Cody Kastern, Senior, Forward, Superior (Senior)
UW-Whitewater, Mike Toellner, Freshman, Forward, Mayville

Week of Jan. 12 - 18
Matt Jones, Senior (Milwaukee/Bay View), Guard of UW-Whitewater
Jones helped UW-Whitewater remain in first place in the league standings with wins at UW-Stevens Point and at home against UW-Stout (both first place teams at the time of the match-up). He had a game-high 18 points with four rebounds and one assist against sixth-ranked UW-Stevens Point to snap the Pointers' 22-game regular season home winning streak. Jones added a game-high 16 points, five rebounds and two assists in the victory over the Blue Devils on January 17. In the two games, Jones shot nine-for-17 from the field and 15-for-17 from the free throw line.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Buck Smith, Inside, Sophomore, Superior
UW-La Crosse, Joe Werner, Freshman, Forward, Chippewa Falls (McDonell)
UW-Oshkosh, Kerry Gibson, Freshman, Center, Jefferson
UW-Platteville, Brad Reitzner, Junior, Guard, Stoughton
UW-River Falls, Rich Melzer, Senior, Forward, Minneapolis, Minn. (River Falls)
UW-Stevens Point, Jason Kalsow, Junior, Forward, Huntley, Ill.
UW-Stout, Jacob Nonemacher, Freshman, Center, Kalispell, Mont. (Flathead)
UW-Superior, Cody Kastern, Senior, Forward, Superior (Senior)

Week of Jan. 5 - 11
Casey Drake, Junior (Rhinelander), Guard of UW-Eau Claire
Drake hit the game-winning shot in UW-Eau Claire's 80-79 overtime win over No. 13 UW-Whitewater on January 10. He scored a team-high 23 points on six-of-14 shooting from the field and nine-of-13 shooting from the free-throw line. Drake also dished out four assists, grabbed two rebounds and had one steal in the victory against the Warhawks. In UW-Eau Claire's loss to UW-River Falls on January 7, Drake scored a team-high 21 points and grabbed six rebounds. For the week, Drake finished with 44 points on 15-for-33 shooting from field (45.5 percent) and 10-for-14 from the free-throw line (71.4 percent), while grabbing eight rebounds and distributing five assists.

Also nominated:
UW-Oshkosh, Kerry Gibson, Freshman, Center, Jefferson
UW-Platteville, Brad Reitzner, Junior, Guard, Stoughton
UW-River Falls, Rich Melzer, Senior, Forward, Minneapolis, Minn. (River Falls)
UW-Stevens Point, Brian Bauer, Sophomore, Forward, Auburndale
UW-Stout, Jacob Nonemacher, Freshman, Forward, Kalispell, Mont. (Flathead)
UW-Superior, Cody Kastern, Senior, Forward, Superior (Senior)
UW-Whitewater, Melvin Williams, Sophomore, Forward, Milwaukee (Riverside)

Week of Dec. 15 - Jan. 4
Nick Bennett, Junior (Stevens Point/SPASH), Forward of UW-Stevens Point
Bennett averaged 18.5 points over four games during the holiday break in victories over Kalamazoo (Mich.), UW-Oshkosh (non-conference), Edgewood and UW-Eau Claire. He equaled his career-high with 29 points on eight-for-16 shooting against Kalamazoo at the Desert Classic in Las Vegas. Against Edgewood, he hit four three-pointers, had five rebounds and 22 points in the Pointers' victory. For the four games over holiday break, Bennett scored 75 points on 19-for-43 shooting, including nine-for-24 from the three-point line and 90.3 percent (28-for-31) from the free throw line.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Casey Drake, Junior, Guard, Rhinelander
UW-Oshkosh, Andy Fernholz, Junior, Guard, West Salem (La Crosse Aquinas)
UW-Platteville, Tom Uppena, Junior, Center, Cassville
UW-River Falls, Micah Helfrey, Senior, Guard, Mesa, Ariz.
UW-Stout, Jacob Nonemacher, Freshman, Forward, Kalispell, Mont. (Flathead)
UW-Superior, Laron Reed, Junior, Guard, Broadview, Ill. (Nazareth Academy)
UW-Whitewater, Angelo Griffin, Junior, Forward, Milwaukee (Bay View)

Week of Dec. 8 - 14
Jeff Vandenberghe, Senior (Coon Rapids, Minn.), Guard of UW-Stout
Vandenberghe scored a career-high 36 points, including 12 in the final six minutes to help slash a 14-point deficit against Elmhurst (Ill.), but the Blue Devils still fell 97-96. He drilled a school-record nine three-pointers in the contest on a school-record 14 attempts and finished 10-of-18 from the field and seven-of-eight from the free-throw line. The nine three-point field goals made were also the third-highest single-game total in league history. Vandenberghe also added three steals, two assists and two rebounds in the contest. He scored 14 points in a loss to No. 2 ranked UW-Stevens Point earlier in the week. On the week, Vandenberghe scored 50 points on 15-of-30 shooting from the field and 13-of-22 from the three-point arc.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Buck Smith, Sophomore, Center, Superior
UW-La Crosse, Joe Werner, Freshman, Forward, Chippewa Falls (McDonnell)
UW-Oshkosh, Jim Capelle, Freshman, Forward, Wisconsin Dells
UW-Stevens Point, Neal Krajnik, Senior, Guard, Manitowoc (Roncalli)
UW-Superior, Marc Rothschadl, Junior, Guard, Superior (Senior)

Week of Dec. 1 - 7
Jason Kalsow, Junior (Huntley, Ill.), Forward of UW-Stevens Point
Kalsow averaged 23 points and 10 rebounds per game in three Pointer victories this week. He recorded his second double-double of the season in a 56-38 win against UW-River Falls, scoring 17 points and pulling down 14 rebounds. Kalsow scored 26 points on 11-for-14 shooting against Calumet (Ind.) on Saturday, and added another 26 points against Carroll on Sunday. For the week, Kalsow was 28-for-47 (59.6 percent) from the field and 13-for-17 (76.5 percent) from the free throw line with 31 rebounds and eight assists.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Casey Drake, Junior, Guard, Rhinelander
UW-La Crosse, Casey Taggatz, Senior, Guard, Stevens Point (SPASH)
UW-Oshkosh, Jim Capelle, Freshman, Forward, Wisconsin Dells
UW-Platteville, Frank McGettigan, Senior, Forward, Mineral Point
UW-River Falls, Micah Helfrey, Senior, Guard, Mesa, Ariz.
UW-Stout, Andy Bray, Senior, Forward, Menominee, Mich.
UW-Superior, Cody Kastern, Senior, Forward, Superior (Senior)

Week of Nov. 24 - 30
Rich Melzer, Senior (Minneapolis, Minn./River Falls), Forward of UW-River Falls
Melzer averaged 32.5 points in two games for the Falcons this week. In a 80-77 win at Macalester (Minn.) on November 25 he poured in a game-high 33 points on 13-for-24 shooting from the field and seven-for-11 from the free throw line. He also added eight rebounds and two assists in the contest. In a narrow 72-69 loss at NCAA Division II opponent St. Cloud State (Minn.) on November 29, Melzer had a game-high 32 points on 14-for-22 shooting from the field with eight rebounds and one assist.

Also nominated:
UW-La Crosse, Casey Taggatz, Senior, Guard, Stevens Point (SPASH)
UW-Oshkosh, Jim Capelle, Freshman, Forward, Wisconsin Dells
UW-Platteville, Brad Reitzner, Junior, Guard, Stoughton
UW-Stevens Point, Eric Maus, Junior, Forward, Green Bay (Southwest)
UW-Stout, Jeff Vandenberghe, Senior, Guard, Coon Rapids, Minn.
UW-Superior, Marc Rothschadl, Junior, Guard, Superior (Senior)

Week of Nov. 17 - 23
Matt Jones, Junior (Milwaukee/Bay View), Guard of UW-Whitewater
Jones helped the Warhawks to the tournament title at the Transylvania (Ky.) Tipoff Tournament. In the opening game against the host school, he poured in game-high 24 points on eight-of-11 shooting from the field, including four-of-six from three-point range. Jones also went four-of-six from the free throw line and added three rebounds and two steals. In the championship game against DePauw (Ind.), he led five Warhawks in double figures with 19 points on seven-of-10 shooting from the field. He also chipped in three assists, two rebounds and two steals. In the two games, Jones averaged 21.5 points and shot 71.4 percent from the field, 62.5 percent from three-point range and 80.0 percent from the free throw line.

Also nominated:
UW-Eau Claire, Casey Drake, Junior, Guard, Rhinelander
UW-La Crosse, Casey Taggatz, Senior, Guard, Stevens Point (SPASH)
UW-Platteville, Brandon Temperly, Junior, Forward, Hazel Green (Southwestern)
UW-River Falls, Chris Becker, Senior, Guard, Stone Lake (Hayward)
UW-Stevens Point, Jason Kalsow, Junior, Forward, Huntley, Ill.
UW-Stout, Nate Templer, Senior, Forward, Beaver Dam
UW-Superior, Cody Kastern, Senior, Forward, Superior (Senior)

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