Dodge sets UWSP three-point record, pours in 42 in win
By John Kemmeter
With the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP) men’s basketball team in need of a key early-season victory, junior guard/forward Nate Dodge turned in one of the top performances in school history Saturday, Dec. 9.
The 6-3 transfer from NCAA Division 1 Army West Point set a single-game program record with 10 three-pointers and finished with 42 points, as he knocked down several big shots late to help the Pointers (3-2) break open a close game against Hope (Mich.) and pull away for a 91-77 win at Bennett Court at Quandt Fieldhouse.
“I had no idea that I had that much,” said Dodge after the game. “That’s pretty cool, especially with some of the really, really great basketball players that have played here.
“We’ve still got a bunch to go, so we’ll see how much better we can get as a team,” he said.
“It was very nice to see him make such big, clutch shots, and to see the way our crowd reacted,” said UWSP men’s basketball head coach Bob Semling. “They started to realize, ‘hey, we’re seeing something special here right now, this kid is on fire and he’s in a zone.’
“And these aren’t just meaningless shots,” he said. “Every one of these are big shots.”
A native of East Troy, Wisconsin, Dodge played for two seasons at Army West Point, as he averaged 2.8 points per game as a freshman in 2014-15 and 3.4 points per game as a sophomore in 2015-16, before he decided to transfer.
“It weighed heavily on him his last year at Army, knowing that, ‘maybe this isn’t the right place for me,’ and having to deal with all of those struggles,” said Semling. “Trying to decide, ‘do I stay here or do I transfer back to Wisconsin? Do I look at a Division II school or a Division III?’
“And I think he found out that this was the right place for him,” he said. “And when he got out here, he was embraced by our team and by our staff and all of our Backcourt Club members, and I think he really felt at home.”
Dodge ended up transferring to UWSP, where he was set to be junior for the 2016-17 season, but the NCAA delayed clearing him to play, as he ended up sitting out all of last season and was unable to practice, play or travel with the team.
“We had to pay our dues and we had to be patient,” said Dodge. “And that’s not a thing you want to do as a college athlete, is be patient when you only have four years.”
“For several months he was on pins and needles, not knowing if he was going to be able to play or not play,” said Semling. “After a lot of ups and downs, it was very emotional and none of us knew, we were just kind of in limbo. And that’s the worst thing, when you just don’t know.
“And then we got into that first game and we still didn’t know, and he didn’t fly out to Washington (D.C.) and Baltimore with us, we had a ticket for him, and he couldn’t go,” he said. “And that was painful, it was a challenge and it was more adversity for him, and then it was just a few weeks later, we got the news that he would not be eligible to play and he would have to sit out the year.
“But he handled that as well as he could have, and I think you’re seeing the result of that right now, is just how hungry and how excited he was,” he said. “He had anticipated those first weeks of practice and he looked forward to that more than any kid we’ve had in a while, just because of what he had gone through.”
In his first game since Feb. 3, 2016, Dodge scored eight points in his Pointer debut in the 2017-18 season opener against St. Olaf Nov. 15, and then shot 10-of-12 from the field and 8-of-10 from three-point range, as he scored 28 points off the bench in a 93-72 win at Buena Vista (Iowa) Nov. 18.
Dodge had five points off the bench in a 58-54 loss at St. Norbert Nov. 25 in the third game of the season, and then was 10-of-14 from the field and 7-of-11 on three-pointers to finish with 27 points in a 70-57 win at UW-Superior Dec. 2.
“He can get (his shot) off as quickly as anybody that we’ve had here, and we’ve had some good ones,” said Semling. “We’ve had guys who have led the country in three-point shooting, but he can get it off quick, and he can back out to NBA range.
“So, that’s a special young man who has a gift, and our guys have learned how to get him going early in a game, and then to continue to find him and to be able to create good looks for him,” he said. “Our guys are unselfish that way, and I want to give them credit, they also know when he gets going to try to get him more looks and to get the ball in his hand when he’s hot.”
UWSP was back home to host Hope Saturday afternoon on Parents’ Day, where Dodge came off the bench just under three minutes into the game with the Pointers leading 7-4, and he went on to score 17 points and knock down 3-of-5 three-pointers in the first half to help the team take a 45-33 lead into halftime.
Dodge scored 10 more points early in the second half, as the team maintained a 62-53 lead with 12:41 to play, before Hope came back to cut its deficit to 69-68 with 7:50 left in the game.
“We took a timeout and we kind of just regrouped and said, ‘we’re not going to lose this game,’” said Dodge. “We have a veteran team now, and we just regained our poise and played pretty well from there.”
UWSP held on to a 74-70 advantage with 5:21 to go, when Dodge knocked down a three-pointer to make it 77-70, and after Hope closed to 77-74, Dodge nailed another three-pointer to give the Pointers an 80-74 lead with 3:31 remaining.
Hope pulled to within 80-76 on a layup with 3:18 to play, but Dodge buried a three-pointer on the next possession to make it 83-76, and hit another three-pointer on the following possession to push the lead to 86-76 with 2:09 remaining and supply the dagger in the 91-77 win.
Dodge left the game to an ovation with 59 seconds to play and the team leading 90-77, as he finished 10-of-13 from three-point range to break the previous program record of nine three-pointers in a game, which was held by Trevor Hass (Jan. 25, 2014), Jordan Giordana (Dec. 29, 2013) and Pete Rortvedt (Feb. 21, 2006).
“I definitely had it going, but we’ve still got to work on some stuff and still get better defensively,” said Dodge. “But it’s always good to get a win on your home floor, and it was fun to get the crowd involved and have people cheering for you.”
“Hope had momentum, they picked up and pressed in the second half and it got their offense going, it got their guys energized and playing harder, and it put us on our heels a little bit,” said Semling. “It really turned momentum in their favor, and that’s hard to turn around.
“And we got it turned around, because Nate kept making big shot after big shot,” he said. “And that’s what’s so special about that performance that I think people will reflect back on, is that it was a game where, in the second half, every three he made was a clutch three that we had to have.”
Dodge finished the game with 42 points in 30 minutes to end up second on the program’s single-game scoring list, behind Hass’ 45 points in a 91-72 win at UW-La Crosse Jan. 25, 2014, as he helped UWSP beat Hope Saturday afternoon with a large group of family in attendance.
“That was awesome,” said Dodge. “They were ecstatic, and they drove from all over the state, so it was fun.”
Dodge currently ranks second in Division III with 5.6 made three-point field goals per game, and is fourth in three-point field-goal percentage at 62.2 percent this season, as UWSP leads the nation in three-point field-goal percentage at 50.4 percent.
The Pointers are set to host St. Thomas (Minn.) at 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 16, in their final home game until January, while Dodge said he is having a blast being back on the court after a year off.
“It means the world,” said Dodge. “I just caught myself smiling in the middle of the game (Saturday).
“I’m so happy and blessed to be able to play again,” he said.
“He’s been a pleasant surprise and a lot of fun to coach, and I couldn’t be happier for him,” said Semling. “Just like we told him, sitting at his kitchen table in East Troy in the spring of 2016, ‘Nate, we can find a home for you here, that you can really excel and really flourish and really put down some roots with the people of Stevens Point for years to come, and have some great memories.’
“And that’s what we’re going to continue to work very hard at,” he said. “Making sure he has a great two-year career for us at Stevens Point.”