MILWAUKEE, WISC. - The Madison College men's basketball team was unable to snap a pair of losing streaks Tuesday night as they dropped an 86-69 Region 4 game against in-state rival Milwaukee Area Technical College, extending their current streak to five straight games with their 11th straight loss against the Stormers. Freshman Jackson Bertagnoli scored a career-high 18 points off the bench; however, the WolfPack finished with their third-lowest shooting percentage in a game this season. The Pack still owns a narrow 64-59 lead in the head-to-head series that dates back some 60 years.

Freshman Wil Dietrich, making his first collegiate start, got Madison College going with a three-pointer in the opening possession, and after a pair of JP Pleasant free throws a minute later, the visitors owned a quick 5-0 lead. Milwaukee Area Technical College (12-16) eventually caught back up and the two long-time rivals traded baskets, leads, and ties the Stormers put together a 20-4 run to go ahead 36-19. Following two interior jumpers from guard George Whaley IV, MATC closed the half with a 15-2 burst that saw the Pack miss all ten of its field goal attempts and commit four turnovers.

Down 26 to start the second half, Madison College was unable to close the gap as the team's went back-and-forth for the next eight minutes until Carson McCormick splashed home a three-pointer and followed with a driving jumper as part of seven straight points to pull the differential inside of 20. Though that momentum didn't last long, the WolfPack made one more push with seven minutes to go when Pleasant racked up five straight points and Dietrich added to more to make it 74-57. Milwaukee Tech answered again with seven straight of their own and held on for the 17-point win.

Bertagnoli, a Janesville, Wisconsin, native, led all scorers with his 18 points. He went 3 for 6 from beyond the arc for his first game with more than one 3-pointer, and finish 6 of 10 overall and 3 for 4 at the line. Bertagnoli added five rebounds.

Whaley registered his third double-double of the season with 16 points and ten rebounds. The 6'1" native of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, was 7 for 17 on the night with a pair of free throws. He also tied for team-high honors with four assists.

Pleasant tallied 14 points, eight rebounds, three steals, and two blocks as the 6'5" forward made 5 of 10 shot attempts and 4 of 8 free throws attempts.

Dietrich finished with 12 points to match his career-high, and made two of his four field goals from long range. And despite scoring just one point, starter Amir Ford pulled down ten rebounds for the second time this season.

Madison College shot 25 for 78 (32%) from the field, 7 for 29 (24%) from beyond the arc, and 12 of 19 (63%) at the stripe. They also owned a 17-8 advantage in points off turnovers; however, MATC was plus-16 in points in the paint and plus-29 in bench scoring.

Up Next:

Madison College (18-8) will play its regular season finale against the College of DuPage (20-9) on Thursday, February 20. The Chaparrals defeated the WolfPack by a 77-69 final on Saturday in Madison, closing the Pack's lead in the head-to-head series to 18-17. Game time in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, is at 7:00 p.m. and can be live streamed here.

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