Robbie Hummel did it again. But this time he left Purdue atop the Big Ten standings while stunning a sold out crowd at the Kohl Center.
Just two weeks after sealing a win over UW in West Lafayette, Ind., with a late block, the freshman poured in 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting as the Boilermakers topped No. 8 Wisconsin 72-67 Saturday night in Madison.
Hummel was huge,"" head coach Matt Painter said. ""He really stretched their defense. I thought that was key for us with their size that we had to stretch their defense and make some perimeter jumpers early in each half.""
Purdue (10-1 Big Ten, 19-5 overall) did that and a whole lot more. The Boilermakers hit 65 percent of their first-half field goals and Hummel added two quick threes in the second half to do exactly what Painter wanted.
With the win, Purdue became only the second Big Ten team to ever beat Bo Ryan in the Kohl Center. Illinois previously beat Ryan twice, and Saturday's loss dropped the UW head coach to 51-3 in Big Ten home games.
That was the long-term accomplishment for Purdue. The short-term accomplishment was the magnitude of the win in the race for the league title. In a game of two league leaders, a loss for the home team is devastating, especially when it means a season-series sweep for the road team.
That's the reality Wisconsin (9-2, 19-4) now faces.
""If you turn it over that many times (18) you usually have to pay. I think we had 18 at Minnesota, but we shot it better,"" Ryan said.
The UW head coach's formula for winning includes getting to the line and out-rebounding opponents, which the Badgers did to near perfection Saturday.
Wisconsin hit 30-of-33 free throws, outscoring Purdue by 18 points at the charity stripe. UW also out-rebounded the Boilermakers 42-21.
""There's a lot more to the game than that,"" Krabbenhoft said. ""Those are two big things that when you look at the end of the game, if you are up on those you expect to win, but defensively there is no stat there and we didn't get it done on that end. That's huge. That's where they beat us.""
But the free throws and rebounds kept Wisconsin in the game. Three key second-half moments spoiled a comeback, however.
After being down by as many as 15, sophomore guard Jason Bohannon, who tied Michael Flowers with 14 points, hit a layup to cut the deficit down to eight.
But on the other end of the court Bohannon was called for a foul on a play where Purdue sophomore guard Chris Kramer seemed to lose his footing. With the crowd roaring with displeasure, Ryan gestured to the floor and was called for a technical foul.
""I was pointing at the floor to tell our guys to get on the floor for a loose ball and he looked over and the other official came over and said 'That guy told me to tell you that you were gesturing in the coaches' box,'"" Ryan said after the game.
Hummel went to the line and hit two free throws, spoiling Wisconsin's momentum.
Still, UW fought back. Minutes later, Flowers made it a four-point game at 59-55, and sophomore Trevon Hughes grabbed a rebound, springing a fast-break opportunity that would have made it a one- possession game. But freshman forward JaJuan Johnson hustled back and blocked Hughes' attempt all the way back down to the other end where Kramer had an easy layup to make it 61-55.
Again, UW fought back. With just over a minute to play, Johnson missed a free throw that left the score at 69-65.
Hughes set the offense up and then tried to do a little too much. Attempting to split two defenders at the top of the key, sophomore Keaton Grant stole the ball and ran down the court for an emphatic dunk that sent many fans to the exit rows.
""A player trying to make a play,"" Ryan said of Hughes' late turnover. ""He's done that a few times and what are you going to do? When [he] splits it and makes a play and something positive happens, you clap, and if he doesn't, I don't go in there and blame somebody. [They're] tough team to do that against, too athletic.""
Hughes struggled all night from the floor. The sophomore only had four points on 1-of-9 shooting and missed all five of his 3-point attempts. It was also a tough night for Landry, who scored the team's first six points but finished with just eight on the game. The junior forward also committed six of the team's 18 turnovers.
Still, 30 free throws and 42 rebounds gave Wisconsin a chance. But just like they did two weeks ago in their first win over UW, the Boilermakers turned back each and every one of Wisconsin's late punches, making another statement while leaving the Badgers with a lot of work to do.
