An emphatic dunk by junior forward Keaton Nankivil came just in time to seal a 64-61 Badger victory against Arizona last night in the first round of the Maui Invitational.
Free throws, foul trouble and senior guard Trevon Hughes headlined the sloppy victory, as Hughes scored 24 on an inefficient 7-of-19 from the field and 8-of-14 at the charity stripe. Nankivil added 12 points and eight rebounds in limited time, while senior guard Jason Bohannon netted 10 points, with five coming on free throws.
Freshman forward Derrick Williams led the Wildcat offense with 25 points on an efficient 6-of-7 from the field while being active in the paint and taking advantage of Wisconsin's foul trouble throughout the second half.
The Badgers jumped out to an early 13-0 lead, yet they were anything but perfect in doing so. A bank-in 3-pointer from Hughes, an off-balance jumper off the dead spot of the rim from Taylor and shots taken after one or two passes were all present in the opening seven-minute stretch, but shots were falling and they were playing Wisconsin defense, which is head coach Bo Ryan's recipe for success.
However, after the Badgers dominated the opening stretch, officiating on both sides of the ball controlled the flow and direction of the game, and foul trouble immediately set in, forcing UW to go to unconventional three-guard lineups for most of the game.
The Badgers could not regain control of the game or the comfortable double-digit lead they held with Nankivil, freshman forward Ryan Evans and junior forward Jon Leuer sitting the last five minutes of the first half with three fouls each. Meanwhile, an active defense held the Badgers in check long enough for Arizona's offense to hold the deficit around 10 until halftime.
With the Badgers up by eight entering the second half, fouls continued to change the complexion of the game. Arizona's only senior, guard Nic Wise, was whistled for two quick fouls against Hughes to give him four and keep him off the floor. To keep it balanced, Leuer and Nankivil received their fourth fouls in the first three minutes of the second half.
The Wildcats clawed back into the game in the ensuing dogfight using their speedy perimeter defenders to prevent the Badgers from comfortably running a set offense, while the lack of size inside left the Badgers' interior defense vulnerable to Williams' athleticism.
In the end, the Badgers made just enough free throws—despite a poor 17-of-29 overall performance—to hold on to a slim lead nearly throughout. A Hughes 3-pointer with 5:07 left gave UW a couple more minutes of life before free throws carried the scoring load until Nankivil's dunk dropped in the dagger.
Hughes proved his worth, taking over the offense whenever necessary and leading the Badgers' early surge. However, he was unable to keep the offense under control when Arizona amped up the pressure, and he struggled at times from the line. He showed up just enough to lead the team to a victory, but in the end, it was the defense that simply prevented the Wildcats from matching the Badgers' lackluster performance.
Wisconsin now faces Gonzaga Tuesday night at 8:30 p.m. Central in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational.
