After a tough loss at home against the Big Ten Champion Ohio State Buckeyes last Thursday night, the Wisconsin women's basketball team had no easy task going on the road to Ann Arbor. With just three games left including this one, the Badgers know that every contest is now more important than ever.
The team definitely stuck to that mentality as they took a huge game against Michigan, downing the Wolverines, 73-61.
Stepping up for Wisconsin Sunday afternoon was an unlikely hero. Sophomore forward Anya Covington posted both season and career scoring highs, contributing 19 points, and falling just one rebound short of a double-double.
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Two other Badgers also chipped in strong scoring efforts with junior guard Alyssa Karel posting 14, and junior forward Tara Steinbauer scoring 12.
The Wolverines and the Badgers battled back and forth for most of the first 15 minutes of the game before Wisconsin ran away on an 11-2 run to close out the half, leading 33-23. From there, the Badgers stayed dominant on both ends of the ball, never leading by less than five, and extending the margin to as many as 13 points in the second half.
In the team's loss to Ohio State last Thursday evening, mistakes proved incredibly costly for the Badgers. Against Michigan though, Wisconsin kept the errors to a minimum, turning the ball over just 15 times.
Additionally, the Badgers capitalized well on Michigan's mistakes, scoring 20 points off of the Wolverines' 22 turnovers.
Wisconsin shot 46 percent from the floor and went 5-for-15 from behind the 3-point line. Meanwhile, in what has been a struggle for the team this season, the Badgers attempted 25 free throws, the fourth most this season, and converted 20 of them.
With the victory, the Badgers improve to 9-7 in the Big Ten and 19-8 overall. The win also keeps Wisconsin in control of fourth place in the conference. Additionally, nine conference victories ties for the most in Stone's career at Wisconsin. The team is now also guaranteed to finish at least .500 on the season.
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The Badgers next face Penn State this Thursday evening in College Park, Penn. Wisconsin will be looking to avenge a heartbreaking loss at home against the Nittany Lions earlier this season at the Kohl Center.
