Whether it was around the basket or at the end of the game, the Badgers struggled finishing, and as a result, their 2009 Big Ten Tournament run was finished just hours after it began.
Wisconsin fell 61-57 to Ohio State in their first and only game in Indianapolis, ending its Big Ten season and putting its NCAA future in doubt. A crowed of 13023 representing all 11 of the conference's teams looked on as the Badgers failed to close out the game, a problem that has haunted them all season.
In the last five minutes you gotta knock some shots down,"" Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan said. ""And unfortunately we didn't.""
With six minutes left in the game Wisconsin led 54-47 after junior guard Jason Bohannon connected on his third 3-pointer of the day. The Badger offense then went silent, hitting no field goals as Ohio State made a concerted push.
The Buckeye rally was powered by sophomore wing Evan Turner who led the conference in scoring and collected 19 points and 4 assists Friday afternoon. Turner scored six of the Buckeyes' points in a in a 10-1 run that gave OSU a 57-55 lead, including one of the most critical shots of the contest.
With around a minute left, Tuner dribbled down the shot clock with the scored tied and then began his move around a screen. He then drove, spun and then sailed toward the basket, lofting up a shot that rolled around the rim for a moment before settling itself through the net, giving his team their final lead.
After the game Ryan said that he felt Turner was easily the best player in the conference and Joe Krabbenhoft, who was charged with guarding Turner, felt that he simply changed the complexion of the game.
""He stepped up and led his team. They were down a couple, I remember, and he just took control of the game,"" Krabbenhoft said. ""Every time we were on defense it seemed like he had the ball and he was in control.""
Landry followed Turner's circus shot with a long miss and, after a made free throw, Jason Bohannon also could not connect. The Buckeyes then hit enough of their free throws to keep Wisconsin at bay, earning a matchup with Michigan State Saturday afternoon.
Before that fateful six-minute stretch, the game had gone back and forth as neither team held a lead larger than six. Ohio State also staged a rally near the end of the first half, taking a one-point advantage into the break, only to come out flat and let Wisconsin take control again.
""When we started the second half, we were just kind of out there,"" OSU head coach Thad Matta said. ""And Wisconsin had the ability to do really whatever they wanted to do.""
Against the Buckeyes' second run, however, the Badgers never were able to find a response.
""They were making plays on the other end and we weren't countering,"" Bohannon said. ""You've got to counter in some way and make plays yourself to win basketball games.""
Wisconsin had difficulties closing out games all season, losing late leads to Minnesota, Michigan State and Purdue among others. Their first matchup against Ohio State was one of the few games in which the Badgers made big plays down the stretch to secure a win.
""[The first game was] the same situation, back and forth, back and forth, the last couple minutes we made some pretty big plays. Today we put ourselves in the situation to make those plays, just didn't finish,"" Senior forward Joe Krabbenhoft said. ""The one word that we didn't do was finish the ball game, and that wasn't just one possession, it was five minutes. So it sounds pretty simple, but five minutes of executing in basketball isn't easy but we were capable. We didn't do it, the players didn't get the job done.""
Backcourt struggles
After the loss Bo Ryan pointed to his backcourt as one sore spots of the game, due to a very difficult shooting night.
""When you look at the guards again, it's very troubling for the rest of the team to be able to think that J-Bo [Bohannon], Pop [Hughes] and Jordan [Taylor] can shoot, what was it, seven for 27
