Wisconsin loses Big Ten opener after slow start against Iowa
By Morgan Spohn | Dec. 30, 2017The Wisconsin women’s basketball team (0-1 Big Ten, 7-7 overal) had not played in over two weeks entering Thursday night: It showed.
The Wisconsin women’s basketball team (0-1 Big Ten, 7-7 overal) had not played in over two weeks entering Thursday night: It showed.
After a close defeat against in-state rival Milwaukee two weeks ago, the Wisconsin Women’s Basketball team (7-6) returns to the hardwood tonight as they open conference play against the No. 23 Iowa Hawkeyes (12-1) at home.
When the Badgers (9-1 Big Ten, 12-1 overall) face off against the Miami Hurricanes (7-2 ACC, 10-2 overall) on January 30 in the Orange Bowl, it will be the 16th straight season that Wisconsin has played in a postseason game. Various players along the way have made their way to the pros, and the coaching carousel of college football has hit Wisconsin just like other major programs. But even with the program’s familiarity to bowl games, it’d be remiss to ignore the uniqueness of this season to the Badgers. In 2017, Wisconsin recorded its first-ever undefeated regular season, a major milestone for a program that has long been known as a stable one rather than a national powerhouse. That spotless record, which would later be tarnished by a 27-21 loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship, was produced on the backs of a truly exceptional defense. Led by the stellar inside play of senior Leon Jacobs, junior T.J.
After a long layoff for final exams, the Wisconsin Badgers (1-1 Big Ten, 6-7 overall) refocused on the coming conference season as they walloped Green Bay (5-8) 81-60 at the Kohl Center Saturday evening. The result was never in doubt as UW raced out to a 25-9 lead, finding the bottom of the net on its first 10 shots to open the game. The Badgers were unstoppable in the lane, outscoring the Phoenix 46-14 in the paint as redshirt junior forward Ethan Happ, freshman guard Brad Davison and junior forward Khalil Iverson each scored in double digits.
The last time the Wisconsin Badgers were on the Kohl Center floor came more than one week ago, when freshman guard Brad Davison drew a charge 94 feet from UW’s basket with two seconds remaining.
After a hard fought battle on both ends of the court, the Wisconsin Badgers (7-6) were unable to secure a win over Milwaukee (8-2), falling just short Thursday night, 67-64.
Sports editor Ben Pickman and men's basketball beat writer Thomas Valtin-Erwin recap Wisconsin's wild victory over Western Kentucky.
Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good. Sometimes the opposite is true. And sometimes, as the Wisconsin Badgers (1-1 Big Ten, 5-7 overall) learned Wednesday night, being smart is best of all. When Western Kentucky (6-4) guard Darius Thompson silenced the Kohl Center with a runner that knotted the game at 80-80 with 2.0 seconds to play, head coach Greg Gard’s options were limited. He could have Brevin Pritzl fling the ball the length of the court and hope for a short jumper, he could bank on a running 40-footer a la Ben Brust in 2013, or he could run the clock out and take his chances in overtime. Instead, he sent freshman guard Brad Davison to draw a charge 93 feet from the basket.
Coming into the season, redshirt junior Aleem Ford wasn’t sure just how much he’d contribute to the 2017-’18 Wisconsin Badgers (1-1 Big Ten, 5-7 overall). But after taking advantage of his early season opportunities, Ford moved into UW’s starting lineup just four games into the year.
After aniliating Savannah State 82-24 on Sunday, Wisconsin (7-5) looks to continue to protect its home court Thursday night when it hosts Milwaukee (7-2). “You want to be prideful and protect your home court and we have done that in all except the Green Bay game,” head coach Jonathan Tsipis said. Throughout the beginning of the season, the Badgers have experienced both convincing wins and losses, but it is crucial for them to take what they have learned thus far and keep their energy up as they near the start of conference play. Milwaukee will pose a challenge for UW as Wisconsin will have to match up with a handful of skilled players.
Wisconsin guard T.J. Schlundt’s pregame preparation has not changed since his days of playing high school basketball. Patience and discipline have been key for the redshirt junior guard who is expected to play in his third consecutive game Wednesday evening when UW (1-1 Big Ten, 4-7 overall) faces off against Western Kentucky (6-3).
Simply dazzling. Or is dominating the right word? That’s about the only debate one can draw from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s 82-24 annihilation of Savannah State University Sunday night at the Kohl Center. The game really spoke for itself as the Badgers (7-5) clobbered the Lady Tigers (2-5) with grace and without mercy in record-breaking fashion.
Another 40 minutes of strong play against one of the nation’s top teams, and once again nothing to show for it. A night after breaking a 38-game unbeaten streak when leading after two periods and costing themselves a chance at a marquee win, the No. 12 Wisconsin men’s hockey team (4-5-1 Big Ten, 10-9-2 overall) was once again done in by a late-game offensive surge by No. 4 Notre Dame (10-0-0, 16-3-1) as they fell 6-2 Saturday night at the Kohl Center. The two teams traded goals for much of the first two periods, with the Irish taking a pair of one-goal leads on a power play tally from sophomore forward Cal Burke and a shorthanded strike from junior defenseman Dennis Gilbert.
The Wisconsin women’s hockey team faced off with the St. Cloud State Huskies this weekend at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.
It’s been a long week for the University of Wisconsin women’s basketball team. They’ve played four games in seven days to be exact.
Although they transpired under decidedly different circumstances, the story behind each of Wisconsin’s last two trips to the NCAA tournament feature exactly the same ending. A year after suffering a tragic defeat to Stanford in the 2016 elite eight match, the Badgers (11-9 Big Ten, 22-10 overall) once again watched their championship hopes collapse at the hands of the Cardinals (19-1 Pac 12, 29-3), losing by a score of 25-22, 20-25, 21-25, 19-25 in the Sweet 16 Friday night in California. UW’s loss was underscored by its inability to slow down Stanford’s electric offense, a unit which hit an astronomical .436 on the night.
While sitting on the bench as the final buzzer sounded in Wisconsin’s (1-1 Big Ten, 4-7 overall) 82-63 loss to Marquette (7-3), freshman guard Brad Davison buried his head in his sweat towel.
Playing without two of its top guards Saturday morning, the Wisconsin men’s basketball team (1-1 Big Ten, 4-7 overall) looked lethargic early and struggled to slow down a high-powered Marquette (7-3) offense as the Badgers dropped the seventh of their last nine games, 82-63. Just before the game tipped off it was announced that sophomore guard D’Mitrik Trice, the team’s starting point guard, would undergo foot surgery Monday and would be out indefinitely.
After coming off of a win against UT-Rio Grande Valley Wednesday night the Badgers had one day to prepare for a tough Butler team.
With No. 4 Notre Dame traveling to the Kohl Center, Wisconsin was looking for what would be its best win so far this season.