MADISON, Wis. – Lady Luck finally turned her back on the University of Wisconsin. Now the Badgers will find out how badly their fortunes have changed once the health of All-American Johnny Davis has been determined.
With their star sophomore knocked out of the game early in the second half, No.10 Wisconsin crumbled over the final six minutes to suffer an ugly 74-73 loss to last-place Nebraska at the Kohl Center Sunday.
Coupled with Illinois' come-from-behind victory over Iowa Sunday night, the Badgers (24-6, 15-5 Big Ten) will share the regular-season championship with the Illini and be the No.2 seed in the conference tournament.
Winning ugly, or unconventionally, had been a theme all season but the Badgers struggled to generate offense without Davis, who was knocked out of the game with 17:32 remaining following a Flagrant-2 foul by guard Trey McGowens. He did not return after being taken straight to the locker room with what Wisconsin’s communication staff labeled a “lower-body injury.”
Playing without their All-American gave the Badgers an immediate spark, going on a 21-7 run to lead 62-52, but proved problematic when the Huskers closed the game with a 12-2 run over the final 5:48.
UW missed its last nine shots, including Chucky Hepburn trying to hit the game-winning 3-pointer on their final possession. It would have been two game-winning shots in a week for Hepburn, who missed the first of three free throws with 19.8 seconds left kept the Badgers behind.
The Badgers put four players in double figures, led by 20 points from Brad Davison on a night where he went 5-for-15 from the floor.
Winning its first game against an AP Top-10 opponent for the first time since it knocked off the Badgers in Lincoln in 2014, Nebraska (10-21, 4-16) did it after guard Bryce McGowens, the likely conference freshman of the year, was ruled out after warmups with a wrist injury he suffered Tuesday.
Without Bryce McGowens, who led the team in scoring (17.2 ppg) and was second in rebounding (5.3), guard Alonzo Verge Jr. scored a game-high 26 points, including the Huskers’ last nine points.
Nebraska built a 10-3 lead by the first media timeout and led for over 19 minutes in the first half, taking advantage of the lack of a Sunday buzz in the building compared to Tuesday’s conference-clinching performance.
Wisconsin trailed twice by 12 in the second half, a deficit that coincided with Davis, who had seven of his team’s first 11 points, being forced to the bench for the final 10:54 with two fouls.
While UW scored 15 points in its last 11 possessions of the half to build some confidence on offense, the Badgers struggled defensively allowing Nebraska to score 26 points in the paint and shoot 56.7 percent from the floor. Had Nebraska not gone 1-for-9 from 3-point range, the score might have looked uglier.
What it means: Wisconsin will have to wait to see if it will win the program’s 10th outright Big Ten title. If Illinois beats Iowa, the Illini will share the conference title and be the top overall seed based on their 80-67 win over the Badgers in Champaign, Ill., February 2. No matter the outcome, UW’s AP ranking, and potentially its NCAA seed will take a hit.
Star of the game: Chris Vogt did everything but score when the Badgers clinched a share of the Big Ten title Tuesday, impacting both ends of the floor with his 7-foot presence in the paint, on the glass, and with his vision. He was the offensive force against the Huskers, going 5-for-6 from the field and 3-for-3 from the foul line, production well above his 2.5 points per game average.
Turning Point: Davis’s injury didn’t appear crushing early on but without the player who had lifted Wisconsin to so many victories with his play-making ability late in games, the Badgers couldn’t generate the offense.
Stat of the game: 0-for-9. Wisconsin missed all nine of its field goal attempts after Davison’s 3-pointer gave them a 71-62 lead with 5:48 remaining
Don’t overlook: The final possession for Wisconsin worked so well Tuesday, the Badgers pushing the ball against a defense that couldn’t get set. It backfired Sunday after Nebraska missed the front end of the bonus and UW pushed. The Badgers had racked up the fouls but didn’t attack off the dribble handoff, allowing Hepburn to shoot a three and then failed to grab the offensive rebound.
What’s next: Wisconsin will enjoy its double bye in the conference tournament and won’t play again until Friday, playing either No.7 seed Michigan State or No.10 seed Maryland (5:30 p.m. CT/Big Ten Network). The Spartans beat the Terrapins at the Breslin Center Sunday.
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