Chucky Hepburn’s step-back jumpers in the closing seconds have caused more headaches than celebrations through a frustrating Big Ten conference season. On the final night of conference action, Hepburn delivered one that might have saved his team’s NCAA Tournament profile for the time being.
Hepburn hit UW’s only three-point shot in the second half with 46.8 seconds to go, breaking the game’s sixth tie and leading Wisconsin to a 71-67 victory over Minnesota at Williams Arena.
Forwards Steven Crowl and Tyler Wahl did the heavy lifting in the scoring column with 21 points and seven rebounds each for Wisconsin (17-13, 9-11 Big Ten), which avoided a catastrophic loss to its flimsy tournament profile by erasing a seven-point halftime deficit.
Hepburn scored all 12 of his points in the second half and Connor Essegian added 11, as UW shot 60 percent in the second half (15-for-25) by going heavy in the paint. The Badgers scored 28 of their 42 second-half points from the paint and 48 points for the game, the most they’ve scored in the lane since December 11 (52 vs. Iowa).
Free throw shooting has been a team-wide issue most of the season but the Badgers clinched things at the line following Hepburn’s three-pointer, going 5-for-6 from the line in the final 14 seconds. UW finished 14-for-17 from the line (82.6 percent), the third straight game the Badgers shot over 80 percent from the line.
Dawson Garcia scored 19 points for Minnesota (8-21, 2-17), whose league-worst offense shot 60 percent from the floor and averaged 1.29 points per possession in the first half to build a 36-29 halftime lead.
The Gophers maintained their seven-point lead with 10:57 remaining, but Minnesota scored only 14 points on its final 18 possessions to allow the Badgers to assert control.
What it means: Wisconsin’s profile wasn’t going to get a boost winning a Quad-3 road game but it certainly would have crushed its at-large profile considering the Gophers’ porous computer numbers. Therefore, the Badgers did what they needed to survive and advance.
Star of the game: Crowl only had two points on five shots in Thursday’s loss to Purdue but the junior had six attempts in the first 2:58. Scoring in double figures in each half, Crowl finished with a team-high nine field goal makes in addition to his seven rebounds, two assists, one steal, and one block.
Stat of the game: After going 2-for-10 from the perimeter in the first half, Wisconsin attacked the paint relentlessly in the second half, so much so that the Badgers didn’t attempt a perimeter shot until there was 2:10 remaining.
Reason to be Concerned: The Badgers received zero bench points on five combined attempts from Jordan Davis (0-3), Isaac Lindsey (0-1), Kamari McGee (0-1), and Carter Gilmore (0-0). Lindsey and Gilmore were also the only two reserves to log any minutes in the second half. If UW wants to go on a sustained tournament run, it needs help from its reserves.
Don’t overlook: With Wahl leaving the first game with an injury, Minnesota outrebounded Wisconsin, 40-24. With Wahl playing 38 minutes, the Badgers finished plus-6 on the glass and plus-4 in second-chance points.
What’s next: Locked into the No.12 seed before tipping off, Wisconsin will play in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament against No.13 Ohio State. The 12th seed marks its lowest since the conference expanded in 2014-15 and the first time the Badgers have had to play in the opening round since the tournament expanded to five rounds in 2015. UW won its lone meeting with the Buckeyes on February 2, 65-60 in Columbus.
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