Quick Hits: Wisconsin Pulls Away Wait to Avoid Upset-Minded Colgate
MILWAUKEE – The University of Wisconsin has been playing nailbiters for the past five months, so why should the Badgers – fighting to prolong their season – stray too far from the norm?
Pushed to the limit by the Patriot League champions in search of the program’s first tournament win, third-seeded Wisconsin flipped the game during a seven-minute stretch in the second half to outlast 14-seed Colgate, 67-60, in the NCAA Tournament first round at Fiserv Forum.
Behind a superb effort from junior Tyler Wahl and sophomore Johnny Davis catching fire late, the Badgers (25-7) joined five other Big Ten teams in the Round of 32 and will face No.11 Iowa State Sunday for the right to advance to the Sweet 16.
Wahl had his hand in everything for Wisconsin, much to the delight of the partisan crowd packing the arena. The junior finished with 15 points on a career-high 18 shots, nine rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
Davis finished with a game-high 25 points, 14 coming in the final six minutes and none bigger than the five points with the game in the balance. Securing an offensive rebound off a tip from Wahl and finishing a lane jumper through contact, his three-point play gave UW a 56-52 lead.
Three possessions later, after Steven Crowl locked up a defensive rebound, he delivered a strike to a wide-open Davis waiting at Colgate’s 3-point line. His two-handed flush ignited the crowd on what was a 10-0 run for its largest lead of the game.
The turnaround came after Colgate (23-12) hit six three-pointers in the opening minutes of the half but then was bogged down by the Badgers’ defense, going 0-for-7 from the field over seven-plus minutes.
In what has become a common theme, Wisconsin didn’t make it easy on itself. Only seeing one of its first eight shots drop over the opening 10 possessions, the Badgers dug a 9-2 hole and played catch up for most of the first half. The Badgers were fortunate that the Raiders – outside of guard Nelly Cummings – weren’t dialed in. The Raiders were 4-for-12 from 3-point range and Cummings had 14 of their first 28 points. Cummings finished with a team-high 20.
The second half was a battle of strengths: UW scoring 17 points as a byproduct of attacking the paint and Colgate hitting six perimeter shots in the first 7:22. By the under-12 media timeout, both teams went from shooting sub-40 percent in the first half to shooting better than 61 percent.
Davis stayed in rhythm after his dunk, answering a pair of Colgate scoring possessions with four points of his own and delivered the dagger 3-pointer with 1:26 remaining to put the Badgers up, 65-56, with 1:26 remaining.
What it means: Wisconsin improves to 18-6 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament and 4-1 under head coach Greg Gard. More importantly, the Badgers broke a two-game losing streak and avoided what would have been a tough loss to stomach in front of a crowd packed with Badgers fans.
Star of the game: On a night where Davis didn’t catch fire offensively until the final six minutes, Wahl delivered all the hustle plays. He attempted a career-high 18 shots and scored 15 points but finished with a team-high nine rebounds, three on the offensive glass.
Stat of the game: Colgate was 8-for-11 from the floor at the 10:40 mark and took a 52-48 lead. The Raiders only made two field goals on their final 11 attempts.
Don’t overlook: Wisconsin’s start was porous for a third straight outing, going 1-for-8 from the floor and digging a 9-2 hole. Starting with a second-chance layup from Ben Carlson, the Badgers started attacking more in the low post and were rewarded with eight points around the rim on four straight possessions to get momentum back on their side. Carlson had four points and three offensive rebounds in close to nine first-half minutes, a good sign for him moving forward.
What’s next: Wisconsin will face Iowa State in the Round of 32 after the 11th-seeded Cyclones knocked off No.6-seed LSU, 59-54. The star of the show was Iowa State freshman guard Tyrese Hunter, a Racine native who scored a career-high 23 points that included seven 3-pointers. Despite being in neighboring states, UW hasn’t played Iowa State in the regular season since 1981, with the Cyclones leading the all-time series 5-3.
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