With half the Big Ten schedule behind them, if there was ever a time to hit the proverbial wall, it was now. Hampered by poor free-throw shooting and an aggressive Northwestern defense, Wisconsin was lucky to only be down three at the half. It was a second half run by the Wildcats, coupled with the low percentage from the charity stripe, that put the Badgers away in the end, losing 69-60 in Evanston last night.
“We were trying to make it hard for them to guard us,” said coach Bo Ryan. “I liked our comeback. It was a lot like our comeback against Michigan State. Those two missed one-and-ones killed us, because then we had to foul.”
Equal play on offense and defense kept the game relatively close, with both teams shooting in the 40 percent range from the field and an identical 33.3 percent from the three-point line. Once again it was the free throws that made the difference. A six-of-fourteen showing of the Badgers could not match 22-of-27 performance of the Wildcats at home.
The 18-of-21 foul shots made in the second half by the Wildcats afforded them the ability to breathe more easily as Ryan’s squad let the game slip out of their hands in the last 13 minutes.
While Northwestern managed to make free throws the most important factor in the win, it has not always been positive for the team this season. The Wildcats have taken more free throws than their opponents in 13 of 18 contests this season, averaging 3.4 more free-throw attempts per game. However, that disparity has been overshadowed by their 60.2 percent conversion rate, which has been worst in the Big Ten.
“We made our foul shots tonight — 22 of 27 may be a little inflated because they had to foul a lot at the end,” said NU head coach Bill Carmody. “We hit ours, and they didn’t always hit theirs.”
The Badgers free-throw problems were epitomized by two straight possessions where Mike Wilkinson and Travon Davis missed the front ends of one-and-ones that would have made the contest a one-possession game.
After a Charlie Wills foul with 10:59 left in the game, a lay up and free throw by Northwestern’s junior forward Winston Blake put the Wildcats ahead 44-37, helping them to hold a solid lead for the rest of the game.
Sophomore guard Freddie Owens, however, did lead the thwarted Badger comeback in the second half, charging ahead with a team-leading 16 points, nine of which came from beyond the arch. Owens finished the game seven of eight from the field, with three from beyond the arch.
“I think he found himself open,” said Ryan. “Freddie moves well without the ball. He has a quick release. We kicked it to him a couple of times, we made a few good reads on the exchanges.”
This was the second time this season Owens has caught fire in a Badger loss, as he poured in 23 against Temple on December 3. When asked to comment on Owens’ play down the stretch, Ryan said it was the Milwaukee native’s smart and unselfish play that truly helped the team.
“The reason he shot such a high percentage was because those were his shots,” said Ryan. “Later they helped out on him, so he gave it up and others had to hit some shots.”
