Wisconsin used a 7-0 run in the final three minutes of its game against Michigan to break open a tie game and beat the Wolverines 58-52 in Ann Arbor last night. Wisconsin improved to 7-16 on the season and 5-7 in the Big Ten, including an even 3-3 record in conference road games. Michigan fell to 11-11 and 2-9 in the league.
The Badgers held Michigan in check defensively, limiting the Wolverines to 30 percent shooting from the floor. On the other end of the court, the Badgers made a sizzling 61-percent of their field-goal attempts in the second half and outscored Michigan by 11 in the final half to bring home the win.
“The first thing you have to do when you play Michigan is to give the high-low look, and our posts did a good job of that,” Wisconsin head coach Jane Albright said. “The second thing you have to do is to send guard penetration. When you do these things, and you don’t let them get layups, good things happen.”
The first half was a back-and-forth affair that featured four tie scores before Michigan took a 25-20 lead into the locker room. Michigan capitalized on 12 Badger turnovers in the opening stanza and out-rebounded UW by five (20-15) in the first half to gain the edge at intermission.
Wisconsin started the second half a perfect 5-5 from the floor and outscored the Wolverines 12-4 over the first four minutes of the period to claim its first lead at 32-29 with 16:23 to play. UW’s Kristi Seeger led the surge with six of her game-high 15 points.
Michigan rallied to tie the game three more times, the last at 46-46 with just less than five minutes on the clock. The Badgers responded to the challenge with a decisive 7-0 run to push the lead to 53-46 and put the game out of reach. UW preserved its victory by making 3-5 from the free-throw line down the stretch.
Coach Albright was pleased with her players’ second-half effort and complimented them after the game by saying, “We only turned the ball over seven times in the second half, which is really good for us. We looked like a Bo Ryan team in the second half (because the UW men’s basketball team is averaging only 11 turnovers a game).”
Seeger made six of her eight field-goal attempts en route to game-high scoring honors. She added eight rebounds, four assists, and no turnovers in 31 minutes of action.
“Seeger had one of the best games that she has played,” Albright said. “She looked like a senior who is going down the stretch and who really wants to prove that this team still has a lot left in them.”
Stephanie Rich joined Seeger as the only other UW player in double figures with 10 points to go along with six rebounds. Jordan Wilson, who saw significant action off the bench due to Badger foul trouble, chipped in with seven points, three rebounds, and two steals.
Raina Goodlow, the only Wolverine in double figures, came off of the bench to score 10 points. Forward Jennifer Smith grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds to go along with six points, and Mie Burlin contributed nine points.
Wisconsin returns home to the Kohl Center to take on Indiana University this coming Sunday, Feb. 16 at 2 p.m.
— compiled from staff reports
