Bo Ryan said Freddie Owens’ exclamation-point finish to the 2003-04 home season “looked like Vander Kelen to Richter to me.” An emphatic two-handed dunk from Owens after a cross-court pass finished off an impressive 82-46 romp over the Purdue Boilermakers, sending the Kohl Center crowd into a cheered frenzy.

Owens returned to the game with just 30 seconds remaining after receiving an inadvertent poke in the eye. The senior jetted down the sideline in an attempt to draw a defender down court in the Badgers’ press break, but he found himself wide open with only clear court in front of him. After a long pass from freshman guard Kammron Taylor, Owens’ final basket at Kohl was one he will not soon forget.

“I’ll always remember that,” Owens said. “My last shot is a dunk in my last home game. I don’t get that opportunity too many times and when I do, I have to take advantage of it.”

It was icing on the cake for the Badgers, who completed their first undefeated season at home since “Doc” Meanwell’s team accomplished the feat during the 1929-30 season. The Badgers also improved to 24-0 in Big Ten home games under Ryan and 43-2 at the Kohl Center under his watch.

“We are a very tough team at home, especially in conference play,” junior guard Devin Harris said. “We’re a different team (at home). It’s just a good feeling to know that other teams have a hard time playing here.”

“I tell you, that last 10 minutes out there is as loud as this place has been since I have been here,” Ryan said. “And that was in appreciation. Those guys can, when they hang up the uniform when we’re done, be so proud of the fact that they played on a team that went undefeated at home and the record on the road is yet to be determined, but that’s quite an accomplishment.”

Three seniors did hang up their home uniforms Sunday, and each left with something to remember their last game in Madison.

For Owens, it was undoubtedly his dunk, but the guard who has struggled mightily with both injury and his shooting touch this season played stellar defense against Purdue’s Kenneth Lowe, holding the Boilermakers’ leading scorer to just six points.

Fourth-year walk-on Ike Ukawuba, who has played sparingly this season, entered the game with just fewer than five minutes remaining and drained a long two-pointer on a high pass from the top of the key from Harris.

“There [Ukawuba] was, with his eyes all big,” Harris said. “I was hoping he was going to shoot it, because I’ve given the ball to him before and he never shoots it. It went in for him. It was a good feeling.”

Ukawuba was two-of-three from the floor with four points, tying a career high.

Senior center Dave Mader, who has re-emerged in the starting lineup, didn’t have a break-out game, scoring four points and recording five rebounds, but the Appleton native played 21 minutes, marking the third game in a row in which the senior has played more than 20. After five years in the system, and three different coaches, Mader has endured a rollercoaster of a career. He leaves the Kohl Center knowing that he has once again earned the confidence of his coach and looks to be a contributor down the stretch.

With a quick turnaround, the Badgers will jet off to Michigan State for a date with the Spartans Tuesday in a game that very well could determine how the Big Ten finishes.

As high as the emotion was for Senior Day, Ryan knows a tough road lies ahead. For Sunday, however, it was about leaving Madison in as good a position as possible.

“I would think for the Wisconsin basketball fans out there to be able to in the last week of the season still be talking about the conference championship, that’s not all bad,” Ryan said. “Our guys put themselves in a position by the way they played and they’ve played really well.”