Getting back on track
Hayes, Happ score 41 points
WISCONSIN 71, MARYLAND 60
MADISON – Whether they discovered a sense of urgency, understood they needed more grit or just decided a three-game losing streak was unthinkable, Greg Gard’s players came together and produced perhaps their most critical 20 minutes of basketball Sunday at the Kohl Center.
Down by six points at halftime to No. 24 Maryland, largely because of another awful shooting performance, No. 10 Wisconsin dominated the second half on both ends en route to a 71-60 victory in front of an enthusiastic crowd of 17,287.
Led by Nigel Hayes and Ethan Happ, UW pounded the ball inside and worked the ball effectively out of double-teams. Led by guard Zak Showalter, UW defended with tenacity despite foul trouble and in the end had Maryland coach Mark Turgeon waving a white flag by sitting guard Melo Trimble (27 points) for the final 4 minutes, 23 seconds with UW leading by 12.
“We played more mature in the second half,” Gard said. “Maybe we grew up in the 15 minutes we sat in the locker room.
“In the first half we were getting the ball to the right spots, but the production
wasn’t what it needed to be.”
UW entered the day having shot less than 40% overall in five of its last six games. The Badgers shot 28% in the opening half (7 of 25) and had more turnovers (seven) than assists (four).
UW in the second half shot 51.5% (17 of 33) and had more assists (five) than turnovers (one).
According to Gard, UW hit 11 of 17 shots in the lane in the second half after going 3 of 11 in the opening half.
“I’m not a mathematician but I know that’s a lot better,” he said. “We finished around the rim. We didn’t fade away. We went strong through people. We drew fouls. When we do it, that makes us really good.”
The Badgers (22-5, 11-3 Big Ten) thus moved into a tie for first place with Purdue (22-5, 11-3), though the Boilermakers hold the tiebreaker over UW because of their victory last month in West Lafayette, Ind.
Maryland (22-5, 10-4) suffered its third loss in the last five games but just its second road loss in nine games this season. The Terrapins came in averaging 74.8 points in Big Ten games, and Sunday marked just the sixth time they have been held to 60 or fewer points in 50 Big Ten games. UW has been responsible for three of those performances.
Hayes and Happ proved to be too much for the Terrapins’ big men and combined for 41 points, 25 of UW’s 37 free-throw attempts and 17 rebounds.
Hayes, who vowed to be more aggressive on offense, contributed 21 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and two steals. He scored 14 points in the second half.
Happ battled foul trouble but added 20 points, seven rebounds, five steals, three assists and two blocks. He scored eight points during UW’s 19-5 run in the first 7:43 of the second half.
“They were terrific,” Turgeon said. “We couldn’t guard them. We couldn’t double them.”
Senior guard Bronson Koenig, who missed the loss Thursday at Michigan because of a left-calf injury suffered Jan. 24, came off the bench and played 31 minutes.
He missed all three shots in the opening half but hit 4 of 8 shots after halftime and contributed nine points, two blocks and an assist.
Guards D’Mitrik Trice and Brevin Pritzl added seven points apiece. Pritzl had five in the opening half; Trice had five in the second.
Pritzl’s only basket in the second half was critical, however, as he tipped in a miss by Koenig to give UW a 62-52 lead with 5: 42 seconds left. Pritzl grabbed seven rebounds, five on the offensive end.
Zak Showalter, who was the primary defender on Trimble but picked up three fouls in the first half, added six points and three rebounds. Khalil Iverson, who was the No. 2 defender on Trimble, added seven rebounds.
“Coach Gard challenged us individually to do what we need to do and as a team to pull together and get the job done,” Hayes said. “I think we responded today.”