UW avoids an upset at home
The Badgers hang on to beat the Illini, 64-58, as Iverson has big game.
MADISON – Greg Gard’s players battled uphill all night Monday at the Kohl Center.
Imagine one man trying to lug a piano up 20 flights of stairs that have been coated in grease and you understand the type of night Wisconsin endured.
Yet led by Brad Davison with 18 points and Khalil Iverson with 16, UW overcame a brutal shooting performance in the first half by making critical plays with senior Ethan Happ sitting out the final 4 minutes 6 seconds because of turnover issues and held off an improved Illinois team, 64-58.
“The nice thing about having a team is you rely on different members on different nights,” UW coach Greg Gard said. “And obviously tonight Khalil Iverson and Brad and other guys stepped up and supported Ethan when he was struggling a little bit.
“That’s why they call it a team and we have a good supporting cast.”
The Badgers (18-8, 10-5 Big Ten)
snapped a two-game losing streak, moved back into a tie with idle Maryland (19-7, 10-5) for fourth place and moved one-half game ahead of fifthplace Iowa (20-5, 9-5).
Two key games are set for Tuesday. Iowa hosts Maryland and third-place Purdue (18-7, 11-3) plays at Indiana (1312, 4-10).
Illinois (10-16, 6-9) saw its winning streak end at four games. The Illini had been 5-1 since suffering a 72-60 loss to UW on Jan. 23.
UW extended its winning streak against the Illini to 15 games. Illinois last defeated UW on Jan. 2, 2011. Milwaukee native Weber Bruce Weber was in his eighth of nine seasons as Illinois’ head coach.
The Badgers turned the ball over 17 times in the teams’ first meeting, tying their high mark for the season.
They were able to win comfortably, 72-60, because Happ was the lone starter who failed to score in double figures, they shot 50 percent from threepoint range (7 of 14) and 51.1 percent overall (24 of 47) and scored 17 points off 10 Illinois turnovers.
On Monday, Davison scored 12 of his points after halftime when UW shot 48.1 percent after shooting just 32.1 percent in the first 20 minutes. Davison hit 6 of 8 free-throw attempts – UW hit 9 of 12 in the final 6 minutes 10 seconds – and added seven rebounds, three assists and two steals.
“Just staying aggressive,” Davison said. “When the game is on the line you’ve got to step up and make big-time plays.”
Iverson, who had 12 points and seven rebounds in UW’s 12-point victory last month in Champaign, finished with 16 points, nine rebounds, two steals and a block this time.
He played solid defense against freshman guard Ayo Dosunmu, had a huge block late and then stole an inbound pass with 14.3 seconds left after
Wisconsin’s Khalil Iverson dunks for two of his 16 points Monday night. He also played a key role on defense late in the game.
an Illinois timeout and UW clinging to a 62-58 lead. Iverson was fouled and made 1 of 2 free throws to push the lead to 63-58.
“We were talking in the timeout and the coaches showed us a play they might be running,” Iverson said. “I think that was the exact play they were going to run.
“I was trying to anticipate where he was going to throw the ball. I think I’m pretty quick and put my hand out.”
Nate Reuvers, who recorded a double-double in the first meeting (22 points, 10 rebounds) had just nine points and five rebounds Monday. However, his put-back with 22.9 seconds left gave UW a 62-58 lead.
“They weren’t boxing me out,” Reuvers said. “I was just kind of creeping in there and it came right to me and I put it in.”
Happ, limited to nine points and 25 minutes because of foul trouble in the first meeting, had six points, three rebounds and three turnovers in 28 min- utes Monday. All the turnovers came in the second half.
Gard pulled Happ four seconds after his final turnover resulted in a threepoint play by Dosunmu for a 52-52 tie.
“I just wanted better decisions made,” Gard said.
Brevin Pritzl gave UW a huge boost off the bench with six points and 10 rebounds in 31 minutes.
D’Mitrik Trice finished with seven points. He hit just 2 of 9 shots but his jumper with 1:37 left gave UW a 58-54 lead.
Senior guard Aaron Jordan entered the night averaging 8.2 points per game and scored eight in the first half to help the Illini build a 26-25 lead. He finished with 12 points.
Dosumnu led the Illini with 13 points but made just 1 of 7 three-pointers and 4 of 15 shots overall. Freshman forward Giorgi Bezhanishvili contributed 10 points and four rebounds Monday.
“Their other guys did an unbelievable job of picking him (Happ) up and making his night livable because they won,” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. “Six points, we feel good about that. But it was a team effort and those guys did a great job.”