The freezing-cold fans trudged into the Kohl Center Tuesday to see the Wisconsin Badgers host the red-hot Michigan State Spartans. Fans may have arrived with chills from the cold, but the Badgers' electric performance left them with chills of a different kind. The final score was UW 64, MSU 53, but more importantly, UW basketball had arrived.
The Badgers (7-3 Big Ten, 17-5 overall) took the court boasting an undefeated home record of 12-0 in the Big Ten under Head Coach Bo Ryan, but they would be tested by the well-coached, hard-nosed Spartans (5-5, 13-9).
The game started out in classic Big Ten fashion, physical and sloppy. Michigan State senior center Aloysius Anagonye picked up an offensive foul while fighting for position in the first 15 seconds.
In the first half, neither team could create much separation, as the largest lead was four during the first 15 minutes. Junior forward Mike Wilkinson, however, would be the difference. Wilkinson, who has struggled with his shot of late, hit consecutive three-pointers to ignite the Badgers. Late in the first, the MSU defense began to sag off and Wilkinson made them pay. Earlier in the game coach Ryan tried to give Wilkinson the confidence he needed.
\I told Mike they aren't going to make the basket any bigger or any smaller,"" Ryan said. ""He smiles at me then hits two in a row. I say a lot of things to my players, but I'm going to have to hang on to that one.""
After Wilkinson's barrage of threes, sophomore guard Devin Harris lifted the crowd with a sensational steal at half court followed by a monstrous two-handed slam.
Later, after hitting two free throws, Wilkinson capped a perfect ending to his first half with a tip-in at the buzzer to give the Badgers a 31-27 halftime lead.
Throughout the second half, MSU freshmen forward Erazem Lorbek constantly hit big shots to keep the Spartans close. All of his 19 points came in the second half, allowing the Spartans to tie the game at 48 with 5:27 remaining.
However, the Spartans would never take the lead. After an MSU turnover late in the game, UW freshmen forward Alando Tucker hit a momentum-changing three to push the lead to seven. Not even an MSU time-out could suppress the fans' excitement.
Lorbek cut the lead to four with a minute to go, but the Badgers played solid defense and made their free throws to push the lead to nine.
Then, with six seconds left, Harris tossed a picture-perfect alley-oop to Tucker, who finished the game in dramatic fashion.
""I probably wouldn't do it again,"" Harris said. ""I thought there was more time on the clock than there was.""
Even so, the crowd went wild, just as they had done all night.
""They sounded like 17,000 [fans],"" Ryan said. ""Anytime you've got that kind of support--that heavy, boisterous noise in there--take advantage of it. People got there money's worth ... they certainly sounded like every seat was filled.\
