Junior guard Kammron Taylor invested time over this past summer in improving his shot. Three games into the Badgers' young season, it is already paying dividends.
Taylor scored 27 points on 8-of-15 shooting, including a clutch 3-pointer with under a minute remaining, to lead Wisconsin (3-0) to an 84-81 victory over Old Dominion in the championship game of the Paradise Jam Tournament in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.
'We did well enough to get it taken care of against an experienced team,' head coach Bo Ryan said. 'We played two NCAA tournament teams [in this tournament] ... and hopefully the guys will learn something from this and gain some experience.'
Junior forward Alando Tucker worked in tandem with Taylor to lead a UW offense that is averaging 86 points per game so far. The forward, named the Co-Big Ten Player of the Week Monday, added 20 points, getting to the free throw line often. Tucker was also honored as the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
Freshman forward Marcus Landry and sophomore Brian Butch scored 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The outcome was still undecided as the final minute ticked away. Wisconsin's lead was cut to 83-81 with seconds remaining after the Monarch's Drew Williamson connected on a 3-pointer.
After Taylor missed one of two free throws, Old Dominion was unsuccessful in a bid to send the game to overtime.
Both the Badgers and Monarchs shot an identical 46.6 percent clip from the field, but Wisconsin had a decisive edge on the glass, out-rebounding Old Dominion 40-29.
Just as the Badgers got their offense largely from the duo of Tucker and Taylor, their opponent relied on their own two scorers to keep pace. Arnaud Dahi gave Wisconsin fits, finishing with 25 points at forward. Alex Loughton chipped in 22 in the losing effort.
Wisconsin now returns from the sunny environment of the Caribbean to the Kohl Center for a Saturday matchup against Coastal Carolina.
