IOWA CITY, Iowa—The bigger the stage, the better the performance from Wisconsin senior forward Alando Tucker.
Tucker scored 27 points on 11-of-14 shooting, leading the No. 2 Badgers (7-0 Big Ten, 21-1 overall) to a 57-46 win in Iowa's Carver Hawkeye Arena where Iowa (3-4, 11-10) had a 12-game conference winning streak. The victory gives the Badgers the best start in their program's history, surpassing the 1915-'16 club, which sported a 20-1 record for the entire season. The win also extends the Badger winning streak to a nation-high and school-record 17 games.
After the game, Tucker received nothing but praise from his fellow teammates.
""He's the best player in the conference and the best in the country. He basically took this team on his back and carried us,"" senior guard Kammron Taylor said. ""This is just another example of what he can do in big games.""
Tucker was on fire from the opening tip. After scoring in the opening minute, the senior went on to hit his first seven shots.
""When he's scoring on three or four players on the other team, that's just a slap in the face, and he was able to do that tonight,"" junior guard Michael Flowers said of Tucker.
Junior center Brian Butch also came up big in the Badger victory. The seven-footer picked up his fourth double-double of the season with 13 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. Butch knocked down three 3-pointers in the game as well.
The junior was humble regarding his effort following the game.
""It doesn't matter how we rebound the basketball, as long as we rebound the basketball as a team,"" he said. ""As long as we have all five guys in there grabbing rebounds, I don't think anyone cares who gets them.""
The game itself began as a game of runs. After UW stormed out of the gates with a 9-2 lead, Iowa fired back with a 10-0 run of its own. However, the hot-shooting Tucker's two 3's and his alley-oop dunk from Flowers just two minutes later sent the Badgers rolling.
UW went on a dominant 16-1 run and a jumper by Iowa's senior guard Adam Huluska with 2:34 remaining in the first half ended a stretch in which the Hawkeyes went on a 10-minute field goal drought and missed eight straight shots. However a 3-pointer by senior guard Mike Henderson narrowed the Badger lead to four at the half.
After the Badgers were able to again stretch the lead to nine on a basket by sophomore forward Marcus Landry off a pass by Taylor, Hawkeye forward Cyrus Tate, who had 10 points on the night, responded with a score. But Butch sparked the Badgers again with two huge back-to-back 3-pointers.
With seven minutes remaining, Iowa cut the lead to four, but that was as close as the Hawkeyes would get.
The Badgers shot 37 percent from behind the arc, but hit 5-of-11 in the first half to set the pace.
""For the last couple games, we weren't knocking down threes and then to come in here and hit seven threes [was crucial],"" Flowers said. ""Brian Butch stepped up big in the second half and knocked down some threes in the second half, and that really gave a boost to our team.""
One of the main fears for the Badgers coming into Sunday's afternoon game at Iowa was the scoring prowess of Huluska, the conference's leading scorer, and freshman forward Tyler Smith, who is second on the team in scoring.
Wisconsin was able to lock the dynamic duo down, limiting them to an anemic combined 6-of-35 shooting.
""It did feel like we played real great defense as a team. We didn't allow Huluska or Smith to get loose,"" Taylor said. ""We knew coming in that in order for Iowa to be successful, they need those two guys to score.""
Landry also pitched in with eight points and seven rebounds off the bench.
""Marcus steps up in big games too,"" Tucker said. ""He's just like me. He's a ‘little Tucker.'""
Concerning No. 2 Wisconsin's start thus far, the Badger leader knows there's much to be accomplished.
""For me as a player to be a part of this, it's special,"" Tucker said. ""I have a gut feeling that we have so much more to accomplish. But it just feels good that we're setting records here at Wisconsin.""
