MINNEAPOLIS—The Badgers' Valentine's Day date with Minnesota did not go as smoothly as planned, but the UW men's basketball team ultimately pulled out a 75-62 win Wednesday at Williams Arena.
Senior forward Alando Tucker scored 29 points, converting 10-of-20 field goals as Wisconsin overcame a sluggish first half in which it shot only 28 percent from the field.
""We kind of let the crowd get to us in the first half and we calmed down and the team leadership really showed up in the second half,"" senior guard Kammron Taylor said after the game.
Despite the slow start, the No. 3 Badgers still led 28-24 at halftime, but Minnesota refused to budge in the opening minutes of the second half. Junior center Spencer Tollackson scored Minnesota's first nine points of the second half including a 3-point play to give the Gophers a 31-30 lead with 16:55 remaining in the game.
Wisconsin calmed down, however, and shot 55 percent from the field to outscore the Gophers 47-38 in the second half.
""We got better shots, moved the ball better and took care of it better,"" head coach Bo Ryan said about his team's performance in the final 20 minutes. ""We didn't have a lot of turnovers in the first half, but we were taking the first easy look. We got much better looks in the second half and that's why you shoot a higher percentage and get to the free throw line.""
While Minnesota's 39 percent shooting in the second half also contributed to Wisconsin pulling away, the Gophers were still in the game after a Dan Coleman 3-pointer brought Minnesota within four points of the Badgers with only 5:18 remaining.
UW junior guard Michael Flowers countered with his own 3-pointer seconds later to increase the lead to 60-53 and the Gophers never got any closer.
The Badgers also benefited from Tollackson fouling out with 8:08 remaining. Once Tollackson fouled out, Minnesota lost its inside presence. Junior Lawrence McKenzie did his best to keep the pressure on UW, scoring 15 points in the second half, but he was held scoreless for five minutes late in the game and Wisconsin's lead grew from four to 10 points in that stretch.
Ultimately it was Tucker who was too much for the Gophers to handle.
""That's probably why he's player of the year,"" Gopher head coach Jim Molinari said. ""I look, and I think they're contested shots. I just think he jumps up and hits them ... I think our defense was fine; his talent won over.""
Tucker was not shy about shooting from beyond the arc, hitting 3-of-6 3-pointers.
""They were kind of playing off of me, giving me some daylight,"" Tucker said. ""Most teams don't do that ... whenever I see it, I'm ready to put it up and that's one of the things I did tonight.""
The Badgers are now 7-1 on the road this season and remain in a first-place tie with Ohio State atop the Big Ten. The Buckeyes beat Penn State 64-62 Wednesday. The Nittany Lions visit the Kohl Center Saturday.
