With a four-game winning streak and only one game left in the non-conference season to prep for when it really counts, the Wisconsin women's basketball team will be looking to carry their recent success into Big Ten play over winter break.
Tuesday's 81-58 victory over in-state rival UW-Green Bay was a step up from some inconsistencies earlier this season, and UW spread the points around to get five players in double figures. The 6-3 Badgers are near top form.
I am really proud of this team,"" said head coach Lisa Stone. ""Our defense was amazing to me, they shoot it well, they play well and they drive well.""
The Badgers will take on South Dakota State (6-3) at home Friday for a final tune-up before they go against Purdue (3-5), last year's Big Ten tournament champs who advanced to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament, Dec. 28 for their conference debut. UW will play seven Big Ten teams over break.
After Purdue, the Badgers will face Illinois (7-3) Dec. 30. The first game of the New Year will be at the Kohl Center Jan. 2 against the current Big Ten leader Michigan State (7-2). On Jan. 7, the Badgers will take on the Gophers (8-3) at home.
Wisconsin will then face Iowa (6-4) Jan. 13, and play their last home game during break against Michigan (6-3) Jan. 17. Finally, UW will travel to Columbus, Ohio, for their final game before classes start against last year's Big Ten regular season champs Ohio State (6-2) Jan. 20.
Freshman guard Tara Steinbauer may miss some games due to a lower leg injury, and her status is on a day-to-day basis. Sophomore Teah Gant showed she can fill the gap, after putting 10 points on the board Tuesday.
Senior guard Jolene Anderson will be chasing two team records over break. Anderson, with 1,904 total points scored as a Badger, is 91 points away from the UW's all-time scoring record. If her scoring pace from this season continues - 21.1 points per game - Anderson will have the record after the Jan. 7 against Minnesota.
Wisconsin's record for longest consecutive games scoring in double figures is also within reach for Anderson. She put another notch in her second longest, 38-game streak after racking up 20 points Tuesday. If Anderson scores at least 10 points in the next eight games, she will surpass LaTonya Sims, who scored in the double digits 45 straight times during the late 90s.
Although the defense is where it needs to be to compete in the Big Ten, the team will have to improve on their free throws to bring justice to the term ""charity stripe,"" after making only 8-of-21, or 38 percent Tuesday. Wisconsin is better than opponents in nearly every other category besides free throws.
""This was a game we really needed to play like this and hopefully we can forge forward from here,"" Stone said. ""[But] it is an issue when our fans give us a standing ovation for making one free throw.""
- uwbadgers.com contributed to this report.
