In what was likely its biggest nonconference game this season, the No. 25 Wisconsin men's basketball team (4-1) fell to No. 2 Connecticut (5-0) in the championship round of the Paradise Jam tournament in the U.S. Virgin Islands Monday night. The 76-57 loss was the first of the season for the Badgers, who had to labor through five games in nine days to start their regular season.
This was a very good win for us because we proved we could press. It's just amazing what our press did against a team as good as Wisconsin,"" Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said. ""We squeezed them with our pressure and our defense.""
Despite an early lead by Connecticut, Wisconsin kept the game close thanks in part to early offensive contributions from sophomore forward Keaton Nankivil and senior forward Marcus Landry. The pair shot only 9-of- 19 for the entire game, but their 20 accounted for better than a third of the team's points on the night. Thanks to the pair of forwards, the Badgers had the game within their grasp, down just 45-42 with just over 13 minutes remaining in the game.
But from that point onward, the Huskies essentially took over the game, going on a 9-2 run to counter the Badger comeback. Freshman guard Rob Wilson finally got his first points of the game on two pairs of free throws with just under eight minutes left, but Wisconsin could not generate any offense to close the gap. Down 61-51 with under seven minutes remaining, the Badgers committed their 20th turnover of the game and Connecticut retaliated immediately with a baseline layup from freshman guard KembaWalker. Wisconsin only scored six more points the remainder of the game, while the Huskies took advantage of numerous trips to the free throw line. Connecticut finished 21-of-30 on free throws and outscored Wisconsin 15-6 to take the game.
Nankivil was the only Wisconsin player to reach a double digit point total on the night with 11 points, while Connecticut had three players over ten points, including a 21-point performance from junior guard Jerome Dyson. But the biggest factor that did the Badgers in was the 31 points Connecticut scored off of Wisconsin's 20 turnovers.
""Just guys not moving to the ball, making hard cuts. [Connecticut is] a very difficult team to come from behind against,"" UW head coach Bo Ryan said. ""Three or four turnovers can quickly change a game. We're not immune.""
Wisconsin will return home this week to prepare for in-state rival UW-Milwaukee (3-2), who are fresh off of a loss from cross-town Marquette Saturday. The Badgers will particularly have to lock down the Panthers' senior guard Avery Smith, who is averaging 17.3 points per game despite only seeing time in three games this year. However, UWM will have their hands full, as the Badgers have had four different players lead the team in points in five games so far this season. In particular, UW junior guard Trevon Hughes was crucial in the team's success over the weekend, amassing 52 points at the Paradise Jam tournament. Tipoff for the game against UWM is slated for 11:00 a.m. Saturday morning at the Kohl Center.
- espn.com contributed to this report.
