IOWA CITY, Iowa - Within the span of five minutes, the Wisconsin Badgers were treated to a burst of joy and the anguish of defeat.
Wisconsin freshman guard Jordan Taylor drained a 3-pointer, his first as a collegiate player, from far beyond the arc to tie Iowa as the second half buzzer sounded. Wisconsin, however, could not maintain its momentum, falling 73-69 to the Hawkeyes and extending their current losing streak to three games.
We had the lead early, I mean we were up six or seven early in the second half,"" Wisconsin junior guard Jason Bohannon said. ""We just didn't push it back over that hump to 10 points plus. As a team we need to learn how to fix that.""
In the extra period, Wisconsin only managed to shoot 33 percent from the field, while the Hawkeyes hit all their shots and five-of-six free throws. Overall Iowa took 35 free throws to the Badgers' 10, a factor Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan drew attention to after the game.
Iowa also managed to generate a number of open outside shots, and as the night progressed, became more and more proficient at hitting them.
The first half was close throughout, with five ties and four lead changes. The Badgers managed a higher shooting percentage than Iowa, but missed all seven 3-pointers they took and only reached the free-throw line three times.
After the break, however, a series of runs defined the contest. First, Wisconsin strung together nine straight points but the Hawkeyes crawled back into the game.
Iowa was then ignited by an unusual series of events. Taylor stole the ball and was going in for a lay-up but Iowa freshman guard Aaron Fuller came flying in to pin the shot on the backboard. Taylor was knocked down on the play, and Ryan was given a technical foul for his response to the play.
""I didn't jump up, I didn't get out of the box,"" Ryan said. ""I just signaled to my coaches and pointed back, saying, 'could you believe that he wasn't fouled,' and I'll go to bat for a player in that situation any time.""
That sparked a 9-3 run that gave Iowa a 56-51 lead with just 46 seconds to go in the game.
The Badgers were not done, however, pulling to 57-60, aided by a missed free throw from freshman Iowa guard Matt Gatens, who entered the game shooting 97 percent from the charity stripe.
Then came Taylor's game tying shot.
""I figured they would be hounding [Bohannon] just because of what he can do,"" Taylor said. ""I got open, I saw them switch and I thought I could make a play.""
Taylor entered the game with five minutes just after starting point guard Trévon Hughes committed his third turnover of the game, and remained on the floor until the final buzzer sounded. During those last ten minutes, Taylor ran the offense and registered at least one number his coach was more than satisfied with.
""No turnovers, the last ten minutes he was on the floor we did not turn the ball over,"" Ryan said of his guard's play.
The three-game losing streak is Wisconsin's first since 2006 when it closed the season with four consecutive losses. The game did feature senior forward Kevin Gullikson's first career start for the Badgers.
""Kevin earned the opportunity and did a good job with it,"" Ryan said. ""I was pleased with his reads '¦ what Kevin brings is the knowledge of movement, decision making and post feed and things like that.
