The Badgers tied a school record for fewest turnovers in a game on their way to a 61-43 win over Illinois Sunday at the Kohl Center.
Wisconsin (14-5 overall, 4-4 Big Ten) did not lose the ball in the second half and equaled a mark set last season against Penn State. The team never trailed and completed a season sweep of the Illini with the win.
It makes it sound like the game's pretty simple,"" Wisconsin head coach Lisa Stone said. ""Play defense and rebound, take care of the ball and work for good shots. Those are four things that we talk about all the time.
""I like the fact that if we can stay consistent, you're going to be in a position to win every game if you play defense like we're playing and take care of the ball.""
The Badgers snuffed out any Illinois run with yet another solid defensive effort in the matchup of the conference's worst offensive team against the conference's best scoring defense.
Illinois (4-15, 0-8), which was picked to finish sixth in the Big Ten preseason poll, has lost nine straight since its two-point victory at UW-Milwaukee Dec. 10.
Sophomore guard Alyssa Karel, after struggling with her shot the past three games, got back on track to lead the Badgers with 15 points and three steals.
""It felt a little bit better this game, a little bit more comfortable,"" Karel said. ""Coaches kept telling me when you get into a slump, just keep shooting and just keep letting them go.""
Junior guard Teah Gant added 11 points and six rebounds, with junior forward Mariah Dunham pitching in 10 points and six boards.
""Teah's game today was just unbelievable,"" Stone said. ""She ran the point, played pretty much every position on the perimeter and did an outstanding job defensively.""
Junior center Jenna Smith led the Illini with 15 points and 12 rebounds, her fifth double-double of the season.
""You're not going to stop someone like [Smith],"" UW forward Lin Zastrow, who guarded Smith for much of the game, said. ""She is a great post player, great for her size, quick '¦ a great rebounder, so that's the key - you have to just slow her down.""
Junior forward Lacey Simpson added 11 points and 12 rebounds for Illinois.
Karel found her shooting touch right off the tip, scoring a pair of 3-pointers and a jumper for Wisconsin's first eight points. Gant added a basket to push the lead to 10-0 and Wisconsin never looked back.
""It was great to see Alyssa Karel come out and be able to play more than 40 seconds before she had fouls and jump out right away,"" Stone said. ""[She] got her rhythm going.""
The Badgers led by 17 with 16:10 remaining after a lay-up by Zastrow, but the Illini closed to within 10 at the 11-minute mark.
Sophomore forward Tara Steinbauer came off the bench and added eight points on a perfect 3-for-3 from the floor, including a sky-ball prayer as she hit the floor midway through the second half.
The crowd of 5,944 erupted with 36 seconds on the game clock as sophomore Alana Trotter sunk a deep three to score the first points of her Badger career.
Wisconsin will next travel to take on Penn State Thursday at 6 p.m. The game will be webcast on BigTenNetwork.com.
