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Wisconsin basketball defeated the Michigan State Spartans 77-74 in a Big Ten Tournament thriller on Saturday afternoon in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Fueled by a program single-game Big Ten Tournament record 32 points from star wing John Tonje, the Badgers advance to play the winner of Michigan-Maryland. It is the team's second straight appearance in the conference tournament final -- it fell to Illinois in the game last season.
Wisconsin made virtually every big play down the stretch of the wire-to-wire contest. The Badgers led by as many as seven points with under 13 minutes to spare in the second half, though the Spartans quickly clawed back to knot it at 60 apiece with 6:18 left.
From then on, the Badgers made clutch play after clutch play.
In one of the more consequential sequences of the game, forward Carter Gilmore denied Spartans' guard Trey Holloman on a three-point attempt at the top of the key. With Wisconsin up 77-74, Gilmore's block resulted in a foul on John Tonje, who had grabbed the loose ball. Tonje, however, missed both free throws.
Spartans guard Jeremy Fears Jr. grabbed the second of Tonje's two misses. He quickly dribbled past half court and attempted to launch a one-legged three-point attempt to tie the game at 77. Tonje heroically blocked the shot attempt, clinching the game, plus prompting chaos from the Spartans' sidelines as they searched for a foul call.
That foul call did not follow. Wisconsin grabbed the rebound and ran out the game's final seconds.
Tonje, a First-Team All-Big Ten Team selection, added seven rebounds and two assists to his 32 points and key block. He delivered those points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field and 4-of-10 from distance. Gilmore, who had played hero on several occasions this season, scored 10 crucial points off the bench and snared five boards. Sophomore John Blackwell also proved clutch with 14 tallies, three rebounds and two assists.
Tonje scored 18 of his 32 points in the second half in what was arguably his most important performance of the season. Nine of those tallies arrived during Wisconsin's crucial 11-0 scoring spurt. Whenever the Badgers needed points, Tonje delivered.
Wisconsin will return to the court on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET, 2:30 p.m. CT with a Big Ten Tournament title on the line.
Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: Wisconsin Basketball Michigan State game Recap
Continue reading...
Fueled by a program single-game Big Ten Tournament record 32 points from star wing John Tonje, the Badgers advance to play the winner of Michigan-Maryland. It is the team's second straight appearance in the conference tournament final -- it fell to Illinois in the game last season.
Wisconsin made virtually every big play down the stretch of the wire-to-wire contest. The Badgers led by as many as seven points with under 13 minutes to spare in the second half, though the Spartans quickly clawed back to knot it at 60 apiece with 6:18 left.
From then on, the Badgers made clutch play after clutch play.
In one of the more consequential sequences of the game, forward Carter Gilmore denied Spartans' guard Trey Holloman on a three-point attempt at the top of the key. With Wisconsin up 77-74, Gilmore's block resulted in a foul on John Tonje, who had grabbed the loose ball. Tonje, however, missed both free throws.
Spartans guard Jeremy Fears Jr. grabbed the second of Tonje's two misses. He quickly dribbled past half court and attempted to launch a one-legged three-point attempt to tie the game at 77. Tonje heroically blocked the shot attempt, clinching the game, plus prompting chaos from the Spartans' sidelines as they searched for a foul call.
That foul call did not follow. Wisconsin grabbed the rebound and ran out the game's final seconds.
Tonje, a First-Team All-Big Ten Team selection, added seven rebounds and two assists to his 32 points and key block. He delivered those points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field and 4-of-10 from distance. Gilmore, who had played hero on several occasions this season, scored 10 crucial points off the bench and snared five boards. Sophomore John Blackwell also proved clutch with 14 tallies, three rebounds and two assists.
Tonje scored 18 of his 32 points in the second half in what was arguably his most important performance of the season. Nine of those tallies arrived during Wisconsin's crucial 11-0 scoring spurt. Whenever the Badgers needed points, Tonje delivered.
Wisconsin will return to the court on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET, 2:30 p.m. CT with a Big Ten Tournament title on the line.
Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: Wisconsin Basketball Michigan State game Recap
Continue reading...
