The Wisconsin women’s basketball team has had quite the rollercoaster start to their season losing their first three conference games by an average of 20 points. Going into the game against Purdue 12-3 (2-2) all sights were set on another big loss but the Badgers proved everyone wrong. The Badgers fell to the Boilermakers 73-61 in Mackey Arena.
Even though the Badgers fell to Purdue on the road they played their best conference game of this season by far only falling by 12 points. There was a lot of good to take away from this game specifically on the defensive end of the ball. The Badgers forced 16 turnovers which led to ten points off turnovers. On the offensive side of the ball the Badgers were led by first year Maty Wilke with 14 points and 7 rebounds. Senior Avery LaBarbera scored 16 points with 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals.
The Badgers really struggled with turning the ball over throughout the entire game. They turned the ball over 26 times and led Purdue build a big lead off the mistakes. The Badgers did fight back in the second half and actually cut the score down to 2 in the 4th quarter but Purdue’s experience really paid off and they were able to pull away to the 12 point win. The Boilermakers were led by Senior Lasha Petree with 18 points and some key threes in the second half to really help Purdue pull away.
With the loss the Badgers fall to 4-11 on the season and 0-4 in conference play. They will return home on January 8th to take on arch rival Minnesota.
REACTION FROM BADGER NATION
Final in West Lafayette
Lots to learn from. pic.twitter.com/IAkO5FTOPI
— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerWBB) January 1, 2023
