It would be hard to draft a more dramatic roller coaster end to conference play for the Wisconsin Badgers.
Dropping three of five to end the regular season, they came out firing in the Big Ten Tournament, offing Northwestern, UCLA and Michigan State to reach the final against Michigan.
3.5-point favorites, the Badgers couldn’t hold on to a late lead in an ugly, hard-fought game that saw the Wolverines claw their way to an improbable conference championship. Final score: Michigan 59, Wisconsin 53.
Wisconsin Badgers Falter, Michigan Wolverines Take Advantage To Seize Big Ten Crown
For the team’s best player as well, recent weeks have been an up-and-down ride. The day after setting a school tournament record with 32 points against the Spartans, two days after going 6-6 from deep versus the Wildcats, John Tonje had perhaps his worst shooting performance of the season.
Going 1-14 from the field and 0-5 on threes, Tonje scored all but two of his 9 points at the free throw line. A clunky start and scoreless first half did not give way to much improvement in the final twenty minutes.
Despite his shooting struggles, Wisconsin found themselves up seven, 43-36, with eight minutes to go in the game. Sophomore John Blackwell stepped up provide 18 points. Point guard Max Klesmit added 12 points and 3 assists. As a team, the Badgers dished out only 8 dimes total. 16 of their 53 points came at the charity stripe.
Shooting inefficiency proved the story of the game for both teams. Wisconsin shot just 22.1% from the field and made only 7 threes on 39 attempts (17.9%). Michigan wasn’t much better, shooting 32.2/27.3%. But the Wolverines did just enough to steal victory down the stretch.
Looking Ahead to the NCAA Tournament
While it is not a terribly important game in terms of seeding for the NCAA tournament, it is a painful loss nonetheless and a major source of bragging rights. Both teams put all they had on the court. The players and programs cared about this game.
After surrendering a 23-10 run in the final lap, when it seemed like all the momentum lay with Wisconsin, the team may need a few days to recover from the emotional and, more importantly, the physical exhaustion of playing four games in four days.
In the NCAA tournament, ESPN projects the Badgers as a 3-seed, with a first round date against UNC-Wilmington. If the selection committee agrees when they reveal the official bracket Sunday night, that will be Wisconsin’s next opponent when the round of 64 begins March 20-21.
By then, a deflating finish to the Big Ten tourney will be fading in the rearview mirror. If they can avoid going colder than a snowman’s nose in winter, the Badgers should have bigger things ahead.
For More Great Wisconsin Content
Follow me on X at @ezsniper14 and follow us @WiSportsHeroics for more great content. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest in Wisconsin sports, click here!
