Friday, March 19, 2010
Mizzou, Badgers, Aggies, Boilermakers Move Forward
NCAA Tourney Results: 1st round
East Region
10 Missouri 86
7 Clemson 78
In a literal battle of Tigers, Missouri broke open a close game with pressure defense and sharp floor skills. Keith english missed time due to foul issues, but returned to spark a second half run and join teammate Keith Ramsey with 20 points. Missouri advances to play West Virginia, with the winner advancing to the regional semi-final.
13 Wofford 49
4 Wisconsin 53
Bo Ryan's Badgers survived a serious scare from little Wofford, making its first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament. Jon Leuer came up big late, scoring the final four points for Wisconsin, on a short jumper and a pair of free throws. Leuer finished with 20 points and 8 boards. Teammate Treveon Hughes scored 19. The Badgers face Missouri next.
South Region
13 Siena 64
4 Purdue 72
Purdue roared out of the intermission and turned a 3-point half time deficit into a 15-point lead in short order, then held on as Sienna eventually cut the lead to 5 points late in the contest. The Boilermakers were paced by JaJuan Johnson, who led in both points and rebounds, with 23 and 15, respectively.
12 Utah St. 53
5 Texas A&M 69
Texas A&M won the battle of Aggies, knocking off Utah State handily. Freshman Khris Middleton led all scorers with 19 points in 25 minutes of action. A&M took control early and was never seriously threatened.
East Region
10 Missouri 867 Clemson 78
In a literal battle of Tigers, Missouri broke open a close game with pressure defense and sharp floor skills. Keith english missed time due to foul issues, but returned to spark a second half run and join teammate Keith Ramsey with 20 points. Missouri advances to play West Virginia, with the winner advancing to the regional semi-final.
13 Wofford 49
4 Wisconsin 53
Bo Ryan's Badgers survived a serious scare from little Wofford, making its first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament. Jon Leuer came up big late, scoring the final four points for Wisconsin, on a short jumper and a pair of free throws. Leuer finished with 20 points and 8 boards. Teammate Treveon Hughes scored 19. The Badgers face Missouri next.
South Region
13 Siena 64
4 Purdue 72
Purdue roared out of the intermission and turned a 3-point half time deficit into a 15-point lead in short order, then held on as Sienna eventually cut the lead to 5 points late in the contest. The Boilermakers were paced by JaJuan Johnson, who led in both points and rebounds, with 23 and 15, respectively.
12 Utah St. 53
5 Texas A&M 69
Texas A&M won the battle of Aggies, knocking off Utah State handily. Freshman Khris Middleton led all scorers with 19 points in 25 minutes of action. A&M took control early and was never seriously threatened.
Labels: Missouri Tigers, Purdue Boilermakers, Wisconsin Badgers
Saturday, January 02, 2010
Badgers Bury Buckeyes; Purdue Punished Mountaineers
College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, December 31, 2009
Don't think twice about the Wisconsin Badgers reaching the top of the Big Ten and doing some serious damage in March - this team can play with anybody, and, usually, beat them.
The Badgers opened Big Ten play hosting Ohio State on the last day of 2009, and left the Buckeyes feeling like they'd rather leave memories of that year behind them. Wisconsin, playing tenacious defense and turning take-aways into points, built and early lead and pulled away late for the lopsided 65-43 win. By holding Ohio State to their worst shooting performance of the season, 14-of-43 (33%), Wisconsin established themselves as one of the top defensive teams in the conference, maybe the country.
Trevon Hughes led the scoring with 16 points, hitting 5 of 10 shots overall, but making 3 of 5 from 3-point range. The Badgers shot 10-for-21 from beyond the arc. Hughes, a 6-foot senior guard, also snatched 7 rebounds, a category in which the Badgers beat the Buckeyes, 34-25.
Wisconsin improved to 11-2, their losses coming on the road at Gonzaga and an 88-84 overtime loss at Wisconsin-Green Bay. However, the Badgers can look to quality wins over Arizona, Duke, Marquette, and now, Ohio State, for positive reinforcement that they are one of the best in the nation.
Ranked #23 coming into the Ohio State game, the Badgers are likely to move up in the polls, though they face a tough stretch with four tough games just ahead: at Penn St. January 3, at Michigan St. Jan. 6, Purdue Jan. 9, at Northwestern Jan 13.
College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, January 1, 2010
...And then there were five.
The Purdue Boilermakers knocked West Virginia out of the ranks of the undefeated, opening the new year with a 77-62 thumping of the Mountaineers, leaving the 13-0 Boilermakers - along with Kansas, Texas, Kentucky and Syracuse - as the only unbeaten teams in Division 1.
Led by 6'10" center JaJuan Johnson's 25 points and 10 rebounds, the Boilermakers expanded a 5-point half time lead to as many as 26 in the second frame, turning a Top 10 showdown into a one-sided blowout. Johnson's season-high point tally came on 8-for-14 shooting, mostly on dunks and shots from inside the paint, and a 9-for-11 performance on the free throw line.
Purdue is tied with four other teams at 1-0 in the Big Ten after having beaten Iowa, 67-56, on Tuesday, to open conference play. They were ranked #4 coming in, with West Virginia #6. The Mountaineers will surely drop a few spots in the polls, but Purdue should stay put behind Kansas, Texas and Kentucky.
Don't think twice about the Wisconsin Badgers reaching the top of the Big Ten and doing some serious damage in March - this team can play with anybody, and, usually, beat them. The Badgers opened Big Ten play hosting Ohio State on the last day of 2009, and left the Buckeyes feeling like they'd rather leave memories of that year behind them. Wisconsin, playing tenacious defense and turning take-aways into points, built and early lead and pulled away late for the lopsided 65-43 win. By holding Ohio State to their worst shooting performance of the season, 14-of-43 (33%), Wisconsin established themselves as one of the top defensive teams in the conference, maybe the country.
Trevon Hughes led the scoring with 16 points, hitting 5 of 10 shots overall, but making 3 of 5 from 3-point range. The Badgers shot 10-for-21 from beyond the arc. Hughes, a 6-foot senior guard, also snatched 7 rebounds, a category in which the Badgers beat the Buckeyes, 34-25.
Wisconsin improved to 11-2, their losses coming on the road at Gonzaga and an 88-84 overtime loss at Wisconsin-Green Bay. However, the Badgers can look to quality wins over Arizona, Duke, Marquette, and now, Ohio State, for positive reinforcement that they are one of the best in the nation.
Ranked #23 coming into the Ohio State game, the Badgers are likely to move up in the polls, though they face a tough stretch with four tough games just ahead: at Penn St. January 3, at Michigan St. Jan. 6, Purdue Jan. 9, at Northwestern Jan 13.
College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, January 1, 2010
...And then there were five.The Purdue Boilermakers knocked West Virginia out of the ranks of the undefeated, opening the new year with a 77-62 thumping of the Mountaineers, leaving the 13-0 Boilermakers - along with Kansas, Texas, Kentucky and Syracuse - as the only unbeaten teams in Division 1.
Led by 6'10" center JaJuan Johnson's 25 points and 10 rebounds, the Boilermakers expanded a 5-point half time lead to as many as 26 in the second frame, turning a Top 10 showdown into a one-sided blowout. Johnson's season-high point tally came on 8-for-14 shooting, mostly on dunks and shots from inside the paint, and a 9-for-11 performance on the free throw line.
Purdue is tied with four other teams at 1-0 in the Big Ten after having beaten Iowa, 67-56, on Tuesday, to open conference play. They were ranked #4 coming in, with West Virginia #6. The Mountaineers will surely drop a few spots in the polls, but Purdue should stay put behind Kansas, Texas and Kentucky.
Labels: JaJuan Johnson, Purdue Boilermakers, Trevon Hughes, Wisconsin Badgers
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
Wisconsin, Illinois Lead Big Ten over ACC
College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, December 2, 2009
It took eleven years, the biggest comeback in Illinois basketball history and a nail-biting win by Wisconsin over Duke, but after ten years of frustration, the Big Ten finally beat the ACC in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, taking six of the eleven games, with three wins coming on the final night of competition.
In their 76-74 win at Clemson, the Fighting Illini lived up to their name, coming back from 22 points down in the second half for the biggest comeback in school history. Led by Mike Davis' 22 points (9-11, 4-4 free throws) and 9 rebounds and freshman Brandon Paul's 20, the Illini kept Big Ten hopes alive with an unlikely road win after dropping their last two games. Clemson, which took a 20-point lead into the half, appeared to be cruising to the win when the Illini went on a 22-2 tear, and finally caught the Tigers when Paul stole the ball and went in for a layup to tie the game at 61 with 5 minutes left.
The Tigers didn't fold, however, and actually had a lead late, but the Illini were undeterred as they improved to 5-2, haning the Tigers their second loss of the season (6-2). The win by the Illini kept the Big Ten close, but the ACC led, 5 games to 4 with just two left to be played in the challenge.
Wisconsin led from the opening bucket, sending the Duke Blue Devils to a loss for the first time in the eleven years of the Challenge, 73-69. The Badgers opened the game with a barrage of three-pointers to take an early lead, then let guard Trevon Hughes loose in the lane and on the perimeter. He scord a game-high and personal season-high 26 points in leading the Badgers to their 5th win in 6 tries this season. Hughes hit 9 of 16 shots from the floor, including 4 of 8 from three-point land. He added a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line to match Duke's Kyle Singler point for point.
Moments later, when Ohio State beat Florida State, 77-64, the Big Ten could finally exhale and celebrate the conference's first win over the ACC.
The three other wins for the Big ten were provided by Penn State, Purdue and Northwestern.
ACC winners were Miami, Boston College, North Carolina, Maryland and Virginia Tech.
It took eleven years, the biggest comeback in Illinois basketball history and a nail-biting win by Wisconsin over Duke, but after ten years of frustration, the Big Ten finally beat the ACC in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, taking six of the eleven games, with three wins coming on the final night of competition.
In their 76-74 win at Clemson, the Fighting Illini lived up to their name, coming back from 22 points down in the second half for the biggest comeback in school history. Led by Mike Davis' 22 points (9-11, 4-4 free throws) and 9 rebounds and freshman Brandon Paul's 20, the Illini kept Big Ten hopes alive with an unlikely road win after dropping their last two games. Clemson, which took a 20-point lead into the half, appeared to be cruising to the win when the Illini went on a 22-2 tear, and finally caught the Tigers when Paul stole the ball and went in for a layup to tie the game at 61 with 5 minutes left.The Tigers didn't fold, however, and actually had a lead late, but the Illini were undeterred as they improved to 5-2, haning the Tigers their second loss of the season (6-2). The win by the Illini kept the Big Ten close, but the ACC led, 5 games to 4 with just two left to be played in the challenge.
Wisconsin led from the opening bucket, sending the Duke Blue Devils to a loss for the first time in the eleven years of the Challenge, 73-69. The Badgers opened the game with a barrage of three-pointers to take an early lead, then let guard Trevon Hughes loose in the lane and on the perimeter. He scord a game-high and personal season-high 26 points in leading the Badgers to their 5th win in 6 tries this season. Hughes hit 9 of 16 shots from the floor, including 4 of 8 from three-point land. He added a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line to match Duke's Kyle Singler point for point.
Moments later, when Ohio State beat Florida State, 77-64, the Big Ten could finally exhale and celebrate the conference's first win over the ACC.
The three other wins for the Big ten were provided by Penn State, Purdue and Northwestern.
ACC winners were Miami, Boston College, North Carolina, Maryland and Virginia Tech.
Labels: Big Ten/ACC Challenge, Trevon Hughes, Wisconsin Badgers
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Top 25 will be reshuffled on Monday
Teams fall all around in Saturday action.
Saturday saw a blizzard of Top 25 activity, with most of the top teams holding their own and a fair share of upsets. The biggest losers were LSU, Kansas, Arizona, Texas and Nevada. First the upsets:
Texas Tech 69 Kansas 64 - Brandon Rush was held to just 10 points on 4-16 shooting as Bobby Knight's Red Raiders knocked off the #5 Jayhawks in Lubbock. Tech improved to 14-5 and hosts tough Texas A&M on Wednesday.
Arkansas 72 LSU 52 - The Razorbacks mauled #16 LSU in Little Rock, limiting the Tigers to just 35% from the field. Glen Davis had 16 points, Terry Martin scored 10 and the two were the only LSU players to reach double figures. Arkansas had five players in double figures, shot 50% as a team - including 8-20 from behind the arc - and recorded 9 steals.
New Mexico State 80 Nevada 73 - The Aggies played unkind host to #15 Nevada, scoring 47 2nd-half points in a wild West shootout. While the Aggies shot only 39% to Nevada's 50%, they hit 28-34 free throws and dominated the glass, hauling down 45 rebounds to the Wolf Pack's 32. Senior forward Justin Hawkins was everywhere for the Aggies, scoring 29 points on 12-19 shooting, and pulling down 11 rebounds (9 offensive).
Vanderbilt 72 Kentucky 67 - The Commodores continued their impressive run in the SEC, this time knocking off a ranked opponent on the road. Vandy has now beaten three ranked teams - Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky - in the last two weeks, but still must face LSU and Florida on the road the next two Wednesdays. #25 Kentucky lost for only the 4th time this season, but has yet to face a ranked opponent in the SEC. Look out below... here comes Tubby!
Villanova 76 Texas 69 - covered yesterday... see below.
And now for the winners...
Florida 79 Mississippi 70 - Joakim Noah has an efficient afternoon, hitting 9-10 from the field and leading all scorers with 24 points. The #1 Gators built a 45-26 lead at the half and despite playing a sloppy 2nd half, cruised at home for their 10th straight win.
Wisconsin 71 Illinois 64 - The #2 Badgers toughed out another road win behind their two bulls, Kammron Taylor and Alando Tucker, who scored 20 and 17, respectively. The Badgers have now won 15 in a row and face only unranked opponents for their next 9 games until February 25, when they visit Ohio State. Wisconsin is now 19-1 overall and 5-0 in the Big 10. Despite the knocks on the conference, Wisconsin hasn't ducked anyone. They have quality wins over Florida St., Ohio St., Georgia, Pittsburgh and Marquette.
UCLA 73 Arizona 69 - Arron Afflalo scored 22 points and the Bruins held the #11 Wildcats to 39% shooting, sending Arizona to their 3rd straight loss and 4th in five games. It was a tough week for Lute Olson's troops, with losses to Oregon, USC and the Bruins in a span of 7 days. While one could blame the scheduling gods for their downfall, losing all three of these games, plus a 77-73 loss at Washington St. on Jan. 6, cannot be discounted. The PAC-10 may be the toughest conference in the country and Arizona just can't cut it. If they Wildcats aren't bumped completely out of the top 25 as they should, look for a fall to at least 22 or 23.
Ohio State 82 Iowa 63 - Greg Oden finally is getting his groove on. The freshman phenom hit 12 of 13 shots, hit all five of his free throws, hauled down 10 boards and finished with a season-high 29 points. The #7 Buckeyes continue to chase Wisconsin in the Big 10.
Texas A&M 67 Oklahoma St. 49 - This one was no contest as JamesOn Curry scored 20 of the Cowboys' 49 points. Mario Boggan was the only other OKST player in double figures with 11. Acie Law had 16 to pace the balanced Aggies attack. The #8 Aggies improved to 16-2 (4-0 conference), while #11 Oklahoma St. dropped to 16-3 (2-2).
In the ACC, #4 North Carolina topped Georgia Tech, 77-61; #19 Clemson clobbered Boston College, 74-54; #14 Duke mauled NC State, 79-56; Virginia Tech
Elsewhere, #9 Oregon continued winning with a 92-84 home win over Cal; a pair of SEC squeakers saw Tennessee outlast South Carolina, 64-61 and #10 Alabama bested Georgia on a last-second shot by Ronald Steele, 78-76.
#13 Air Force topped San Diego St., 56-51; #17 Memphis invaded East Carolina for a 61-44 win; #18 Butler beat Wisconsin Green Bay, 80-59;
Sunday's Top 25 games include South Florida at #20 Notre Dame, #24 Marquette at #6 Pittsburgh, Maryland at #23 Virginia Tech.
Saturday saw a blizzard of Top 25 activity, with most of the top teams holding their own and a fair share of upsets. The biggest losers were LSU, Kansas, Arizona, Texas and Nevada. First the upsets:
Texas Tech 69 Kansas 64 - Brandon Rush was held to just 10 points on 4-16 shooting as Bobby Knight's Red Raiders knocked off the #5 Jayhawks in Lubbock. Tech improved to 14-5 and hosts tough Texas A&M on Wednesday.
Arkansas 72 LSU 52 - The Razorbacks mauled #16 LSU in Little Rock, limiting the Tigers to just 35% from the field. Glen Davis had 16 points, Terry Martin scored 10 and the two were the only LSU players to reach double figures. Arkansas had five players in double figures, shot 50% as a team - including 8-20 from behind the arc - and recorded 9 steals.
New Mexico State 80 Nevada 73 - The Aggies played unkind host to #15 Nevada, scoring 47 2nd-half points in a wild West shootout. While the Aggies shot only 39% to Nevada's 50%, they hit 28-34 free throws and dominated the glass, hauling down 45 rebounds to the Wolf Pack's 32. Senior forward Justin Hawkins was everywhere for the Aggies, scoring 29 points on 12-19 shooting, and pulling down 11 rebounds (9 offensive).
Vanderbilt 72 Kentucky 67 - The Commodores continued their impressive run in the SEC, this time knocking off a ranked opponent on the road. Vandy has now beaten three ranked teams - Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky - in the last two weeks, but still must face LSU and Florida on the road the next two Wednesdays. #25 Kentucky lost for only the 4th time this season, but has yet to face a ranked opponent in the SEC. Look out below... here comes Tubby!
Villanova 76 Texas 69 - covered yesterday... see below.
And now for the winners...
Florida 79 Mississippi 70 - Joakim Noah has an efficient afternoon, hitting 9-10 from the field and leading all scorers with 24 points. The #1 Gators built a 45-26 lead at the half and despite playing a sloppy 2nd half, cruised at home for their 10th straight win.
Wisconsin 71 Illinois 64 - The #2 Badgers toughed out another road win behind their two bulls, Kammron Taylor and Alando Tucker, who scored 20 and 17, respectively. The Badgers have now won 15 in a row and face only unranked opponents for their next 9 games until February 25, when they visit Ohio State. Wisconsin is now 19-1 overall and 5-0 in the Big 10. Despite the knocks on the conference, Wisconsin hasn't ducked anyone. They have quality wins over Florida St., Ohio St., Georgia, Pittsburgh and Marquette.
UCLA 73 Arizona 69 - Arron Afflalo scored 22 points and the Bruins held the #11 Wildcats to 39% shooting, sending Arizona to their 3rd straight loss and 4th in five games. It was a tough week for Lute Olson's troops, with losses to Oregon, USC and the Bruins in a span of 7 days. While one could blame the scheduling gods for their downfall, losing all three of these games, plus a 77-73 loss at Washington St. on Jan. 6, cannot be discounted. The PAC-10 may be the toughest conference in the country and Arizona just can't cut it. If they Wildcats aren't bumped completely out of the top 25 as they should, look for a fall to at least 22 or 23.
Ohio State 82 Iowa 63 - Greg Oden finally is getting his groove on. The freshman phenom hit 12 of 13 shots, hit all five of his free throws, hauled down 10 boards and finished with a season-high 29 points. The #7 Buckeyes continue to chase Wisconsin in the Big 10.
Texas A&M 67 Oklahoma St. 49 - This one was no contest as JamesOn Curry scored 20 of the Cowboys' 49 points. Mario Boggan was the only other OKST player in double figures with 11. Acie Law had 16 to pace the balanced Aggies attack. The #8 Aggies improved to 16-2 (4-0 conference), while #11 Oklahoma St. dropped to 16-3 (2-2).
In the ACC, #4 North Carolina topped Georgia Tech, 77-61; #19 Clemson clobbered Boston College, 74-54; #14 Duke mauled NC State, 79-56; Virginia Tech
Elsewhere, #9 Oregon continued winning with a 92-84 home win over Cal; a pair of SEC squeakers saw Tennessee outlast South Carolina, 64-61 and #10 Alabama bested Georgia on a last-second shot by Ronald Steele, 78-76.
#13 Air Force topped San Diego St., 56-51; #17 Memphis invaded East Carolina for a 61-44 win; #18 Butler beat Wisconsin Green Bay, 80-59;
Sunday's Top 25 games include South Florida at #20 Notre Dame, #24 Marquette at #6 Pittsburgh, Maryland at #23 Virginia Tech.
Labels: Arkansas Razorbacks, NCAA basketball Top 25, Wisconsin Badgers
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Tuesday night recaps: Florida, Wisconsin stay sharp
Florida 79 Arkansas 72 - The Gators just keep winning. After capturing the NCAA football championship Monday night, Florida's #2-ranked basketball team held down a feisty bunch from Arkansas. While the Gators have lost only one home game this season, the Razorbacks proved a worthy opponent.
The game could have gone Arkansas' way had they been able to shoot better from behind the three-point line. The Razorbacks didn't hit a trey until midway through the second half and finished a paltry 2-15 (.133) on threes. Florida's free throw shooting down the stretch exposed a vulnerability as well. Both Taurean Green and Joakim Noah missed key freebies late in the game, but Arkansas was never able to cut the lead - which was never more than 9 - to less than 5 points. Green led the Gators with 17 points, while Darian Townes paced all scorers with 18.
The game was very physical, with a total of 45 fouls called on the two teams. Two Arkansas players fouled out, while Florida's Al Horford (10 points) was saddled with 4. A couple of three-pointers by Arkansas could have made the difference and the Razorbacks, now considered a force in the SEC after their upset of Alabama over the weekend, will seek a return to the SEC championship in March as they do not play the Gators again during the regular season.
Wisconsin 72 Ohio State 69 - The highly-anticipated matchup between the two best teams in the Big 10 lived to its billing as a tight, tactile struggle. Ohio State center Greg Oden picked up his 2nd personal foul just 12 minutes into the game and Wisconsin leading 19-13. But with their big man on the bench, senior forward Ivan Harris picked up the Buckeyes, cutting the Wisconsin lead to 31-28 at the half. Alando Ticker, the Badgers' 2nd leading scorer, put up only 7 points in the half on 3-9 shooting.
In the second half, Harris, who had hit 3 of 6 3-pointers in the first half, kept firing, but Kammron Taylor (25 points for the game) and Tucker responded and opened up a 6-point lead at the second TV timeout of the half, 47-41. Meanwhile, Oden had picked up his third foul and was spending extended minutes on the bench. While the Ohio State offense sputtered, Wisconsin went on a 10-0 run to lead 57-41.
Even when Oden was in the game, he was largely ineffective, going 0-4 from the floor with just 2 points on free throws when he picked up personal #4 (an offensive foul) with 7:57 remaining.
But the Badgers could not capitalize on the big man's foul trouble as they continually missed 3-pointers and committed fouls, allowing the Buckeyes to close to within 8 with 3:24 left. Tucker, however, scored a crucial bucket inside to hoist the lead back to 10 with just over 2 minutes left. Forced to foul down the stretch, Ohio State closed to within 2 on a pair of Ron Lewis 3-pointers and two Oden dunks, but the clock and Kammron Taylor's 5 of 8 free throws in the final minute sealed the Wisconsin victory.
Wisconsin improved to 40-2 in conference games under coach Bo Ryan. Alando Tucker picked up his game in the second half, scoring 10 points on 5-8 shooting. Greg Oden finished with 10 for the Buckeyes.
Elsewhere, #17 Clemson ran their record to 17-0 with an 87-76 win over NC State. #22 Notre Dame handed #21 West Virginia their first Big East loss, 61-58. #14 Alabama got back on track with a 71-61 home win over #13 LSU. Air Force, ranked 18th nationally, rallied for 41 second half points to overwhelm New Mexico, 65-57.
The game could have gone Arkansas' way had they been able to shoot better from behind the three-point line. The Razorbacks didn't hit a trey until midway through the second half and finished a paltry 2-15 (.133) on threes. Florida's free throw shooting down the stretch exposed a vulnerability as well. Both Taurean Green and Joakim Noah missed key freebies late in the game, but Arkansas was never able to cut the lead - which was never more than 9 - to less than 5 points. Green led the Gators with 17 points, while Darian Townes paced all scorers with 18.
The game was very physical, with a total of 45 fouls called on the two teams. Two Arkansas players fouled out, while Florida's Al Horford (10 points) was saddled with 4. A couple of three-pointers by Arkansas could have made the difference and the Razorbacks, now considered a force in the SEC after their upset of Alabama over the weekend, will seek a return to the SEC championship in March as they do not play the Gators again during the regular season.
Wisconsin 72 Ohio State 69 - The highly-anticipated matchup between the two best teams in the Big 10 lived to its billing as a tight, tactile struggle. Ohio State center Greg Oden picked up his 2nd personal foul just 12 minutes into the game and Wisconsin leading 19-13. But with their big man on the bench, senior forward Ivan Harris picked up the Buckeyes, cutting the Wisconsin lead to 31-28 at the half. Alando Ticker, the Badgers' 2nd leading scorer, put up only 7 points in the half on 3-9 shooting.
In the second half, Harris, who had hit 3 of 6 3-pointers in the first half, kept firing, but Kammron Taylor (25 points for the game) and Tucker responded and opened up a 6-point lead at the second TV timeout of the half, 47-41. Meanwhile, Oden had picked up his third foul and was spending extended minutes on the bench. While the Ohio State offense sputtered, Wisconsin went on a 10-0 run to lead 57-41.
Even when Oden was in the game, he was largely ineffective, going 0-4 from the floor with just 2 points on free throws when he picked up personal #4 (an offensive foul) with 7:57 remaining.
But the Badgers could not capitalize on the big man's foul trouble as they continually missed 3-pointers and committed fouls, allowing the Buckeyes to close to within 8 with 3:24 left. Tucker, however, scored a crucial bucket inside to hoist the lead back to 10 with just over 2 minutes left. Forced to foul down the stretch, Ohio State closed to within 2 on a pair of Ron Lewis 3-pointers and two Oden dunks, but the clock and Kammron Taylor's 5 of 8 free throws in the final minute sealed the Wisconsin victory.
Wisconsin improved to 40-2 in conference games under coach Bo Ryan. Alando Tucker picked up his game in the second half, scoring 10 points on 5-8 shooting. Greg Oden finished with 10 for the Buckeyes.
Elsewhere, #17 Clemson ran their record to 17-0 with an 87-76 win over NC State. #22 Notre Dame handed #21 West Virginia their first Big East loss, 61-58. #14 Alabama got back on track with a 71-61 home win over #13 LSU. Air Force, ranked 18th nationally, rallied for 41 second half points to overwhelm New Mexico, 65-57.
Labels: Alando Tucker, Florida Gaotrs, Kammron Taylor, Wisconsin Badgers
