MADISON – Wisconsin teammates Tyler Wahl, Max Klesmit and Chucky Hepburn sat within the Kohl Heart media room and stared down on the desk, seemingly wanting on the stat sheets in entrance of them and making an attempt to digest the newest shut loss.
Their faces had been laden with disappointment and frustration.
“It’s fairly irritating,” Wahl mentioned after UW suffered a 63-61 loss to No. 5 Purdue Thursday evening. “As a result of we’ve been enjoying nicely sufficient to win, and we simply haven’t been capable of get it carried out.”
Needing a quality to enhance their NCAA Tournament résumé, the Badgers as an alternative missed their remaining 4 field-goal makes an attempt within the final 3 minutes 30 seconds – after Klesmit scored within the lane off a feed from Wahl for a 57-56 lead — and noticed Purdue maintain on by hitting 7 of 8 free throws within the remaining 1:45.
The Badgers missed one other alternative for a high quality victory and enter their regular-season finale Sunday at Minnesota simply 8-11 within the Huge Ten and 16-13 general.
The Gophers (8-20, 2-16) surprised visiting Rutgers, 75-74, Thursday on Jamison Battle’s buzzer-beating three-pointer.
BOX SCORE:Purdue 63, Wisconsin 61
“It seems like we’re proper there,” mentioned Klesmit, who scored 17 of his team-high 19 factors within the second half. “It’s only a matter of some possessions.”
Purdue hits free throws down the stretch as Wisconsin goes chilly
The result Thursday evening was determined by a handful of possessions.
Purdue held a 58-57 lead due to a pair of free throws by Zach Edey with 1:45 left. The Badgers had an opportunity to take the lead after calling a timeout with 22 seconds on the shot clock and 36.4 seconds left within the recreation.
Klesmit drove down the precise facet of the lane however missed a contested shot.
“I used to be simply making an attempt to get to the rim, get within the paint and make a play,” he mentioned. “I ought to have come to a two-foot cease, managed myself.
“However I went off one (foot) and missed it.”
That was UW’s final probability to take the lead till its remaining possession.
Purdue hit 5 of 6 free throws within the remaining 21.5 seconds, together with 1 of two by Ethan Morton with 4.4 seconds left, for a 63-61 lead. Klesmit’s desperation three-point try on the buzzer was nicely quick.
Shut losses have grow to be ‘irritating’ for Max Klesmit and the Wisconsin Badgers
UW has performed in 19 video games this season determined by 5 factors or fewer or determined in additional time. The Badgers are 10-9 in these video games.
5 of the Huge Ten losses – to Michigan State, Northwestern twice, Rutgers and Purdue – have come by a mixed 12 factors.
“The irritating half is that we’ve been there in so many of those video games,” Klesmit mentioned.
Purdue clinches the outright Huge Ten title on the Kohl Heart
One 12 months after struggling a three-point loss to UW within the Kohl Heart, a victory that gave the Badgers a share of the regular-season title, Purdue (25-5, 14-5) left with the outright league title.
The Boilermakers clinched that when Michigan fell in two overtimes at Illinois.
“It will get all the way down to a make or miss,” Purdue coach Matt Painter mentioned. “We made a shot. They missed a shot. We win. We really feel nice and so they really feel terrible…
“We’re one possession higher than them. Does it make us higher? No. It makes us one possession higher.”
Hepburn, who missed the final 20-plus minutes at Michigan on Sunday after struggling an obvious proper knee damage, received the beginning towards Purdue and contributed 13 factors, two rebounds and one help in 34 minutes.
Reserve guard Isaac Lindsey, who entered the evening with 24 factors in 18 video games, scored eight factors within the opening half to maintain UW inside 4 factors. Connor Essegian performed simply eight minutes within the first half due to foul bother. He completed with eight factors.
Wahl (2 of 11) and Steven Crowl (1 of 5) scored simply 5 and two factors, respectively.
Zach Edey is a distinction maker for Purdue on offensive and defensive ends
Zach Edey, 7-foot-4 and 305 kilos, guarded Wahl for many of the recreation.
“We preferred our matchup with Zach on Tyler Wahl,” Painter mentioned. “We didn’t have to provide an excessive amount of assist there. We had been involved about their three-point taking pictures.
“Our inside protection did a reasonably good job on Crowl and Wahl.”
Edey entered the evening averaging 22.3 factors, 12.9 rebounds and a couple of.4 blocks and taking pictures 61.2%. He contributed 9 factors, seven rebounds and three assists within the opening half to assist Purdue take a 31-27 lead and completed with 17 factors, 19 rebounds and three assists.
Freshman guards Fletcher Loyer (11.8 ppg) and Braden Smith (9.8 ppg, 4.3 apg) mixed for 14 factors within the opening half and completed with 13 and 9 factors, respectively.
Purdue got here in limiting opponents to 30.6% three-point taking pictures and 41.6% taking pictures general. The Badgers hit 5 of 11 three-pointers within the opening half (45.5%) and completed 10 of 24 general (41.7%).
Purdue countered by outscoring UW, 30-18, within the paint, successful the battle on the free-throw line by hitting 11 of 18 makes an attempt to simply 5 of 5 for UW and by scoring 11 factors off eight UW turnovers. The Boilermakers scored 9 factors off six UW turnovers within the opening half.
“Completely,” UW coach Greg Gard mentioned of the significance of the Boilermakers scoring off UW turnovers. “In a low-possession recreation it will be a battle. After we can set our protection within the half-court we’re fairly good. You possibly can’t set your protection once you’re throwing pix-sixes.
“Little issues – one factor right here, one factor there – as they add up makes a distinction as a result of we’ve been in so many of those video games.”
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This text initially appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin Badgers’ scoring drought costly in Big Ten loss to Purdue
