National Basketball Association
Wisconsin 71, Purdue 51
When: 1:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 14, 2015
Where: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
Officials:
# Terry Oglesby, # Lamont Simpson, # Gene Steratore
Attendance:
N/A
By SportsDirect Inc.
No. 5 Wisconsin 71, Purdue 51: Bronson Koenig led a balanced scoring effort with a career-high 19 points as the Badgers pulled away from the Boilermakers in the second half at the Big Ten tournament semifinals in Chicago.
Nigel Hayes (15 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals) and Big Ten Player of the Year Frank Kaminsky (12 points, five boards, five assists, three steals and three blocks) each enjoyed brilliant all-around performances for top-seeded Wisconsin (30-3), which committed only three turnovers. The Badgers also received 15 points and eight rebounds from Sam Dekker and will face third-seeded Michigan State in Sunday’s championship game.
A.J. Hammons finished with 10 points, seven rebounds and three blocks as fourth-seeded Purdue (21-12) fell short of its first title-game appearance since 2009. Kendall Stephens and P.J. Thompson chipped in nine points apiece for the Boilermakers, who were outscored 41-16 in the second half.
Wisconsin connected on its first three shots and led by as many as six points five minutes into the contest, but went 7-of-24 over the remainder of the opening period while Stephens hit back-to-back 3-pointers to fuel a 15-2 surge. Hammons hit a jump hook and Thompson drained a triple in the final minute of the first half to send Purdue into the break with a 35-30 advantage, but the Badgers scored the first 10 points out the break to pull ahead.
Vince Edwards halted the Boilermakers’ five-minute scoring drought with a 3-pointer and Thompson added a three-point play to make it 46-44 before Wisconsin rolled off 13 unanswered points that capped a half-opening 29-9 burst. Koenig scored seven straight points after a dunk from Kaminsky with five minutes left and Dekker completed the scoring with a three-point play with 1½ minutes remaining.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The first half featured only two turnovers and neither team committed a miscue from the 17:45 mark of the opening period until Hammons was whistled for an offensive foul with 16:43 remaining. Wisconsin did not record its first turnover until Purdue G Dakota Mathias intercepted a pass from Kaminsky with 5½ minutes to go. … The Badgers recorded an assist on each of their 10 first-half field goals and finished with 18 assists on 26 field goals. … Wisconsin committed seven fouls Saturday and has recorded only 12 through two games at this tournament.
Top Game Performances
| Purdue |
|
Wisconsin |
|
A.J. Hammons 10 |
Scoring |
Bronson Koenig 19 |
|
Jon Octeus 4 |
Assists |
Nigel Hayes 5 |
|
Vince Edwards 7 |
Rebounds |
Sam Dekker 8 |
|
Dakota Mathias 3 |
Free Throws Made |
Sam Dekker 5 |
|
Dakota Mathias 2 |
Steals |
Frank Kaminsky 3 |
|
A.J. Hammons 3 |
Blocks |
Frank Kaminsky 3 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Purdue
|
51 |
37.3 |
7-14 |
6-6 |
12 |
23 |
3 |
3 |
9 |
| Wisconsin
|
71 |
47.3 |
8-22 |
11-12 |
18 |
30 |
5 |
5 |
3 |
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