Badgers upset Gophers at ‘The Barn’

MINNEAPOLIS — The Badgers continue to peak at just the right time, earning their fourth straight Big Ten Conference victory Saturday, defeating Minnesota 59-57 at Williams Arena.

Senior Jolene Anderson led Wisconsin with 21 points in the game, helping UW win its third game in six days.

With their fourth straight win, the Badgers improve to 15-11 overall and 8-8 in the Big Ten Conference. This is the first time this season UW has been at .500 in the Big Ten.

Minnesota, which was fourth in the Big Ten entering the game, dropped to 18-10 overall and 9-8 in the conference.

Opening the game, Wisconsin struggled to convert, turning the ball over three times, while hitting just 2-of-7 from the field. On the other end, Minnesota was shooting 42 percent on 3-of-7 from the field. Anderson, however, began lighting up the court, hitting three 3-pointers to give Wisconsin an energy boost. With 13:26 left in the half, UW led 13-11.

Later in the game, another Anderson 3-pointer gave UW a 26-21 lead with 6:53 left in the first half. But at the half, the scoreboard read 30-30. Wisconsin’s main concern at the half was its 13 turnovers, off of which Minnesota scored 13 points.

With one minute to go, UW went up by four over Minnesota, after Tara Steinbauer hit two imperative, and eventual game-winning, free throws.

The Gophers were then fouled on the other end of the court and proceeded to knowck down both free throws, cutting the UW lead to two, 59-57.

With 16 seconds on the clock, Anderson was fouled on the bonus and missed the first. Minnesota came down with the rebound and was fouled but missed both free throws. Wisconsin then missed the front end of another one-and-one opportunity and Minnesota came down with the rebound with 10 seconds on the clock. A last second missed shot by the Gophers gave UW the upset over Minnesota, 59-57.

“Our team is staying together and it starts with the coaching staff whether we’re up 20 or down 20,” Anderson said.

The only two players to record double figures in the game were Anderson, who finished with 21 points and Minnesota’s Emily Fox, who tallied 28 points on 9-of-18 shooting. Wisconsin’s Mariah Dunham added nine points for the Badgers, while Steinbauer recorded eight points and Banks tallied seven points and five rebounds.

The Badgers are at Michigan at 7 p.m. Thursday. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.

BADGER BITS: Anderson has hit a 3-pointer in 101 of 109 games. ... Anderson has scored double digits in 114 of 119 career games as a Badger. ... Anderson finished the game with 21 points. She now has 2,243 career points at Wisconsin.

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