UNCG - Wisconsin Box Score
Box Score
MADISON, WI – Mike Wilkinson sparked a key second half run and finished with 20 points as Wisconsin turned away UNC Greensboro, 85-53, in men's basketball action Thursday night at the Kohl Center.
Alando Tucker led Wisconsin with 21 points and 15 rebounds. He scored 17 of his 21 in the second half when Wisconsin outscored UNCG, 56-31.
Ricky Hickman led UNCG with 14 points, his seventh straight double-figure scoring effort. Ronnie Burrell added 12 points.
With the win, Wisconsin (7-2) extended its homecourt winning streak to 34 consecutive games, the longest current streak in the nation and a new school-record, eclipsing a record that stood since 1915. UNCG, off to its best start since 1994-95, fell to 7-3 with the loss.
“Wilkinson was a big key,” said UNCG coach Fran McCaffery. “When they were really struggling against our zone in the first half, he knocked down some shots that kept them close to us. That's what big time players do, step up when the rest of their team is struggling.
“I was happy with the way we played in the first 20 minutes. We just didn't play a complete game.”
The Spartans trailed by seven at the intermission, but were fortunate in some ways to only be down by that. The first half was much of a see-saw until the closing minutes, thanks in part to horrendous foul shooting by the Badgers. Wisconsin shot just 6-for-19 from the free throw line, including a 1-for-13 start, in the first half. The Badgers had a 29-13 advantage on the glass, including 16 offensive rebounds, but converted those offensive rebounds into just nine second-chance points.
The Spartans, however, played most of the first half without Kyle Hines, the nation's leading shot blocker who picked up two early fouls in eight minutes of action, and part of the half without Burrell, who picked up his second foul with 4:22 left before intermission. Hines wound up fouling out, scoring four points in just 16 minutes of action. It was only the second time this season that the freshman from Sicklerville, NJ had not scored in double-figures.
With UNCG leading 22-21 at the 3:40 mark, Wisconsin scored the final eight points of the first half to take a 29-22 lead into halftime.
Wisconsin, which has won 42 out of 46 under coach Bo Ryan when holding opponents under 62 points, opened up the second half with a 7-2 run, five of the points coming from Wilkerson, to take its first double-digit lead of the night, 36-24. The lead expanded to 17 before the Spartans made a run of their own, scoring six straight to close to within 12, 43-32. But Wisconsin took control from there, breaking out on a 16-3 spurt to go up by 24.
For the game, the Badgers held a 50-23 margin on the glass.
The Spartans return to action on December 29 when they travel to Minneapolis to take on Minnesota beginning at 8 pm EST. The game will be televised by ESPN-Plus and will be picked up locally on C-SET and ESPN Full Court.
AGATE
UNC GREENSBORO (7-3)
Hickman, 5-12 4-5 14; Burrell, 6-12 0-0 12; Oleksiak, 2-4 4-4 8; Gross, 3-8 2-2 8; Bristow, 2-5 0-2 4; Hines, 2-3 0-1 4; Beckford, 1-3 1-5 3; Moore, 0-0 0-0 0; Everette, 0-1 0-0 0; Clifton, 0-0 0-2 0; Johnson, 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 21-49 11-21 53.
WISCONSIN (7-2)
Tucker, 6-10 7-12 21; Wilkinson, 8-15 3-4 20; Butch, 5-9 1-6 11; Hanson, 3-7 2-3 10; Helmigk, 3-4 0-2 6; Flowers, 2-2 0-1 6; Nixon, 2-3 0-2 5; Morley, 2-4 0-0 4; Bronson, 1-1 0-0 2; Stiemsma, 0-1 0-0 0; Taylor, 0-1 0-0 0; Chappell, 0-1 0-0 0; Chambliss, 0-7 0-0 0. Totals 32-65 13-30 85.
Halftime: Wisconsin, 29-22. 3-point goals-UNC Greensboro 0-8 (Hickman, 0-4; Burrell, 0-1; Bristow, 0-1; Beckford, 0-1; Johnson, 0-1), Wisconsin 8-21 (Hanson, 2-6; Flowers, 2-2; Tucker, 2-3; Wilkinson, 1-2; Nixon, 1-1; Taylor, 0-1; Chambliss, 0-5; Butch, 0-1). Fouled out--UNC Greensboro-Hines, , Wisconsin-None. Rebounds-UNC Greensboro 23 (Gross, 5), Wisconsin 50 (Tucker, 15). Assists-UNC Greensboro 10 (Hickman, 4), Wisconsin 22 (Chambliss, 9). Total fouls-UNC Greensboro 21, Wisconsin 14. A-17142
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