March 3, 2010
By David Meyer
MADISON, Wis. — After cruising by Indiana at home on Sunday, the script flipped on the Iowa men’s basketball team as they traveled to Madison on Wednesday. No. 17 Wisconsin defeated the Hawkeyes, 67-40.
With the loss, Iowa drops to 10-20 overall, 4-13 in the Big Ten Conference. Wisconsin is 22-7, 12-5.
Iowa’s Aaron Fuller led his team with 14 points on 6 of 11 shooting. He was the only Hawkeye to finish in double figures. Matt Gatens followed his 25-point effort against the Hoosiers with seven points on 3 of 11 shooting.
Iowa at Wisconsin | 1st | 2nd | Final |
Iowa (10-20, 4-13) | 16 | 24 | 40 |
Wisconsin (22-7, 12-5) | 36 | 31 | 67 |
Statistical Leaders | |||
Points: Aaron Fuller (Iowa) 14 | Jon Leuer (Wisconsin) 18 | |||
Rebounds: Jarryd Cole (Iowa) 6 | Jason Bohannon (Wisconsin) 9 | |||
Assists: Cully Payne (Iowa) 5 | Three players (Wisconsin) 4 |
“The problem was, we took shots we couldn’t make,” UI head coach Todd Lickliter said. “There’s a right way to play. You play each possession. You can only control the way you play in each possession.”
The Hawkeyes hung with the Badgers in the beginning, leading the contest 8-7, when Fuller scored inside with 3 minutes and 27 seconds into the first half.
The Hawkeyes were only able to keep it close for a few more minutes. Wisconsin led 12-10 with 13:03 left before halftime, after Gatens hit a jump shot. The Badgers proceeded to go on a 20-0 run, holding Iowa was scoreless for over six minutes.
The Hawkeyes finally stopped the bleeding and got on the scoreboard as Eric May scored two of his eight points at the 5:24 mark.
Iowa trailed by 20 at the break, 36-16.
The Hawkeyes shot 6 of 21 (29 percent) from the field in the first, including only 1 of 9 (11 percent) from 3-point range. The Badgers, on the other hand, made a blistering 14 of 24 (58 percent) field goal attempts, and shot equally as well from three. They went 4 of 7 (57 percent) from outside.
Iowa’s play improved in the second, but the lead was insurmountable. The long scoreless run proved to be the difference in the game.
For the game, Iowa was 16 of 43 (37 percent) from the field, making only 3 of 15 (20 percent) attempts from beyond the arc. Wisconsin shot an excellent 28 of 51 (55 percent) on field goals, and also made 6 of 12 (50 percent) long-ball attempts.
Jon Leuer led the charge for the Badgers, putting up 18 points on 8 of 9 shooting in his fourth game back after sitting out with a broken wrist.
Trevon Hughes trailed with 14 points, and native Iowa Jason Bohannon had 11. The Kohl Center attendees gave the senior duo a standing ovation as they exited the game at the 2:14.
The Badgers out-rebounded the Hawkeyes 33-20. Bohannon, the senior Linn-Mar product had a game-leading nine rebounds.
Wisconsin had 15 points off 12 Iowa turnovers. They outscored the Hawkeyes in the paint 30 to 16.
Iowa travels to Minneapolis to take on the Golden Gophers on Sunday. The Big Ten Tournament begins March 11 in Indianapolis.