Wisconsin’s three-point power outage has been restored.
A day after winning a second-round grinder against No.14 Northwestern, No.5 Wisconsin put on a shooting exhibition in tying the Big Ten Tournament record with 19 three-pointers to knock out No.4 UCLA with an 86-70 victory in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals at Indianapolis’ Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
John Tonje hit his first nine shots in scoring a game-high 26 points, as John Blackwell (18), Kamari McGee (14), and Steven Crowl (13) reached double figures for the Badgers (25-8), which shot 51.7 percent from the floor to set up a tournament semifinals matchup with top-seeded Michigan State on Saturday.
Wisconsin punched its ticket early after a dominant first half when it shot 61.5 percent and caught fire from the perimeter.
Shooting no better than 33.3 percent from three the last six games, Wisconsin found its shooting stroke by going 12-for-19 from three. Tonje made his first four attempts, including converting a four-point play, while Xavier Amos, Blackwell, and Crowl made multiple threes.
The Bruins (22-10) had given up an average of 29.5 points in the first half but gave up a season-high 48 to UW, which had more three-point field goals than UCLA had total baskets (11).
After allowing 7-foot-3 center Aday Mara to score a season-high 22 points in an 85-83 Bruins victory over the Badgers on January 21, Crowl, Nolan Winter, and others made him a non-factor with four points on four shots.
Guard Sebastian Mack scored 18 points before fouling out to lead the Bruins (22-10), which shot 32.4 percent in their Big Ten Tournament debut
The Bruins charged out of the locker room by scoring the first seven points to cut the deficit to 12. However, UCLA”s William Kyle missed a chance at a three-point play to cut the margin closer, and Blackwell and Tonje scored the next 12 UW points on a 12-2 run to push its lead to 22.
UCLA never got closer than 14 the remainder of the game.
What it means: Wisconsin shot 51.0 percent from the field and made 15 threes but lost the first meeting to UCLA because its ball-screen defense was poor, fouled too much, and committed untimely turnovers. UW was better on offense and improved defensively, giving up 20 points in the paint and 10 turnovers.
Star of the game: Tonje went 4-for-4 from three, scoring 13 points in the opening 8:20 and helping ignite Wisconsin’s three-point power keg.
Stat of the game: Six different Badgers hit a three-pointer, as Wisconsin set a new program tournament record from long distance.
Reason to be Concerned: On an afternoon where everyone shot well, Max Klesmit was 1-for-7 from the court. After playing two games in two days after missing two weeks of games, how much does he have in the tank for Saturday?
Don’t overlook: With Crowl and Winter saddled with foul trouble in the second half, Wisconsin got quality minutes from Amos and senior Carter Gilmore in the frontcourt. Amos had eight points, three rebounds, three blocks, and two assists, while Gilmore had two points, three rebounds, and three assists.
What’s next: Advancing to the semifinals in consecutive years for the first time since 2014-15, Wisconsin takes in top-seed Michigan State (1 p.m./CBS). The Spartans beat No.8 seed Oregon, 74-64, in Friday’s first quarterfinal matchup, putting three players in double figures and holding the Ducks to 4-for-19 from three-point range.
The Spartans won the only meeting between the two programs, 71-62, in East Lansing on March 2. Saturday will be the 12th Big Ten Tournament meeting between the program, the most played rivalry in the tournament’s history, and the eighth meeting in the tournament semifinals.. The Badgers are 4-7 against the Spartans, last beating them in the 2015 tournament championship game.
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