Wisconsin 87-84 UT Rio Grande Valley (Nov 18, 2024) Game Summary

On By Littum

MADISON, Wis. — — John Blackwell scored a career-high 30 points and John Tonje added 19 as the No. 19 in Wisconsin rallied to beat UT Rio Grande Valley 87-84 on Monday night.

Wisconsin overcame a 52-48 halftime deficit to extend its season-opening winning streak to five games. The Vaqueros (3-3) entered on a three-game winning streak.

Tonje, coming off a 41-point effort in a win over Arizona, hit four free throws to give Wisconsin an 82-77 lead with just over two minutes left. DK Thorn hit a deep 3-pointer that pulled the Vaqueros within 85-84 with 1:02 left.

After each team missed a jumper, Blackwell hit two free throws with 2.1 seconds left to put Wisconsin up 87-84.

Hasan Abdul Hakim scored 19 points and Trey Miller 12 for UTRGV.

Takeaways

UT-Rio Grande Valley: The Vaqueros refused to fold as Wisconsin made a second-half run to take a five-point lead with just over 3 ½ minutes remaining, making it a one-possession game down the stretch.

Wisconsin: The Badgers didn’t play nearly as well as they did against Arizona, but got tougher down the stretch and held UTRGV to 11 field goals in the second half.

Key moment

Hasan Abdul Hakim hit a 3-pointer to put UTRGV up 61-54, but the Vaqueros went scoreless for nearly four more minutes as Wisconsin rallied to tie the game at 61.

Key state

Wisconsin, which entered shooting a nation-leading 90% in free throws, hit its first 11 from the line before Steven Crowl missed the second of two. The Badgers finished 27 of 32.

Next

Wisconsin faces Central Florida in the opening round of the Greenbrier Tip-Off Tournament on Friday, and UT-Rio Grande Valley hosts LeMoyne on Monday.

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