Big Ten Conference Tournament Recaps

Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) – Bronson Koenig scored 19 points to lead No. 6 Wisconsin in a 71-51 rout of Purdue in the semifinals of the Big Ten Conference Tournament.

Nigel Hayes posted 15 points, six rebounds and five assists and Sam Dekker also gave 15 points with eight rebounds for the Badgers (30-3), who will play Michigan State in Sunday’s title game.

Wisconsin last made the tournament final in 2013, when it lost to Ohio State. The school will be looking for its third Big Ten title and first since defeating Illinois in 2008.

A.J. Hammons had 10 points and seven rebounds to guide the Boilermakers (21-12), who had defeated Penn State in the quarters on Friday.

Trailing by five to start the second half, Wisconsin ripped off 14 of the first 17 points and owned a 44-38 lead on a Dekker layup six minutes in.

A 3-point play from P.J. Thompson got the Boilermakers back within two at 46-44, but Frank Kaminsky’s jumper kicked off a 13-0 Wisconsin run that was finished on a pair of Zak Showalter free throws, giving the Badgers a 59-44 lead with just over six minutes to play.

Rapheal Davis stopped the bleeding with a layup, but Kaminsky answered with a dunk before a Koenig jumper made it a 17-point game with four minutes to play.

Wisconsin continued to lead by double-digits for the rest of the contest.

The Badgers held an early lead in the first half, but consecutive 3-pointers from Kendall Stephens followed by a basket by Davis gave Purdue a 14-10 lead.

Purdue twice held a seven-point lead before a run from the Badgers saw them tie the game at 30-30 on a Hayes layup with 1:09 left in the half. However, Hammons countered with a jumper, and a 3-ball from Thompson just before the buzzer gave Purdue a 35-30 lead at the break.

Game Notes

Purdue was looking to go to the finals for the third time and first since 2009, when it defeated Ohio State for its only championship … Thompson and Stevens each posted nine points … Kaminsky finished with 12 points, five boards and five assists … Wisconsin shot 47.3 percent and dominated the glass, 35-27.

Final Score: Michigan State 62, (8) Maryland 58

Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) – Travis Trice scored 20 points as Michigan State rallied for a 62-58 win over No. 8 Maryland in the semifinals of the Big Ten Conference Tournament.

Branden Dawson scored 17 points with eight rebounds and Matt Costello had 10 points for the third-seeded Spartans (23-10), who will play sixth-ranked Wisconsin in Sunday’s final.

Michigan State will look to stay perfect in Big Ten championship contests. The Spartans have won all four times they have appeared in the conference title game, including last year’s victory over rival Michigan.

Melo Trimble had 22 points and Dez Wells gave 10 points and seven rebounds for the No. 2 seed Terrapins (27-6), who had defeated Indiana in Friday’s quarterfinals.

Michigan State was trailing by 11 when Richard Pack hit a 3-pointer to give Maryland a 36-25 lead a minute into the second half, but the team then ripped off 15 straight points with Denzel Valentine’s 3 giving the team the lead, and Costello putting in a layup for a 40-36 advantage with 12 minutes left.

Maryland answered to regain the lead and still held a 47-45 edge when Pack put in a layup, but Dawson answered with a free throw and jumper, while Trimble’s free throw tied things at 48-all with just over five minutes to play.

A free throw and basket from Gavin Schilling were countered by a Wells jumper before Dawson hit a pair of free throws, and a Schilling free throw and dunk from Dawson gave the Spartans a 56-50 lead.

That proved to be the backbreaker, as the Terrapins were unable to make it a one-possession game the rest of the way.

Maryland led this game the entire first half as the team scored 12 of the first 13 points as Trimble capped the burst with a jumper five minutes in for a 12-1 lead.

A 3-pointer from Evan Smotrycz gave the Terrapins a 23-7 lead with 11 1/2 minutes to play, but a 13-2 run from the Spartans got them back in it as a Trice 3-ball made it a 25-20 game with 4 1/2 minutes left.

Maryland, though, scored the next four points and eventually took a 33-25 lead into the break.

Game Notes

Smotrycz finished the game with nine points and four rebounds … Michigan State shot 44 percent and held a 33-30 edge on the glass … Maryland made 40 percent of its shots.

Categorized in: NCAA Basketball