Nov. 25, 2010
Wisconsin 50, Manhattan 35
Old Spice Classic
HP Field House • Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
| |
| |
 |
| 1st | 2nd | Final | Wisconsin (3-1)
| 17
| 33
| 50
| Manhattan (2-2)
| 10
| 25
| 35
| | | | | | Stats at a Glance
| WIS | MAN | FG Percentage
| .362 | .286 | | 3-Point FG Percentage | .238 | .286 | | FT Percentage | .600 | .500 | Offensive Rebounds
| 12
| 10 | | Defensive Rebounds | 28 | 27 | | Total Rebounds | 40
| 37
| Turnovers
| 8
| 12
| Assists
| 15
| 6
| Bench Points
| 15 | 0 | | |
| |
• Box Score | Box Score 
| Quotes
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- "When you can't rely on offense, you can always rely on defense."
That's how Butch Ryan, father of Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan, boiled things down for the Badgers following the team's 50-35 win Thursday to open play in the Old Spice Classic.
It's analysis the Badgers would have a difficult time arguing against.
Fast Facts
| • Jon Leuer scores game-high 16 with 13 rebounds
| • Badgers shoot 50% in second half after hitting 23% in first
| • UW holds Jaspers to 10 points in first half, the lowest-scoring half by a Badgers opponent under Bo Ryan
| |
Despite struggling to put up 17 points at halftime, Wisconsin (3-1) held Manhattan (2-2) to the lowest scoring output for a UW opponent since holding Michigan to 34 points in the 2008 Big Ten Tournament.
"In order to be successful though in a tournament, whether it's a post season-type tournament or pre-conference or conference tournament or NCAA tournament or anything, you've got to survive these kinds of games and then when you get to the next one, you've got to make sure the same thing doesn't happen twice," Bo Ryan said.
The Jaspers' 10 first-half points were the fewest allowed by the Badgers in Bo Ryan's tenure as head coach.
While shooting just 23 percent t the first half -- including a 1-for-13 mark from 3-point range -- the Badgers held a seven-point edge at the half by holding the Jaspers to a 20-percent clip from the floor.
"80-90 percent of the shots were feet set, good release," said Ryan. "It's not like we were taking fade aways. They were going to make us make some shots."
Both teams were sluggish out of the gate, but the Jaspers endured a scoreless drought of 8 minutes, 32 seconds late in the half that allowed the Badgers to put together a 7-0 run that extended the UW lead to 17-8.
Manhattan snapped the scoreless streak with a basket with 44 seconds remaining the half.
The Badgers' 17 first-half points were the fewest in a half by a UW team since scoring 16 points in the first period at Minnesota on March 4, 2009, a 51-46 loss. Senior Jon Leuer provided most of UW's scoring punch in the first half by dropping in 9 points to go along with 7 rebounds.
Leuer finished with a game-high 16 points and 13 rebounds for his 11th-consecutive double-figure scoring game.
"In the second half, we just got into more of a rhythm offensively and it wasn't just me that was able to knock down some shots," Leuer said. "But when the team is unselfish, like we are, and move the ball, we're always going to cut hard and read the defense and that's how we were able to get shots. I was able to get into a rhythm too."
After shooting just 23.3 percent from the field in the first half, the Badgers connected on 50 percent of their shots over the final 20 minutes. Wisconsin hit just 1 of 13 attempts from 3-point range in the opening period but lit things up from outside by going 4-for-8 from beyond the arc in the second half.
The Badgers opened the period with a 12-4 run spearheaded by seven points from Leuer, opening up a 15-point lead with 15 minutes to play.
By hitting 12 of their first 22 shots in the half, they extended the advantage to 23 points, at 45-22, by the 8:07 mark of the half.
The Jaspers responded with a 13-2 run that cut the advantage to 12 points when Michael Alvarado splashed a 3-pointer with 2:40 to play. UW stemmed the tide, however, when Ben Brust knocked down the first trey of his career 35 seconds later to provide the final margin.
Freshman guard Josh Gasser was key in the Badgers' second-half run, scoring 9 of his 12 points after halftime. He also dished out four assists.
Despite scoring three points on 1-for-7 shooting, junior point guard Jordan Taylor pulled down six rebounds and finished with a game-high five assists.
The Badgers advance to the semifinals of the Old Spice Classic, where they face Boston College at 11 a.m. (CT) Friday in a game that will air live on ESPN. The Eagles downed Texas A&M, 67-65, in the day's first game.
