Feb. 14, 2010

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MADISON, Wis. – A trio of Badgers scored in double digits as the University of Wisconsin women’s basketball team defeated Indiana 66-58 before 5,063 fans at the Kohl Center on Sunday.

Wisconsin (18-7, 8-6 Big Ten) moves into a tie with Michigan State for third in the Big Ten Conference standings while Indiana (13-12, 6-8 Big Ten) remains in seventh.

Junior Tara Steinbauer led the Badgers with 19 points, while senior Rae Lin D’Alie had 14 and junior Alyssa Karel added 13. IU’s Jamie Braun led all players with 20 points. The Badgers improved to 8-1 when three players score in double digits.

With the win, the Wisconsin swept Indiana for the first time in program history. The Badgers downed the Hoosiers in Bloomington on Jan. 28.

After a tight second half, the Badgers finally pulled away on free throws. Clinging to a 55-53 lead, UW nailed 11-of-14 free throws in the final 1:36 to seal the victory. Steinbauer finished 9-of-10 from the line.

Wisconsin led 31-25 at halftime after taking an early 18-8 lead with 12:52 to play in the first half on a 10-0 run. The Badgers extended their lead to 13 at 25-12 on five straight points by Karel midway through the half with 9:21 to play, but Indiana trimmed the UW lead to six at the half. Steinbauer led all players with 10 first-half points.

Indiana opened the second half with a 9-5 run, including back-to-back 3-pointers by Whitney Lindsay and Braun to cut UW’s lead to two at 36-34 with 16:03 to play.

The Hoosiers then took their first lead of the game at 41-40 with 10:14 remaining, but Wisconsin responded with a 7-0 run to extend its lead back to six at 47-41 with 5:38 left in game.

The Badgers tried to pull away, but IU’s Braun sparked a 9-3 run to tie the score at 50-50 with 3:50 remaining.  Five straight points from D’Alie put the Badgers back on top at 55-50 before Indiana’s Sasha Chaplin answered with an old-fashioned three pointer with 1:53 to play.

Wisconsin closed the game with an 11-5 run as all 11 points came from the free throw line.

The Hoosiers edged the Badgers in field goal percentage, shooting 42.9 percent (21-of-49) compared to UW’s 37.7 percent (20-of-53). Wisconsin held the advantage from the free throw line, sinking 21-of-28 attempts. Indiana made just 10-of-21 free throw shots.

The Badgers out-rebounded the Hoosiers 36-32. Sophomore Anya Covington and IU’s Danilsa Andujar each pulled down seven boards.

IU committed 18 turnovers, while UW had 13. The Badgers had 11 steals, including three each from Teah Gant and D’Alie. Indiana tallied seven steals.

Tonight’s game marked the 125th consecutive appearance and 124th straight start for D’Alie, who now holds the UW career records for games played and games started.

The Badgers host No. 7/9 Ohio State on Thursday at 7 p.m.