Men's Basketball

No. 5 Badgers extend winning streak, top Northwestern

Men's Basketball

No. 5 Badgers extend winning streak, top Northwestern

Northwestern 5 Wisconsin 65, Northwestern 50
Kohl Center • Madison, Wis. • Attendance: 17,279

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Wisconsin

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  1st 2nd Final
 Northwestern
21 29 50
 Wisconsin 37 28 65
•  Postgame Interviews & Highlights Small Video Graphic
•  Notes |   Quotes  |  Gameday Live Blog
 Statistical Leaders
 • Bronson Koenig: 16 Pts, 2 Ast, 1 Stl, 6-10 FG, 4-8 3FG
 • Sam Dekker: 16 Pts, 7 Reb, 2 Ast
 • Frank Kaminsky: 12 Pts, 7 Reb, 5 Ast
 Stats at a Glance
NU WIS
 FG Percentage .396 .389
 3-Point FG Percentage .286 .321
 FT Percentage .667 .824
 Offensive Rebounds 5 13
 Defensive Rebounds 20 26
 Total Rebounds 25 39
 Turnovers 5 5
 Points off Turnover 0 7
 Second-Chance Points 7 13
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Feb. 7, 2015

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Cool under pressure, Bronson Koenig has proven to be more than a suitable fill-in at point guard for No. 5 Wisconsin.

The sophomore has helped the Badgers keep humming along in the Big Ten while starter Traevon Jackson recovers from right foot surgery.

Koenig scored a career-high 16 points, Sam Dekker also had 16 and Wisconsin won its sixth straight by beating Northwestern 65-50 on Saturday.

 Fast Facts
• Koenig scores career-high 16pts, including 11pts in the second half alone.
• Four Badgers score in double figures: Koenig; Dekker; Kaminsky; Hayes.
• Wisconsin out-rebounds Northwestern, 39-25, including 13-to-5 advantage in offensive rebounds.

Koenig has been a steadying force while Wisconsin (21-2, 9-1) waits for its regular floor general to return. The quick, confident Koenig is hitting 52 percent from 3-point territory since entering the starting lineup on Jan. 11 against Rutgers, the same game in which Jackson got hurt.

''Confidence is everything, especially with shooting,'' said Koenig, who was 4 of 8 from behind the arc on Saturday. ''The past couple weeks ... my confidence has grown quite a bit and obviously playing a lot more minutes, I get more opportunities.''

Alex Olah had 15 points for Northwestern. The Big Ten's last-place team extended its losing streak to nine.

The Wildcats did narrow a 22-point deficit against the conference leaders to 11 with 1 minute left on a 3-pointer by Tre Demps. Coach Chris Collins liked the way his young team, which starts two freshman, tried to claw back on the road.

''There's going to be no quit on my team,'' Collins said. ''We fought back ... to me that shows a lot about my group.''

But they were trying to play catch-up all day long. Wisconsin's athletic frontcourt overpowered the Wildcats (10-13, 1-9) to open a big early lead.

Dekker started the scoring for Wisconsin with a 3 before later darting through the interior of the 2-3 zone for a dunk. The agile 6-foot-7 forward also converted an alley-oop from Josh Gasser for another slam during a game-opening 21-4 run.

Nigel Hayes pitched in with 11 points, all in the first half, against the Wildcats.

''They're playing against teams that are like well-oiled machines, especially this team,'' Collins said.

The Badgers led by 16 at halftime, and their toughest challenge in the second half was making sure that they kept their concentration while playing with a big lead. In Wisconsin's previous game, Indiana cut a 30-point deficit in half in the second half.

''I don't think we took our (feet) off the gas. They just starting hitting a couple of shots,'' Dekker said. ''We kept it going pretty good and got a 15-point win.''

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