IOWA CITY, Iowa —  Don't count Wisconsin out of the Big Ten West race just yet. Corey Clement ran for 134 yards and a touchdown as 10th-ranked Wisconsin used a stout defense to beat Iowa 17-9 on Saturday.
Alex Hornibrook had 197 yards passing for the Badgers (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten), who won for the fourth straight time in Iowa City.
Back-to-back narrow losses to Ohio State and Michigan gave Wisconsin a two-game losing streak, but the Badgers shut down a late Iowa surge to snap that run - and next week they get division favorite Nebraska at home.
"They persevered. They kept playing, and they did it together,'' Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said.
Backup Bart Houston threw a touchdown pass for Wisconsin, and Clement's 1-yard TD run put the Badgers ahead 14-6 midway through the third quarter. Houston, the senior who had ceded the starting job to Hornibrook, was 4 of 6 passing for 59 yards and led the Badgers to their first touchdown. Houston's package included some read option plays, giving the Badgers a different look.
"For us to be the best team we can be, we're going to need everyone," Chryst said.
Wisconsin was carried by its defense. The Badgers allowed just 236 yards on 60 plays and held the Hawkeyes (5-3, 3-2) without a touchdown for the first time all season - just a week after Iowa scored 49 points against Purdue. Quarterback C.J. Beathard had 153 yards passing for Iowa, which lost its third straight at home.
"There were some plays that we left out there. That certainly didn't help our cause," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said.
The Badgers showed that they're not going to let Nebraska cruise to the Big Ten West title. Chryst wasn't just giving lip service to Wisconsin's perseverance. The Badgers overcame two missed field goals and a fumble that Iowa recovered in its own end zone, and their defense stopped Iowa 11 times on 13 third downs.
The Hawkeyes offense, which has been inconsistent at times this season, bottomed out. Beathard hardly had any open receivers - and when he did, he missed them more than once. Down 14-6 midway through the fourth quarter, Iowa finally found some life in the passing game. But the Hawkeyes drive stalled out at the Wisconsin 20, and Ferentz elected for a field goal to get within five. Freshman Keith Duncan pushed his kick wide right, though, and Clement broke a tackle in the backfield on 3rd-and-1 for a 34-yard gain with less than four minutes left.
"I thought we did a pretty good job of keeping him under control. Then he popped that one at the end," Ferentz said of Clement, who had 35 carries.
Ahead for Wisconsin, the Badgers' brutal stretch in the Big Ten continues next week when they host Nebraska, who entered Saturday ranked eighth in the country.
