Madison, Wis. – Nebraska used a huge rally in the third quarter to overcome a 13-point halftime deficit, but Wisconsin outscored the Huskers 10-2 in the final 3:30 to claim a 63-60 women’s basketball win over the No. 24 Big Red on Wednesday night at the Kohl Center.
Eliza Maupin notched a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds, including her last field goal with 3:44 left to put Nebraska ahead 58-53. Britt Prince, who finished with 11 points and five steals, added a layup with 2:10 left to keep the Huskers in front 60-57,
But Wisconsin’s Kyrah Daniels answered with a three-pointer to tie the game with 1:49 remaining before hitting a free throw to put the Badgers back in front at 61-60. The Badgers came away with the ball, and Gift Uchenna hit the game’s final made field goal with 53 seconds left to complete the 63-60 Wisconsin win.
Nebraska slipped to 14-5 overall and 3-5 in the Big Ten, while Wisconsin improved to 13-7 and 5-4 in the Big Ten. The Badgers also moved to 11-1 at the Kohl Center this season.
Uchenna finished with a game-high 22 points and 14 rebounds, while Daniels closed with 19 points and eight boards. Ronnie Porter added a pair of important second-half three-pointers on her way to 10 points and six rebounds.
Amiah Hargrove led the Huskers with 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting while contributing five rebounds on the night.
Nebraska finished just 37.1 percent (23-62) from the field, including 23.1 percent (6-26) from long range. NU also hit just 61.5 percent (8-13) from the free throw line. The Huskers dominated the turnover game, 22-10, including 17 steals, but got outworked on the boards, 45-26.
Wisconsin hit 45.5 percent (25-55) from the floor, including 6-of-18 threes, while connecting on 7-of-9 free throws.
Nebraska used a massive third-quarter rally to take a 47-45 lead to the final period. The Huskers, who outscored the Badgers 22-7 in the period, hit 8-of-17 shots in the quarter, including 4-of-7 three-pointers. NU matched Wisconsin on the boards in the period and won the turnover battle 9-2.
In its worst first-half of the season, Nebraska hit just 10-of-27 shots, including just 1-of-11 threes, as the Huskers fell behind 38-25 at halftime.
While the Big Red struggled, Uchenna and the Badgers controlled the game. Wisconsin hit 17-of-36 first-half shots, including 9-of-13 from Uchenna. UW hit 3-of-10 threes and dominated the glass 26-10. In fact, Wisconsin had more offensive rebounds (11) in the half, than NU had total rebounds.
Uchenna finished the half with a double-double with 17 points and 10 boards, including seven on the offensive end. Daniels pitched in eight points, while Laci Steele added seven points on 3-of-3 shooting.
Hargrove provided a first-half bright spot for Nebraska with 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting off the bench, while Prince and Maupin each contributed five points.
The Huskers return home on Saturday to take on Illinois. Tip-off between Nebraska and the Fighting Illini is set for 1 p.m. (CT)
