John Blackwell pulled up and drilled a 25-footer as time ran out, lifting Wisconsin to a 78-75 win over Minnesota in a Big Ten matchup on Tuesday in Minneapolis.
Blackwell’s teammates chased him for a lap around the floor to celebrate the dramatic end to the Badgers’ rally.
Blackwell finished with 27 points on 8-for-14 shooting, including 5 of 7 from 3-point range, to lead Wisconsin (12-5, 4-2 Big Ten). Braeden Carrington, who began his career at Minnesota, finished with a career-high 21 points off the bench while Nolan Winter added 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Jaylen Crocker-Johnson scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds for Minnesota (10-7, 3-3). Isaac Asuma contributed 17 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Cade Tyson scored 14 points and Langston Reynolds notched 12 points and 10 assists before fouling out.
Wisconsin led in the final minutes until the Golden Gophers evened the score, 75-75, when Tyson squared his feet at the top of the key and made a 3-pointer with 4.6 seconds to go.
The Badgers quickly regrouped. Blackwell dribbled the ball across halfcourt as the seconds ticked down, rose for a shot over a Gopher and watched it drop through the net as the buzzer sounded.
The shot prevented overtime on the road for Wisconsin, which trailed 35-28 at halftime and fell behind 41-30 after Crocker-Johnson’s three-point play with 18:23 to go.
A turnaround jump shot by Tyson gave Minnesota a 57-52 lead with 10:42 to go, but Wisconsin responded with a 14-0 run.
Blackwell made a 3-pointer on the Badgers’ next possession to start the spree. Carrington followed with a 3-pointer to give Wisconsin a 58-57 lead with 9:36 remaining.
After a pair of free throws by Blackwell, Carrington made two more 3-pointers to punctuate the run. His shot with 7:27 left increased Wisconsin’s lead to 66-57.
The Gophers kept closing the gap, only for the Badgers to widen it again. A Nick Boyd free throw with 24 seconds left pushed Wisconsin’s lead to 75-72, which set up Tyson’s short-lived heroics.
The Badgers finished 14 of 33 from 3-point range while the Gophers hit 5 of 18 beyond the arc.
–Field Level Media
