The Wisconsin Badgers (20-14) have earned another 40 minutes in the National Invitational Tournament, as the 2-seeded Badgers used a 13-4 run to finish the game and take down the top-seeded Oregon Ducks (21-15), 61-58, from Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Oregon to advance to the Final Four of the NIT!
Winning a very close, low scoring NIT Elite 8 game in the final seconds feels oddly cathartic for these Badgers.
Max Klesmit led UW with 18 points, with 14 of them coming in the second half. Klesmit has been nearly perfect offensively in the final minutes these last two games.
UW head coach Greg Gard on Max Klesmit: “He did not want to lose. (He’s) From the state, wearing that jersey means a ton to him.”
Tyler Wahl and Chucky Hepburn struggled from the field, but the two combined on the biggest hoop of the night, the game-winner. Recognizing Oregon’s zone defense (one of its only possessions in that defense), Wahl executed the skip pass to a wide open Hepburn who nailed a triple. Needed a play, made a play.
UW was 2-for-14 from 3-point range, before they went 3-for-3 from distance in the game’s final 3:14 — Essegian, Klesmit & Hepburn.
The Badgers have not typically shot the ball particularly well in crunch time this season. However, Tuesday night in Eugene, UW made five of its last six shots. The only miss was that Klesmit layup that didn’t need to be taken.
That was a helluva win for the Badgers.
For the Greg Gard haters — this team plays their asses off every time they take the court.
This team has made the most out of their opportunity to continue playing in March.
Up Next:
The Wisconsin Badgers will take on the North Texas Mean Green (29-7) on Tuesday, March 28th at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada in the NIT Final Four!
Tipoff time for the game is currently TBA, but the game will be nationally televised on ESPN/ESPN2.
It will be the first ever meeting between Wisconsin & North Texas.
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