--Big Ten voters could have saved time when selecting the league's All-Defensive Team by just cutting and pasting the Wisconsin lineup.
The Badgers have been among the Division I leaders in scoring defense all season, but they have taken their suffocating style to a new level lately. Entering the semifinals, their last five opponents had averaged just 44.4 points while shooting 32.4 percent (85 of 262) from the field and 25.8 percent (24 of 93) from 3-point range.
--Joe Krabbenhoft led all scorers with 12 points as the Badgers beat the Wolverines 51-34 in the lowest-scoring game in Big Ten tournament history in the quarterfinal round Friday in Indianapolis.
No. 8 Wisconsin won its eighth consecutive game and defeated Michigan for the eighth time in the last 10 meetings.
The previous record for combined points was 89 by Michigan and Minnesota during the first round last season. The Wolverines' 34 points eclipsed the 40 scored by the Gophers last season for the lowest team total in the tournament's 11-year history.
Michigan shot just 20 percent (10 of 50) from the field, making six field goals in the first half and four in the second.
The Badgers weren't exactly lighting it up themselves. They shot 34 percent (17 of 50) from the field and 27 percent (3-for-11) from 3-point range, but won the battle of boards (43-34) and scored 14 points off 14 turnovers. They outscored Michigan 24-8 in the paint
Senior G Michael Flowers tallied 11 points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists and played his usual lockdown defense, limiting Michigan freshman Manny Harris to a career-low four points on one of 12 shooting. Harris entered the game ranked third in the Big Ten at 16.5 points per game.
--Krabbenhoft's 12-point game against the Wolverines was his first double-figure effort in more than a month, dating back to a 12-point game vs. Purdue on Feb. 9.
--Senior C Brian Butch was scoreless until making one of two free throws with 11:22 left in the game. That was his only point as he went 0-for-7 from the field and logged a season-low 16 minutes because of foul trouble.
--Wisconsin finished the regular season as the nation's No. 1 team in scoring defense. The Badgers surrendered 1,629 points in 30 games -- otherwise known as 54.3 points per game.
Only three teams reached the 70-point mark against Wisconsin this season -- and all three were in the Top 25 at the time. No. 7 Duke rolled up 82 on Nov. 27, No. 11 Marquette posted 81 on Dec. 8 and No. 24 Purdue hit for 72 on Feb. 9. Not coincidentally, those games represent three-fourths of the Badgers' losses for the year.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"They both were (huge). At Duke, we absolutely got our butts kicked. That's all there is to say about it. And then at Texas, you start believing. And once you believe in yourself and the locker room believes, it's cool to see it evolve." -- Wisconsin senior center Brian Butch, explaining in the Daily Herald how the Badgers' loss at Duke and win at Texas helped them win the Big Ten regular-season title.
Copyright (C) 2008 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.
