Badgers Struggle, Lose to Xavier 57-48
December 10, 2001 | Men's Basketball
The Wisconsin men's basketball team had a difficult time putting points on the board, as the Xavier Musketeers dominated the game from tip-off and won 57-48. It was a low scoring night with only one Badger reaching double-digits, as the team's leading scorer Devin Harris was held to ten points in 29 minutes of play.
Entering the second half the Badgers trailed 21-33, and the Musketeer 's lead hovered around 10 points for most of the half. The Badgers cut it to as close as a six-point game after Mike Wilkinson hit one of two from the line, making it 42-48 with 4:27 left on the clock. The Badgers were in foul trouble all night, with senior Charlie Wills receiving his fifth of the game with a little over two minutes to play. The Badgers then added a pair of twos by Wilkinson and Freddie Owens to put the game at 48-54, but it was not enough to gain control.
The Badgers trailed the entire game, struggling to gain momentum from the beginning of the first. Wills came through with an early deuce giving the Badgers their first points of the game at 19:17, and followed it up with a three-pointer a few minutes later. The Badger senior was 3-7 from the field on the night, with all three connections coming in the first half.
The Badgers were held to 35 percent field goal shooting, making 21 of 60 attempts, while the Musketeers ended with 45 percent, going 21-46 from the field. Wisconsin turned the ball over 14 times, but forced Xavier to do the same.
The team returns home to the Kohl Center where they will host Furman on Saturday, with the action tipping off at 3 p.m.
