Looking Back - Dec. 29, 2007: Wisconsin stuns Texas, 67-66
December 22, 2008 | Men's Basketball
The task was monumental. Wisconsin was playing on the road in a hostile environment, facing the No. 9 team in the country and oh, by the way' would be without the services of point guard and leading scorer Trevon Hughes, who sprained his ankle the day before in practice.
Refusing to make excuses, the Badgers stood toe-to-toe with the Longhorns before literally stealing a 67-66 victory in the closing seconds.
Junior Marcus Landry trimmed a three-point UW deficit to just one at 65-64 with a baseline jumper with 18 seconds left. Wisconsin was then forced to foul A.J. Abrams on the ensuing possession sending him to the line for two free throws. The Texas junior, who was shooting 93 percent from the free throw line, would make just one of two, giving the Longhorns a 66-64 lead with 11.3 seconds remaining.
That set the stage for Michael Flowers' late-game heroics. The senior guard hurried the ball up the floor, came off a high screen from Brian Butch and drained a three-pointer from the top of the key with 2.7 seconds remaining. Flowers' swish gave UW a 67-66 lead and silenced a raucous Frank Erwin Center crowd.
"I don't think they were coming down looking for a 3-point shot," Abrams, who was guarding Flowers, said of Wisconsin's final possession. "He's a threat but we were playing for the drive. He just let it go and you've got live with it."
Following his 3-pointer, Flowers then made another great play as he cut in front of Texas' D.J. Augustine to steal the inbounds pass. As he was falling out of bounds, Flowers then threw the ball straight up in the air. Time ran out before the ball landed, giving UW the dramatic 67-66 win.
"I was laying for that steal all game and I finally got one on that inbounds pass," Flowers said after the game. "I jumped and left my feet so I couldn't come down and call timeout. I just threw it straight up in the air and hoped time ran out."
The win marked Wisconsin's first road victory over a top-10 team since the Badgers defeated No. 4 Ohio State, 72-71, on Jan. 26, 1980 in Columbus, Ohio.
Senior Brian Butch led the Badgers strong inside game with a team-high 21 points and 11 rebounds, his third double-double of the season. UW outscored Texas 36-28 in the paint and grabbed 12 offensive rebounds in the second half.
Landry added 14 points as the two post players combined make 16-of-30 shots. Sophomore guard Jason Bohannon, getting his first career start in place of the injured Hughes, scored 10 points (three 3-pointers) and grabbed five rebounds.
v=uBGGtJ-TZtg&feature=related"> --> Watch the final 18 seconds here (video).
