Dec. 9, 2010
Wisconsin 60, Drake49
Knapp Center • Des Moines, Iowa
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| 1st | 2nd | Final | | Wisconsin (3-7) | 30 | 30 | 60 | | Drake (5-3) | 19 | 30 | 49 | | | | | | Stats at a Glance
| WIS | DU | FG Percentage
| .465 | .375 | | 3-Point FG Percentage | .308 | .294 | | FT Percentage | .762 | .800 | Offensive Rebounds
| 9 | 10 | | Defensive Rebounds | 20 | 15 | | Total Rebounds | 29 | 25 | Turnovers
| 19 | 21 | Assists
| 11 | 10 | Fouls
| 7 | 15 | | |
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• Box Score | Box Score 
DES MOINES, Iowa -- The Wisconsin women's basketball team (3-7) snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 60-49 victory over the Drake Bulldogs Thursday night at the Knapp Center.
Fast Facts
| • UW's Karel leads all scorers with 24 points
| • Wurtz pulls down 10 rebounds for Wisconsin
| • Badgers outrebound Drake, 29-25
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The victory was extra special for Wisconsin head coach Lisa Stone, who made the return to Drake since coaching there for three seasons (2000-2003).
"There are a lot of very fond memories here at the Knapp Center, but I've never been in the visiting locker room," Stone said.
"When you are on a seven-game losing streak and you're trying to find your way out of it, (for) our kids, it didn't matter where we played or who we played, it didn't matter what the nostalgia was about the game. It was more about us getting a win. I'm proud of our team."
It was an 11-point run in the final five minutes of the first half that helped the Badgers surge past the Bulldogs with a 30-19 advantage heading into the locker room at halftime.
Senior co-captain Alyssa Karel helped jump-start the run with 4:54 left in the first half, when she sunk one from downtown to give the Badgers the 23-19 lead. Karel completed the streak by nailing a jumper nine seconds before intermission.
The senior guard led all scorers with 24 points, including nine points from beyond the arc and .875 accuracy from the free throw line (7-of-8).
Also helping the Badgers with a double-digit night offensively was senior forward Lin Zastrow, who finished with 15 points. Zastrow's performance helped UW outscore the Bulldogs in the paint, 22-8.
"It's great to see Alyssa Karel back. She made her free throws, 7-of-8. Lin Zastrow showed some urgency as well. Those two seniors--those are our two best players. They played very well."
The Badgers led by as many as 15 points--twice in the second half--including for the first time when Wisconsin took a 34-19 lead with 18:12 left in the game.
Drake's Morgan Reid was able to shrink the Bulldogs' deficit to six points (39-33) with 14:32 left in the contest; however, it was not enough as the Badgers held Drake to just two points in the next five minutes and 30 seconds to pull away to a 50-35 lead with 9:02 left in the matchup. The Cardinal and White led by at least eight points in the final nine minutes of the game.
Sophomore Taylor Wurtz anchored the Cardinal and White off the glass with 10 boards, marking her third double-figure rebounding game of the season. Her pull-down efforts helped Wisconsin outrebound Drake, 29-25.
In addition, Wurtz held Drake's leading scorer, Kristin Turk, to just six points in the first half. Turk finished with a team-high 19 points for the Bulldogs including three 3-pointers in the second half.
"Taylor Wurtz did a phenomenal job on the boards," Stone said. "Taylor Wurtz's defense on Turk in the first half was simply the best defense I've seen out of any of our players this year.
"In the second half, Turk had a couple of looks. She's a really good player and Taylor got her head down and I said, `No Taylor, you keep doing what you're doing, we're going to get you some help from our other guards,' and we did a nice job that way."
Wisconsin finished with at least 30 percent accuracy in all scoring categories. The Badgers capitalized on 20-of-43 attempts from the field (.465 percent) and knocked down 4-of-13 from 3-point land (30.8 percent). In addition, the Badgers held the Bulldogs to just 10 trips to the free throw line and Wisconsin finished 16-of-21 from behind the line for .762 percent.
"It feels good to have a win," Stone said. "A win puts a warm feeling in your heart, but we want to get some more, a lot more."
The Badgers decreased their all-time record deficit with the Bulldogs to 2-3 in Des Moines and tied the all-time series at 5-5 overall. The last time Wisconsin defeated Drake was Nov. 20, 2008, when UW captured a 55-39 victory over the Blue and White.
Wisconsin hits the court again this weekend as it plays host to in-state rival Milwaukee at 1 p.m. (CT) Sunday.
