NORMAL, Ill. —  Wisconsin traveled to Normal, Ill. to take on Illinois State on Sunday, but were outscored 62-57. The Badgers were able to cut down a substantial Redbirds' lead late in the fourth quarter and get within four points, but fell for the second time this season.

Wisconsin trailed for most of the game, but it did not give up during the 40-minute contest. The Badgers went on several runs, including outsourcing Illinois State 13-0 late in the fourth quarter. Their defense also seemed to pick up as the game went on, and they held the Redbirds to 13 points in the final 10 minutes of the contest. 

Serah Williams led the way for the Badgers with 16 points (7-13 FG, 2-4 FT) and was the team's leading scorer for the third time this season. The freshman also contributed eight rebounds, which tied for a team-high with Julie Pospisilova.

The Badgers started off the first quarter down 11-2, but went on a 13-0 run that included four points from Williams. They led by four before Illinois State closed out the quarter up 16-15. Heading into the second quarter, offense was hard to come by for Wisconsin, and to make matters worse, Halle Douglass exited the game with an injury. After leaving the floor with 2:50 on the clock, the Badgers did not score again and went into halftime trailing 33-22.

Coming back from the break, Illinois State had the momentum and was draining threes, most from Paige Robinson. It wasn't until the fourth quarter where Wisconsin really began to turn the game around. The Badgers went on a 13-0 run that lasted over five minutes and got within four points of the Redbirds with just over two minutes to play. Wisconsin's defense really started to control Illinois State, and substituting  Ronnie Porter and Sania Copeland to press helped get the ball back into the hands of the Badgers. In the end, it was not enough to bring home a win, but Wisconsin fought hard until the clock ran out. 

Illinois State went 39.3% (22-56)  from field-goal range, including 42.3% (11-26) from three and 58.3% (7-12)  from the free-throw line. Paige Robinson took over the offense for the Redbirds, scoring 37 points and going a perfect 7-7 from three. 

Notes to know

• Serah Williams led the Badgers in scoring for the third game this season.

• Julie Pospisilova did a little bit of everything against the Redbirds, notching 12 points (4-12 FG, 2-4 3FG, 2-6 FT), eight rebounds and six assists. 

Up next

Wisconsin heads to the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam women's basketball tournament in St. Thomas where they will play Georgia, Seton Hall and VCU. Games will take place at the University of the Virgin Islands Sports and Fitness Center from Nov. 24-26 and will be streamed on ESPN+. Tip time for all three contests is set for noon.