MADISON, Wis. —  The University of Wisconsin women's basketball team played St. Thomas on Sunday, Dec. 11, and won by a final score of 72-64.

After a hard-fought battle, the Badgers secured their second-straight victory over the Tommies. The team's offense looked rejuvenated in Sunday's match, and Brooke Schramek led the team with a season-high 18 points (4-6 FG, 1-2 3FG, 9-10 FT). The junior averaged 9.4 points through the first 11 games of the season, but brought the heat against St. Thomas. 

Julie Pospisilova broke her offensive drought, adding 14 points (6-13 FG, 0-3 3FG, 2-2 FT) against the Tommies, the most she's scored since Dec. 1. She's one of the UW upperclassmen that dominated on offense, with the juniors and seniors combining for 56 points against St. Thomas. 

Wisconsin got some solid production off its bench, with Lily Krahn, Sydney Hilliard, Natalie Leuzinger and Krystyna Ellew combining for 19 points. Krahn dropped seven points (2-7, 1-6, 2-2 FT) with three rebounds, one assists, two blocks and two steals while Leuzinger secured four points (1-1 FG, 2-2 FT), three rebounds and one assist. Each of these two players typically averages well under 10 minutes per game, but were key factors in helping UW go home with a win.

Pospisilova got Wisconsin on the board first with a quick jumper, and led her team in scoring after the first 10 minutes. She recorded eight points in the first quarter, while Serah Williams added four of her own. The Badgers' scoring slowed down in the second quarter, as the team logged 12 points to contrast the Tommies' 18. Wisconsin was able to force nine turnovers in the first half while St. Thomas forced just two, but UW trailed 34-30 heading into the half.

The offense was lacking a bit at the start of the third quarter with Wisconsin going down by 10 points with 6:27 on the clock, but the Badgers stayed tough. They were able to get within three points of the Tommies as the quarter came to a close, thanks to a buzzer-beating shot from Krahn. Wisconsin had its best offensive performance in the final quarter, shooting 61.5% from field-goal range and scoring 27 points. In the last 10 minutes, Avery LaBarbera contributed nine points and Schramek added eight. 

Wisconsin shot 43.1% (22-51) from the field as well as 23.5% (4-17) from 3-point range. The team drained 85.7% (24-28) of its free throws. 

St. Thomas shot 42.1% (24-57) from field-goal range, including 36.8% (7-19) from three and 81.8% (9-11) from the free throw line. Jo Langbehn came off the bench for St. Thomas and dropped 21 points (9-13 FG, 3-5 FT) after averaging 7.3 points in her first eight games of the season. 

Wisconsin was outrebounded 37-23, and outnumbered in assists 13-10, but  had two more steals and four more blocks than St. Thomas. The Badgers also committed just seven turnovers, while forcing 17 onto the Tommies.

Straight from the Court

Head Coach Marisa Moseley

"Extremely proud of the fight in our team, down four at the half and down ten at one point in the third. I think that there's two people up here and some other players that were very instrumental. We talked in the locker room about Natalie… She's the most humble person you'll meet but also works extremely hard. She's the epitome of what you want a Wisconsin Badger to be."

Junior guard Brooke Schramek

"I think this win was a huge confidence boost for us. The season is always going to be rocky, that's just how it is, it's super long. There's going to be injuries, foul trouble in games but I think just continuing to trust each other and know we have confidence in each and every player whether you're a starter or off the bench, continuing to remind each other that we're going to get through this. I think that win proved that we have the confidence to keep going."

Junior guard Natalie Leuzinger 

"We definitely need to trust each other because there's going to be stuff that happens. Having our bench with a ton of energy, people who aren't on the court, having that energy really helps out."

Notes to know

• Brooke Schramek recorded a season-high in points with 18 (4-6 FG, 1-2 3FG, 9-10 FT). 

• Julie Pospisilova had her best offensive performance since dropping 32 points against Florida State on Dec. 1, accumulating 14 points (6-13 FG, 0-3 3FG, 2-2 FT) against St. Thomas. 

• The Badgers recorded 24-made free throws and shot 85.7% (24-28) from the line.

• Wisconsin turned the ball over just seven times, and scored 20 points off of 17 St. Thomas turnovers. 

Up next

Wisconsin heads to Green Bay to play an in-state matchup against the Phoenix on Wednesday, Dec. 14. The game will be played in the Kress Center and will be streamed on ESPN+ at 7 p.m.