ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Wisconsin women's basketball team traveled to St. Paul, Minn. to face St. Thomas, and won, 78-55,  on Tuesday, Dec. 13, inside Schoenecker Arena.

The Badgers shined offensively against the Tommies, and broke several season and career records on the way. The most notable performance came from Serah Williams, who dropped her third double-double of the season with 21 points (6-12 FG, 9-10 FT) and collected 14 rebounds along with three blocks. D'Yanis Jimenez trailed her by one, with a total of 20 points (7-13 FG, 1-3 3FG, 5-5 FT). Brooke Schramek was the third player to score in double-digits with 15 points of her own (6-9 FG, 3-4 3FG) which marks a season-high for the senior.  

Wisconsin's scoring got underway with a three from Brooke Schramek, and was carried forward by a driving layup from Serah Williams. The sophomore was a strong offensive presence for the Badgers in the first quarter, scoring one-third of UW's points. Freshman D'Yanis Jimenez tied Williams with seven points, and the Badgers led 21-16 at the end of the first.

After a close first quarter in which the Tommies kept the Badgers' scoring in check, Wisconsin's offense ignited in the second. Williams and Jimenez combined to score the first seven points for UW, and were followed by a driving layup that Ronnie Porter converted into a three-point play. UW found a consistency in its shooting it had not seen in the first ten minutes, and heading into the locker room, Williams had 15 points, Jimenez had 12 and Schramek tallied 10. The Badgers totaled 21 points in the second quarter, and took a commanding 42-29 lead at half. 

Returning to the court after halftime, the Badgers initially lacked the offensive rhythm they had found in quarter two. St. Thomas began on a 5-0 run that trimmed the UW lead down to nine, but the Badgers got on the board after Williams scored two free throws, making her 7-7 from behind the line. From there, Wisconsin seemed to pick up right where they left off in the quarter before, and Williams secured a double-double, her third of the season. Williams already had 21 points and 12 rebounds when the third quarter came to a close, and helped push the Badgers to a 57-42 lead with 10 minutes to play.

The Badgers did not let up in the final quarter, and instead pushed the lead to 24 points. Lots of young faces got opportunities to see the court for Wisconsin, including freshman Leena Patibandla, who notched six points (2-2 FG, 1-1 3FG) in just three minutes played. UW closed out the night with a 78-55 victory. 

Wisconsin shot 46.6% (27-58) from the field range, and 43.8% (7-16) from 3-point range. The Badgers shot 73.9% (17-23)  from the free-throw line. The team finished with 40 rebounds and 14 assists. They had 24 points off turnovers as opposed to the Tommies' 12, and outscored them in the paint 38 to 22.

St. Thomas went 37.7% (20-53) from field-goal range, including 34.8% (8-23)  from behind the arc. The Tommies  were 77.8% (7-9)  from the free-throw line. The team's scoring was led by Jo Langbehn, who secured 14 points (7-10 FG) and four rebounds before ultimately fouling out.

Notes to know

• Serah Williams claimed her third double-double (21 points, 14 rebounds) of the season.

• Defense continued to stay strong as the Badgers held the Tommies to a 37.7 field goal percentage.

• The Badgers outshot the Tommies 38-22 in the paint, and went 17-23 from the free throw line.

• D'Yanis Jimenez, Brooke Schramek, and Williams contributed 56 of the team's 78 points.

• Many career-highs were handed out tonight, with Jimenez claiming 20 points and Sania Copeland grabbing eight rebounds.

Up next

Wisconsin will play their final non-conference game of the season on Thursday, Dec. 21 as it takes on Eastern Illinois inside the Kohl Center. The game can be streamed on B1G+ or listened to on 1070 WTSO-AM.