MADISON, Wis. -  The Wisconsin women's basketball fell to Michigan State, 88-63, in a Big Ten battle on Wednesday night at the Kohl Center.

Julie Pospisilova paced the Badgers with 22 points and added six assists. Serah Williams finished the night with 18 points, five rebounds and two blocks.

The Badgers and Pospisilova got off to a hot start, shooting 53.3% from the field in the first quarter, as Pospisilova finished the first frame with 11 points. The Badgers took a 20-14 lead heading into the second quarter. 

Serah Williams highlighted the second quarter with eight points, going 4-for-5 from the field. However, Michigan State shot 60% from the field in the second quarter and put together a 7-0 run, as it tied the game at 36-all heading into halftime.

Despite the Badgers shooting 28.6% in the third quarter, they remained within striking distance as the Spartans eked out a 58-54 edge heading into the fourth.

Michigan State took over in the fourth quarter, starting it with a 16-2 run and the Badgers were not able to recover. The Spartans shot 75.0% from the field in the final quarter, and ultimately outscored Wisconsin, 30-9 in the final stanza.

Up next, the Badgers will travel to Minnesota to face the Gophers on Saturday afternoon. Tip is set for 3 p.m.

Straight from the court

Head coach Marisa Moseley

"I just want to apologize on behalf of my team for our performance in the fourth quarter… that is not Wisconsin women's basketball."

"Our mentality going into the games is to try and prepare to win. We have to put ourselves into a position to do everything that we can to be disciplined to execute our game plan. For us in these last five games, we are taking it one game at a time and we are just trying to make sure we finish in the best way possible for this season knowing that we are still building a foundation and laying down bricks for the future here."