Morning State Sports Briefs: Badger grapplers tie Illinois despite missing three starters

• Wisconsin Badgers

Wisconsin Badgers

Talk about it

MADISON - The third-ranked Wisconsin wrestling team tied Illinois in their Big Ten opener yesterday, 19-19 at the UW Field House.

The Badgers were up by four points going into the final match. But the 15th-ranked Illini avoided the defeat when Daryl Thomas scored a 25-9 technical fall over Wisconsin’s Danny Arnel. The Badgers had three ranked competitors out with injuries, illness and academic issues – number-two Trevor Brandvold at 197 pounds, seventh-ranked Cole Schmitt at 149, and number-19 Ben Jordan at 174. Also, defending national champion Andrew Howe at 165 injured a hamstring in his bout yesterday. The Badgers are now 8-1-1 in dual meets. Winning their matches were Shawn Perry at 157 pounds, No. 4 ranked Travis Rutt at 184, Derrick Borlie at 197, Eric Bugenhagen at heavyweight, Tom Kelliher at 125 and No. 3 Tyler Graff at 133.

The Badgers will wrestle No. 16 Nebraska Friday at 7 p.m. at the UW Field House.

_______________________________________________________________

For the second year in a row, the Milwaukee Bucks will play a Martin Luther King Day afternoon game in Houston. Last year, the Bucks lost to the Rockets in overtime – and it dropped Milwaukee to 16-and-23 before they rallied to make the playoffs. Now, the Bucks are 14-and-23 – and injuries have forced the Bucks to keep shuffling their lineups. Coach Scott Skiles says the Bucks must still find a way to play consistently, which they haven’t done all season. Houston comes in at 18-and-23. The Rockets ended Atlanta’s 10-game winning streak Saturday. Milwaukee has lost five-of-its-last-six. But in spite of their troubles, the Bucks are only a game back for the eighth-and-final playoff spot in the NBA’s Eastern Conference. But five teams are within four games of that spot, and Skiles is trying to get the Bucks to separate themselves from the pack. Two starters are still out – point guard Brandon Jennings with a broken left foot, and forward Carlos Delfino with the after-effects of a concussion. Both did some shooting yesterday, but neither has been cleared for full contact.

________________________________________________________________

The University of Wisconsin women's basketball team lost at Michigan yesterday, 75-59. The Badgers led only once when it was 3-2. The Wolverines went up by 13 at the half and as many as 19 later on -- and they did it with three-point shooting. Michigan made 11-of-24 from the beyond the arc, while the Badgers just 7-of-21. Wisconsin also had 16 turnovers to just nine for the Wolverines. Veronica Hicks had 21 points and 10 rebounds for Michigan, which improved to 3-2 in the Big Ten Conference and 10-7 overall. Taylor Wurtz scored 14 for the Badgers, who dropped to 4-2 in league play and 9-9 overall. Wisconsin plays at Minnesota on Thursday night.

_________________________________________________________________

The Marquette University women improved to 15-3 on the year, with a 61-55 victory at South Florida yesterday. The Golden Eagles trailed by seven at the half. But Tatiyiana McMorris put Marquette in front for good by hitting a three-pointer with 3:12 left. And she hit another three in the final minute to seal the victory. McMorris led the Eagles with 15 points, and Sarina Simmons had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Marquette only shot 33-percent from the floor, but they made 18-of-21 from the free throw line. South Florida didn’t shoot much better at 35-percent, and the Bulls were out-rebounded 49-38. Andrea Smith scored 17 points for South Florida, which is still winless in Big East play at 0-5 and 9-10 overall. Marquette improved to 3-2 in the conference. They’ll host Syracuse on Saturday.

_________________________________________________________________

The University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team won its 10th straight game yesterday, 6-0 over Saint Cloud State at the Kohl Center. Hilary Knight had two goals and one assist, as the top-ranked Badgers out-shot the Huskies 52-to-10. Meghan Duggan scored once, extending her current point streak to 20 games. That’s tied for the longest in Wisconsin history. Meghan Hunter also scored in 20 straight games in 2000 and 2001. Freshman goal-tender Alex Rigsby earned her fourth shutout, as Wisconsin improved to 16-and-2 in the WCHA and 22-2 overall. Saint Cloud State is still winless. They’re now 0-17-1 in the conference, and 0-22-1 overall.

Tags: wisconsin sports, sports, proam