Purdue's last-second three-pointer ends the season for Wisconsin women's basketball in heartbreaking fashion
That magical March Wisconsin coach Marisa Moseley so wanted for her team was in effect Thursday albeit briefly.
Maty Wilke’s three-pointer with 10.8 seconds left gave the Badgers women’s basketball team a one-point lead over Purdue in a second-round game at the Big Ten Tournament. One more stop and the Badgers would advance to the quarterfinals of the conference tournament for the first time in four years.
They couldn’t get it.
Jayla Smith’s three-pointer with 4.1 seconds left lifted the Boilermakers to a 57-55 victory at the Target Center in Minneapolis, providing a disappointing ending to a season of marked improvement for the UW program.
“Unbelievable two possessions there at the end of the game,” Moseley said. “Maty Wilke hits a huge shot. Their kid comes down, hits a huge shot. I think that's really what March is all about. Obviously, we'd love to be on the other side of that.”
Senior Julie Pospisilova finished with 17 points on 7-for-19 shooting and was a driving force behind UW building an 18-point first half lead. Wilke, a freshman, also scored 17 points with the bulk coming from 5-of-9 shooting from three-point range.
BOX SCORE:Purdue 57, Wisconsin 55
Senior guard Abbey Ellis had a game-high 19 points for Purdue. Smith scored just six points as the Boilermakers (19-9) advance to face No. 2 seed Iowa at 5:30 p.m. Friday.
Their 18-point comeback win was the second-largest in Big Ten Tournament history.
“Just a gutsy, gritty effort by our ball club,” Purdue coach Katie Gearlds said. “We had the ball on the last play and made one more play than they did.”
A season of milestones ends for Wisconsin
With the loss, Wisconsin finishes Moseley’s second season with an 11-20 record and a handful of milestones that indicate the program is trending upward. The team raised its overall win total by three and its number of Big Ten wins from five to six. The Badgers defeated a ranked opponent for the first time in two years and with a 10th-place finish in the conference posted its highest finish in 12 seasons.
The program’s first trip to the Big Ten quarterfinals in four years was almost in the cards, but after taking an 18-point lead with 4½ minutes left in the first half Purdue tightened up defense. Points became hard to come by and the turnovers increased significantly. Foul trouble that beset freshman Serah Williams, who sat out the final 11 minutes of the first half, and junior Brooke Schramek, who missed the final 6 of the second quarter, hampered the Badgers' cause, too.
UW’s three-point shooting – it connected on 7 of 16 attempts (43.7%) during the first three quarters – played a key role in allowing it to maintain the lead until the final 3½ minutes though the Boilermakers crept closer and closer.
The 18-point deficit was trimmed to nine at the half and was down to three heading into the fourth quarter.
“I think they were able to speed us up, and we kind of let them to be physical with us, and we didn't respond right away,” Pospisilova said. “They basically just didn't allow (us) to score, and we were not able to get ourselves together and just come together and play more confident.”
Fourth-quarter run gives Purdue the lead
A 14-5 run over about a 3½-minute span turned a 45-38 UW lead into a 52-50 deficit with 3 minutes 15 seconds to play. It was a two-possession game, 54-50, with 2:30 to go when the Badgers showed some of the mettle that helped them win four of their final five regular season game.
Williams, who struggled with finishing inside in the second half, made a tough and-1 opportunity at the 2:11 mark. Freshman Sania Copeland and Wilke made steals during the final 2 minutes to keep Purdue off the scoreboard.
Wilke’s steal came with 16 seconds to go and set up her go-ahead three-point. made a steal that set up final three. Pospisilova’s penetration was key on the play as she drove the lane and fired a pass to Wilke in the opposite corner for the open look.
The only thing that would have made the play better was for it to happen with less time remaining on the clock. After a timeout that allowed Purdue to advance the ball to midcourt, point guard Jeanae Terry attacked the rim, drawing four players toward the paint before dishing to Smith, who entered play shooting just 23.7% from three-point range.
With the loss UW says goodbye to three seniors: Pospisilova, Avery LaBarbera and Sara Stapleton.
“I'd also say bittersweet,” LaBarbera said. “These past couple weeks have been great. We won our last 4 out of 5, and I feel like we couldn't have scripted this season any better, at least the ending.
“I'm really grateful to Coach Mo and the staff for bringing me along this last year. I'm really proud to say that Julie and I and Sara Stapleton have left this place better than we found it.”
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin women's basketball falls to Purdue in heartbreaking fashion
