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Wisconsin takes down Ohio State in Big Ten battle

Feb 27, 2012 - 12:40 AM Columbus, OH (Sports Network) - Jordan Taylor netted 19 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out four assists, and No. 16 Wisconsin edged No. 8 Ohio State, 63-60, in a thriller on Sunday.

Jared Berggren scored 18 points and Ryan Evans had a double-double with 10 points to go with 10 boards for the Badgers (21-8, 10-6 Big Ten), who bounced back from a one-point loss at Iowa on Thursday.

Deshaun Thomas led all scorers with 23 points and William Buford contributed 15 points and nine rebounds for the Buckeyes (23-6, 11-5), who have lost two of three. Aaron Craft added 13 points in defeat.

"We've played two very good teams. Today, we needed to have the ability to sustain what we had going, which we didn't do. We didn't get the execution or the defensive stops that we needed," said Ohio State head coach Thad Matta.

Jared Sullinger, Ohio State's leading scorer averaging 17.2 points per game, was held to eight points.

In a scintillating game that featured 22 lead changes, none was more important than Berrgen's three-pointer, giving the Badgers a 61-59 edge. It was a lead that they did not relinquish.

Down 59-58, Berggren accepted a pass from Taylor just beyond the arc on the left wing and drained his decisive three.

"You always measure people by what it takes to discourage them, if you get discouraged and get frustrated it doesn't help in the game of basketball. Our guys stayed to the task," Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan said. "Sometimes the ball bounces a certain way, sometimes it doesn't bounce your way and sometimes it does. We needed to knuckle down and we started to make some shots. The rim looks a little bigger when you can make a couple."

Prior to that climatic trey, the teams had exchanged the lead an astounding eight times in under three minutes, with neither team leading by more than a single point.

The first came when Wisconsin erased a six-point Ohio State lead with a 7-0 spurt to go ahead 52-51 with 3:47 to play.

Craft responded on the Buckeyes' next possession with a jumper, then Taylor netted two free throws. Thomas had a chance to put Ohio State up two with the and-one free throw after a layup, but could not convert the freebie.

Berggren promptly slammed home a dunk to put Wisconsin on top, but Craft once again responded with a layup on the other end.

After rare pointless possessions by both squads, Taylor dropped in another two free throws with 1:03 remaining to play.

Sullinger followed with a layup to give Ohio State its final lead of the night.

The Badgers were held to just 39.3 percent (11-of-28) shooting from the field in the first half while the Buckeyes posted a 54.5 percent mark (12-of-22), but 10 Ohio State turnovers gave Wisconsin an opportunity to keep it close. The game was tied at 29 at halftime.

Game Notes

Ohio State committed 12 turnovers overall...There were nine ties...With Ohio State's loss, Michigan State earned at least a share of the Big Ten regular season title...Wisconsin shot 38.1 percent (8-of-21) from three-point range.