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Flowers, Tucker help Wisconsin outlast pesky Winthrop

Dec 5, 2006 - 3:43 AM MADISON, Wisconsin (Ticker) -- Michael Flowers gave Alando Tucker another chance.

Flowers forced overtime with a follow shot with 10 seconds left and Tucker scored five of his 21 points in the extra session as No. 12 Wisconsin escaped with an 82-79 victory over pesky Winthrop.

Flowers also scored 21 points for the Badgers (8-1), who squandered a 13-point lead in the second half but recovered to continue their dominance at home under coach Bo Ryan.

The Badgers still held a 63-56 lead with less than three minutes to play before the Eagles (6-3) went on a 9-0 run and took the lead with 53 seconds left on a 3-pointer by Michael Jenkins, who made five 3-pointers and scored 17 points.

"They have such good 3-point shooters, they can sting," Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan said. "They had a couple runs where we tried to give ourselves some space but they come right back."

Tucker missed a lane jumper, but Winthrop lost the rebound out of bounds. Tucker missed a runner, but Flowers rebounded and tossed in a nifty lefthanded shot to tie it.

"In order for him to get that opportunity we had to fight for the other ones," Ryan said. "They were scrapping, we were scrapping, we get a couple offensive rebounds, one goes off them last, he gets the opportunity. "

"We just couldn't get a rebound, and the ball hit the floor a couple of times and they kept coming up with it, so a credit to them," Winthrop coach Gregg Marshall said. "They got the shot that they needed and finally put it in the basket."

Winthrop's Torrell Martin missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer, sending the contest to overtime, where Wisconsin quickly took control.

A 3-pointer by Flowers gave the Badgers the lead for good at 68-66. Brian Butch put in a short banker and Tucker drained a long 3-pointer from the left wing for a 73-67 advantage with 2:13 to play.

A follow shot by Butch kept the lead at six points before Jenkins missed a 3-pointer and Tucker drew an intentional foul. He made both free throws and Kammron Taylor added one for a 78-69 bulge with 45 seconds to play.

Butch had 17 points and nine rebounds for Wisconsin, which shot 46 percent (26-of-56) from the field and held a 40-18 advantage on the backboards. The Badgers had 21 offensive rebounds while the Eagles had 14 defensive rebounds.

"That's the part we've got to work on," Marshall said. "That's the part that disappoints me the most."

"What won the game tonight was not field-goal percentage but hustle opportunities," Ryan said.

Martin made seven 3-pointers and scored 31 points and Craig Bradshaw added 10 points for Winthrop, which shot 55 percent (29-of-53), including a torrid 15-of-25 from the arc.

"(Martin) was the best player on the floor tonight," Marshall said. "He just was terrific."

"That's 45 points on 25 shots," Ryan said. "That's pretty good points per possession."

The Eagles have lost to ranked foes North Carolina (seven points), Maryland (11) and Wisconsin.

Wisconsin improved to 7-0 at the Kohl Center this season and 79-5 in five seasons under Ryan. The Badgers have won 34 of their last 35 home contests against non-league foes.