No. 5 Wisconsin whips Purdue, reaches Big Ten final

CHICAGO (AP) — Bronson Koenig scored a career-high 19 points and No. 5 Wisconsin beat Purdue 71-51 on Saturday to advance to the Big Ten Tournament championship.

Nigel Hayes had 15 points and the top-seeded Badgers held the Boilermakers to 24 percent shooting in the second half of their fifth straight victory. Frank Kaminsky led the strong defensive effort down the stretch and finished with 12 points.

Wisconsin (30-3) reached 30 wins for the fourth time and can match the school record for victories with a win in Sunday's final against Michigan State. It also bolstered its case for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament after Virginia and Duke lost on Friday.

A.J. Hammons had 10 points — all in the first half — and seven rebounds for No. 4 seed Purdue (21-12).

The Boilermakers led by five at the break, but the Badgers opened the second half with a 14-3 run. Kaminsky, who got off to a sluggish start, seemed to find his game by playing tough defense on Hammons, and Koenig scored five straight points to help the Badgers to a 44-38 lead with 13:51 left.

Thompson's three-point play got Purdue within 46-44, but the Badgers responded with 13 straight points. Kaminsky started it with a jumper and also found Sam Dekker for a fast-break dunk that drew a big cheer from the pro-Wisconsin crowd at the United Center.

Dekker finished with 15 points and eight rebounds for Wisconsin, which shot 57 percent in the second half.

Hammons helped Purdue get off to a nice start with three blocked shots on help defense in the first half, including two on Kaminsky. He also showed off his offensive skills after Koenig scored five points in a 9-2 Wisconsin run that tied it at 30 with 1:09 left.

Coming out of a timeout, the Boilermakers threw it inside to Hammons, and the junior connected on a jump hook. Thompson hit a 3-pointer in the final seconds to make it 35-30 at halftime.

TIP-INS

Purdue: The Boilermakers advanced with a 64-59 victory over Penn State on Friday. … Purdue went 7 for 14 from 3-point range.

Wisconsin: The Badgers outrebounded the Boilermakers 35-27 and have won the rebounding battle in 24 of their 33 games this season. … Wisconsin has 25 double-digit wins.

UP NEXT

Purdue waits to see where it's headed for the NCAA Tournament.

Wisconsin faces Michigan State in Sunday's Big Ten Tournament final

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