The Wisconsin Badgers are heading to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2005 after a 69-52 win over the Baylor Bears.
The 2nd-seeded Badgers lead throughout, holding the Bears to just 5-24 shooting in the first half en route to a 29-16 point lead. Once the second half began, things played out much like the first 20 minutes. Baylor shot 13-32 from the field in the final 20 minutes, shooting 31.6% for the game including just 2-15 from the 3.
While the narrative may tell you this was a return to the old-school defense of Wisconsin Badger past, that only tells part of the story. Baylor missed a lot of good looks. In the first-half specifically the Bears could not finish inside despite multiple attempts from point-blank range.
For the Badgers, Frank Kaminsky set the tone early. Kaminsky had eight quick points before Baylor could hit their second field goal and ended up with a game-high 19 points on 8-11 shooting from the field.
For the Bears, big men Isaiah Austin and Cory Jefferson combined for 27 points and 12 rebounds, but most of their contributions came in the second-half with Baylor playing from behind. Brady Heslip, who came into the game shooting 47% from downtown, scored just 3 points on 1-6 from the field.
Wisconsin moves on to Saturday where they will take on the winner of the Arizona Wildcats-SDSU Aztecs game for a shot at a Final Four berth.