(Published Sunday, January 7, 2007 12:07:39 AM CST)
A d v e r t i s e m e n t
By Jonathan Linder/Special to the Gazette
MADISON
Michael Flowers felt the University of Wisconsin basketball team was stagnant.
So when the opportunity arose to kindle a little excitement, the junior guard pounced.
Flowers turned a steal into a fast-break dunk and a four-point play, propelling fourth-ranked Wisconsin (15-1) to a 68-45 victory over Minnesota (7-9, 1-1) in a Big Ten opener for the Badgers here Saturday at the Kohl Center.
"In that game, everybody was pretty stagnant," Flowers said. "I just wanted to go out there and be a spark.
"I've been wanting all season for that one opportunity for a fast break. And I got it, and I was able to finish."
With just over than 11 minutes left in the first half and Wisconsin trailing 13-8, Flowers knocked the ball away from Minnesota guard Lawrence McKenzie, scooped it up near mid-court and darted down the floor with a clear path to the basket.
As Flowers rose up for an emphatic one-handed slam, Minnesota center Jonathan Williams collided with him. Flowers still finished the dunk, and Williams was whistled for an intentional foul.
"I kind of slowed down because I didn't think he was going to jump because I was so far in front of him," Flowers said. "I had jumped already, and for whatever reason he decided to jump . He kind of got me a little hard, so I think it was the right call."
Flowers made both free throws to pull Wisconsin within 13-12. The Badgers went on to outscore the Gophers 29-7 for a 37-20 halftime lead.
Alando Tucker further amplified the Badgers' momentum, and gave UW its first lead, with an alley-oop dunk in transition to make it 16-15.
"It got our crowd up," Tucker said of the two dunks. "Our energy started flowing from there.
"I was wowed after Mike's dunk. So that was good following it up. I think we got the whole building shaking after that.
"The crowd was into it, and we looked at each other down the bench. And everyone said, 'Let's go!' "
Marcus Landry tipped in a Tucker miss, blocked a Minnesota shot and scored in the paint to complete a 14-2 run to 20-15
The Badgers cruised from there. Tucker converted a three-point play to make it 26-16. Freshman guard Trevon Hughes' three-pointer made it 31-16. And Tucker closed the first-half rally with a lay-up with three seconds left.
Flowers finished with 11 points, four assists and three steals, coupling an efficient offensive performance with exemplary defense. He dogged Minnesota's leading scorer, Lawrence McKenzie, holding him to five points-well below his 16.3 average.
McKenzie's first points came on a lay-up with 6:20 left. The outcome had long since been decided.
Flowers credited Hughes, who impersonated McKenzie this week on UW's scout team.
"He did everything he thought McKenzie would do," Flowers said. "Maybe he did it a little bit better (than McKenzie). He got me prepared for it."
Minnesota made six of its first eight field-goal attempts, and Spencer Tollackson's jumper gave the Gophers a 12-6 lead at 15:16 in the first half. But they missed 15 of their next 16 shots, and they finished the first half shooting 30 percent.
Conversely, Wisconsin made just 2 of 12 shots in the first 8:05. Brian Butch snapped the Badgers' 6:01 field-goal drought with a lay-up at 11:14. The Badgers then made 12 of their last 18 shots before halftime.
"We couldn't hit any shots," said Tucker, who led all scorers with 14 points. "They came out on fire.
"But this is the type of team that we are. We keep our composure. And we just keep doing the things that we do well, and we never get away from that."
