A dominating defensive performance in the first half fueled the Gophers men’s basketball team to an upset victory on the road against 22nd-ranked Wisconsin on Thursday night.
Minnesota (12-2, 2-1) limited the Badgers to just 23 percent shooting in the first half and took a 29-14 lead into the locker room, and then held off a furious Badgers comeback bid en route to a 59-52 victory.
The win snapped an eight-game losing streak to Wisconsin and was Minnesota’s first victory at the Kohl Center in Madison since 2009.
Amir Coffey led the gophers 21 points and Dupree McBrayer scored 14 points and had two big steals that turned into back-to-back layups late in the game to help Minnesota stave off Wisconsin’s rally.
Badgers preseason All-American Ethan Happ finished with 17 points, but converted just 1-of-7 free throws as Minnesota elected to intentionally foul him late in the game. As a team, the Badgers made just 7-of-17 from the charity stripe and were 5-of-22 on 3-pointers.
Up next: Gophers host Maryland on Tuesday.
