Wisconsin?s First-Half Run Sinks Women's Basketball

A late first-half run by Wisconsin gave the Badgers some cushion en route to defeating the Canisius College women's basketball team 69-54 in the Kohl Center on Sunday afternoon.

Sophomore Micayla Drysdale led Canisius (1-2) with 19 points, which tied her career high and included a shooting performance of 5-for-6 on 3-pointers. Junior and Wisconsin native Ellie Radke had 13 points and seven rebounds in 29 minutes off the bench.

“It's tough to win when you turn the basketball over, especially against a team from the Big Ten,” Canisius coach Terry Zeh said. “The 3-pointer Wisconsin made late in the first half took some energy out of us. We have to focus on the process of working hard on defense in that possession and just realizing Wisconsin made a really tough shot.”

Two free throws from junior Brianna Lucas cut the Wisconsin lead to 31-24 with 2:59 remaining in the first half. The Badgers would score seven points in the final three minutes of the half, capped by a 3-pointer from Jade Davis to make it 38-24 at the intermission.

Wisconsin (2-1) held Canisius scoreless for the opening five and a half minutes of the second half, scoring 10 unanswered points. Two free throws by Stephanie MacDonald made the score 48-26 with 14:27 left in the game. The Griffs would stay even with the Badgers in the second half, getting outscored 31-30 in the final 20 minutes.

Jamie Russell led the Badgers with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting in 26 minutes off the bench. Alyssa Karel had 10 points while Rae Lin D'Alie recorded seven assists.

Canisius plays the third game of its four-game road stretch on Tuesday, when the Golden Griffins take on Illinois-Chicago. Game time is set for 8 p.m.

Game Notes: Canisius extended its NCAA record of games with a 3-pointer to 424 games on a 3-pointer by Drysdale just over a minute into the game... Canisius dropped to 0-3 against Big Ten teams all-time, having lost previously to Ohio State and Michigan... Drysdale had 19 points against Loyola Feb. 24... Tasia Lee played in her first game of the season... Canisius shot 90 percent from the line, the second consecutive game the Griffs have been 90 percent or better.

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Players Mentioned

#23 Micayla Drysdale: G; 5' 9"; Sophomore

#3 Tasia Lee: G; 5' 8"; Junior

#13 Brianna Lucas: G; 5' 8"; Junior

#35 Ellie Radke: F; 6' 0"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#23 Micayla Drysdale
: 5' 9"; Sophomore
: G

#3 Tasia Lee
: 5' 8"; Junior
: G

#13 Brianna Lucas
: 5' 8"; Junior
: G

#35 Ellie Radke
: 6' 0"; Junior
: F