Serah Williams records double-double, Wisconsin women's basketball outlasts Minnesota

serah williams records double-double, wisconsin women's basketball outlasts minnesota

Wisconsin point guard Ronnie Porter drives past Minnesota’s Amaya Battle on Tuesday Jan. 24, 2024 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin.

MADISON – Wisconsin women’s basketball coach Marisa Moseley didn’t hesitate when she was recently asked if Serah Williams is one of the best post players in the country.

“I said absolutely,” Moseley said. “She continues to show that and I think we’re just scratching the surface of what she is capable of doing.”

The 6-foot-4 sophomore proved her worth again Tuesday night by setting the tone for a 59-56 victory over Minnesota in front of 4,191 at the Kohl Center.

Get daily updates on the Packers during the season.

Williams posted her fifth straight double-double and eighth of the season with 24 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Badgers out of a three-game losing streak. How she accumulated those numbers was impressive.

She opened the game with six points and eight rebounds in the first quarter with four points and six boards during the first 4½ minutes. Her work provided a much-needed jump start for a team that was coming off a string of disappointing showings in the three previous games.

And in the fourth quarter Williams had a hand in the Badgers’ final 13 points. She had 10 points during that run, including a three-pointer to give UW a 53-52 lead with 3 minutes 29 seconds to play. Her dish to freshman Tessa Grady in the corner for a three-pointer pushed the Badgers’ advantage to 58-54 with 1:48 remaining.

Williams’ play helped the Badgers (9-9, 2-6) beat the Golden Gophers for the third straight time.

“It feels good to get a win,” Williams said. “Coach tells us all the time to remember this feeling so that we don’t have to remember what losing feels like. We practiced really hard the last couple of days and the energy from the start, from warmups was great, better than our opponent and I think that gave us the momentum and confidence to play.”

The victory raised UW’s record to 9-9 overall and 2-6 in the Big Ten. Here is how the Badgers did it.

Wisconsin’s defense was up to the challenge

After struggling against Iowa last week, the Badgers’ defense had bite Tuesday. It held Minnesota to a 33.8% shooting, the lowest for a Badgers’ Big Ten opponent this season. The Golden Gophers were shooting 40.4% entering play.

Freshman Grace Grocholski, a graduate Kettle Moraine High School, led Minnesota with 13 points. Sophomore Mara Braun, the team’s leading scorer at 18.9 points per game, tied a season low with nine points and missed 10 of 13 shots as Badgers sophomore Sania Copeland spent most of the night hounding her.

Down the stretch, Wisconsin allowed just one basket during the final 3 minutes, a run of six possessions.

Minnesota’s last gasp, was an off-balance three-point attempt by Braun that she took with Copeland in her face with 4 seconds left.

“When we watched our Iowa film and we talked about how talked about how that ended, we knew we were a better defensive team than that,“ Moseley said. “We knew we were capable of playing better team defense than that, so the challenge was how will we respond. … We had an opportunity to respond tonight and I think they did an excellent job of really answering that bell.”

Tessa Grady’s leads run of key three-pointers

Wisconsin’s 25.9% shooting from three-point range wasn’t off the charts, but the buckets came at key moments.

Grady’s two second quarter threes were a big reason UW led, 26-24, at the half. In the third quarter she hit twice more from long range, pushing the Badgers lead to nine and later a game-high 10 points, 42-32, with 2:22 to go in the quarter.

And in the fourth, Williams’s three from the wing gave the Badgers a one-point edge with 3½ minutes to go. Two possessions later she kicked out to Grady for a corner three that gave the Badgers a four-point advantage with 1:48 left..

“We stepped up and made big threes when we needed to and that is something we’ve continued to talk about …,” Moseley said. “They were incredibly timely and I’m happy they happened when they did.”

Wisconsin cleaned the glass in the second half

The Badgers allowed nine offensive rebounds in the first half but just three in the second half when they owned a 21-10 edge on the boards overall. The combination of the team’s defense and its ability to end of the stop with a rebound resulted in just four second-chance points for the Gophers in the second half.

Minnesota’s 10 second-chance points for the game were the second lowest allowed by the Badgers in Big Ten play. The lowest (seven) came in UW’s win over Illinois.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Serah Williams records double-double, Wisconsin women’s basketball outlasts Minnesota

OTHER NEWS

12 minutes ago

Iordanescu hails Romania's 'generation of soul' after Ukraine win

12 minutes ago

Reaction to Romania's 3-0 win over Ukraine at Euro 2024

12 minutes ago

Analysis: Soccer-Romania's main Man has Midas touch in Euro win over Ukraine

12 minutes ago

Scotland's Porteous banned for two games

16 minutes ago

America's largest private bus company covering 500 cities across US files for bankruptcy

16 minutes ago

How to pick the trendy 'healthy' waters that really ARE worth paying for and avoid 'ridiculous' products: Nutrition experts deliver their verdict

16 minutes ago

Video: Inside the police fight to halt hooliganism: With England in town, Mail Sport spends three days with the German cops in Dusseldorf - and witnesses a concerning war-baiting trend

16 minutes ago

Video: 'Blockbuster discovery' at George Washington's Mount Vernon estate

16 minutes ago

Viral England fan spotted cheering the Three Lions on AGAIN as he reappears Gelsenkirchen ahead of their Euro 2024 opener vs Serbia... as fans claim he is 'living the dream' travelling the world watching the Three Lions play

16 minutes ago

Video: Stephen A. Smith defends Angel Reese after brutal foul on Caitlin Clark and accuses WNBA referees of 'looking for something' so they can punish Chicago Sky rookie

16 minutes ago

America's wine supply in serious danger after invasive species hitchhikes from New York to California

16 minutes ago

Crystal Palace to fight to keep Marc Guehi... as Premier League rivals monitor the England international after his impressive Euro 2024 bow

16 minutes ago

Inside the police fight to halt hooliganism: With England in town, Mail Sport spends three days with the German cops in Dusseldorf - and witnesses a concerning war-baiting trend

16 minutes ago

Stephen A. Smith defends Angel Reese after brutal foul on Caitlin Clark and accuses WNBA referees of 'looking for something' so they can punish Chicago Sky rookie

17 minutes ago

Feds sue Photoshop owner Adobe over subscription plans, hefty termination fees

17 minutes ago

Joe Biden let Rachel Morin killer suspect in — her blood is on his hands

17 minutes ago

We will never allow state resources to be used to target leaders, says Lungisa

17 minutes ago

"In five? I don't know about that" - Derek Fisher responds to Draymond saying the 2017 Warriors would destroy the 2001 Lakers

17 minutes ago

Eddie Jones interview: England are now benefitting from my selections

18 minutes ago

International review launched into Canadian Human Rights Commission

18 minutes ago

Map Shows Russia's Probing NATO Borders With Airspace Violations

18 minutes ago

Packers DE Rashan Gary thankful to have healthy offseason

18 minutes ago

DCE on cusp of joining greatest Maroons captains

18 minutes ago

Tesla sues ex-supplier Matthews over EV battery trade secrets

18 minutes ago

For the city, for Boston

18 minutes ago

Boats cruise across the Seine in Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony rehearsal

18 minutes ago

A recently elected mayor is shot and killed in southern Mexico

18 minutes ago

Romania were far too good but Ukraine have already won at Euro 2024

18 minutes ago

British number one Jack Draper finds early rewards from new aggressive style

18 minutes ago

‘Keir Starmer Needs You!’: Tories launches Facebook page targeting Reform voters

18 minutes ago

Prestigious Dulwich prep school drops Native American house names after cultural appropriation complaints

18 minutes ago

Inside election social media campaign costs as Labour outspends all other parties combined

18 minutes ago

Stuart Varney: Biden's 'Parole in Place' scheme is code for amnesty

18 minutes ago

NSW to receive $11.9 billion less from the GST over the next four years

18 minutes ago

Sir Paul McCartney adds FOUR new UK dates to his mammoth Got Back world tour as veteran star, 81, returns for his first British gigs since headlining Glastonbury in 2022

18 minutes ago

Vince Carter says Kobe Bryant would have won his sixth ring if the Chris Paul trade wasn't vetoed: "That would be a cheat code"

21 minutes ago

Illinois' unclaimed property auction begins with $2 bills, a Pickup truck and more

22 minutes ago

Edmonton-raised soccer star Alphonso Davies named captain of Canadian men’s national team

22 minutes ago

‘Terrifier 3’: Jason Patric Joins Cast Of Horror Pic, Filming Wraps & New Image Released

22 minutes ago

Half of U.S. military bases in the country are in 'health care deserts'