Wisconsin survived a late flurry by No. 5 Vandebilt. A 13-3 run gave them a one point lead with 2:25 left in the game, but the Badgers came roaring back.
When I was filling out my bracket, I had no intention of having Wisconsin get very far in the tournament. They haven't been the dominant force we're used to, they struggled against lesser teams and their end to the season wasn't exactly inspiring. But then I started looking at the matchups I had and I didn't think there were any Wisconsin didn't have a shot at winning.
With Fab Melo out, I even had Wisconsin beating Syracuse. Ok, this was before we saw how dominant Syracuse was in their first two games - something I wasn't expecting. It'll all depend on how well Wisconsin can slow down and control the tempo of the game and whether or not the shooters are finding the hoop. Shooting droughts had a rough impact on UW's season and are, I think, always a worry in the tournament.That being said, Wisconsin's scoring against Vandy was spread out, as Taylor had 14, Berggren had 12, Evans and Brust had 11 and Bruesewitz had 10. If they can keep spreading the points arond that way, they'll be tough to defend.
Wisconsin is known for their defense and that was in full effect Saturday as UW held Vandy's two top scorers to well below their averages.
Vandy leader Jeffrey Taylor picked up two quick fouls in the first half and spent most of it on the bench. He had no points and one rebound at halftime and finished with just nine points.
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