WASHINGTON, DC — Northwestern’s 2017 Big Ten Tournament run, fittingly, became defined by runs.
After big runs keyed the Wildcats’ second round and quarterfinal wins over Rutgers and Maryland, respectively, Chris Collins’s group couldn’t find one to counter a potent Wisconsin attack in the team’s 76-48 loss Saturday afternoon.
The Badgers had answers — a timely three, an extra possession, a foul drawn — for every Northwestern (23-11, 10-8 Big Ten) spurt, even with them being few and far between.
In its first-ever Big Ten Tournament semifinal, the No. 6-seeded Wildcats came out sluggish, looking like a team that walked off the court just 16 hours earlier.