Gophers lead in final minute, but fall to Wisconsin 71-69

MADISON, WIS. – Richard Pitino had seen his Gophers men's basketball team collapse in moments like this in past games.

Three straight home games were lost when players couldn't perform under pressure, but the Gophers fell just short in their comeback effort Sunday night in a 71-69 loss to Wisconsin in front of a sellout crowd at the Kohl Center.

Earlier in the week, Pitino faced a locker room filled with crushed spirits when Minnesota blew a 16-point second-half lead at home and fell to No. 9 Maryland on a three-pointer with 1.9 seconds left. It was a must-win game for any longshot hopes for making a run at an NCAA tournament invitation.

The Gophers (13-15, 7-11 Big Ten) could have easily showed up Sunday feeling like they had nothing left to play for this regular season.

"To rebound from a devastating loss at home showed great grit, great poise," Pitino said Sunday. "Not a moral victory by any means, but I thought our guys executed down the stretch for the most part."

Daniel Oturu, who had a team-high 26 points and 12 rebounds, gave the Gophers a 68-67 lead with 38.7 seconds to go, but in the end his desperation half-court shot needed to fall to win it.

What happened in that span? Just enough things in the home team's favor.

Freshman Isaiah Ihnen played the best game of his young career. He finished with six points and a career-high 10 rebounds off the bench, but he turned his head when Aleem Ford cut baseline for a wide-open dunk that put Wisconsin ahead 69-68 with 29.7 seconds remaining.

That was all the momentum the Badgers (19-10, 12-6) needed to pull off their sixth victory in a row. On the ensuing possession, Oturu's attempt to respond was thwarted in the post by Nate Reuvers.

"I felt like I got fouled," Oturu said. "At the end of the day, I'm happy we fought back from being down [12 points]. Gave ourselves a chance to win. We just couldn't close it out."

Oturu and Marcus Carr (21 points) did their best to give the Gophers a chance to pull off their first sweep over Wisconsin since 2008-09. They lost for the fifth time in six games since the 70-52 home victory over the Badgers on Feb. 5.

Trailing 49-37 in the second half Sunday, the Gophers used a 12-0 run to tie the score after Alihan Demir completed a three-point play.

Brevin Pritzl, who had 15 points, drilled a three-pointer with under a minute left for a 67-66 Badgers lead, but Oturu answered for the Gophers to regain the advantage. That's when Ihnen's defensive mishap proved costly.

The Gophers were determined to win a close game Sunday, but a defensive lapse and shooting 13-for-23 on free throws didn't help.

"We have freshmen and sophomores in the game," Pitino said. "We definitely didn't act in this game the way we did vs. Maryland and Iowa. We did grow up there."

In Wednesday's 74-73 loss to Maryland, Pitino watched in disbelief as Minnesota was outscored 10-1 in the last two minutes and lost on a three-pointer by Darryl Morsell with 1.9 seconds left. That was a third loss in a row at home; the others were to Iowa and Indiana.

Brad Davison, a Maple Grove native, had 13 of his 20 points in the first half for the Badgers, who haven't lost since falling at Minnesota last month. They sit in a three-way tie for second place, a game behind the Terrapins.

"Regardless of wins and losses," Oturu said, "not giving up and keep fighting is a big thing."