Johnny Davis scored 21 points and Brad Davison added 19 as Wisconsin shook off a slow start and rallied for a 69-58 victory over Texas A&M on Monday afternoon in the opening game of the Maui Invitational at Las Vegas.
Wisconsin (3-1) will face the winner of 12th-ranked Houston (3-0) and Butler (3-1) on Tuesday. Texas A&M (4-1) gets the loser of that game.
Davis, who had 15 points in each of the Badgers first two victories, sat out Wisconsin’s 63-58 loss at home to Providence last week with an injured heel. The sophomore guard made 8 of 18 shots and had a team-high nine rebounds to pace the Badgers to a 36-29 advantage on the boards.
Quenton Jackson had 15 points for the Aggies, who made just 8 of 27 shots in the second half.
The Badgers trailed by 16 midway through the first half and rallied for a 35-34 lead at the break. They continued the momentum in the second half, pushing the lead to 53-42.
Wisconsin stormed back before halftime with a 15-point run, going in front 35-33 on a second-chance dunk by Davis.
The Badgers held Texas A&M scoreless for more than seven minutes, forcing seven turnovers during that stretch. Tyrece Radford snapped the drought by hitting the first of two free throws at the end of the half to pull the Aggies within 35-34.
Davison, who attempted 11 3-pointers in the game, and Davis teamed for 25 of Wisconsin’s points before the break. The Badgers had 14 points off turnovers in the first half.
Wisconsin carried the momentum into the second half, using a 14-2 run to cap a 43-16 turnaround.
Seven-foot sophomore center Steven Crowl stepped back and hit a 3-pointer to put the Badgers up 61-45 with 8:45 left.
Wisconsin had a 15-5 advantage in second-chance points and outscored the Aggies 26-16 in the paint. The Badgers also converted 16 turnovers into 22 points.
Texas A&M established the tempo early, racing to a 13-2 lead as the Aggies hit five of their first six shots, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc.
Wade Taylor IV and Jackson hit consecutive 3-pointers to put the Aggies in front 24-10 with 12:37 left in the half. Wisconsin hit just 4 of its first 15 shots, and was 0-for-5 from 3-point range.
–Field Level Media
