Sat Jan 5 14:48:09 2008

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Wisconsin pulls away from Iowa for sixth straight win

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Madison, WI (Sports Network) - Brian Butch scored a game-high 22 points to go along with seven rebounds, as 25th-ranked Wisconsin pulled away in the second half for a 64-51 win over Iowa at the Kohl Center.

Joe Krabbenhoft donated 12 points with seven rebounds and Michael Flowers finished an efficient 4-of-6 shooting for 10 points, as Wisconsin (12-2, 2-0 Big Ten) won its sixth consecutive game.

Justin Johnson led Iowa (7-8, 0-2) with 13 points, while Tony Freeman, Jeff Peterson and Cyrus Tate added eight points apiece. The Hawkeyes have lost four of five overall.

The first half story included Iowa's hot shooting and Wisconsin's success on the offensive glass. The Hawkeyes made 4-of-7 from beyond the arc and shot 53 percent from the floor, over 20 percent higher than the Badgers, but Wisconsin owned the backboards with seven offensive rebounds.

The Badgers' best stretch included a 12-4 run to seize a 21-13 lead in the first 20 minutes. Trevon Hughes capped the burst with a three-pointer off a kickout pass by Butch.

Wisconsin led 28-22 at the half, but Iowa scored the initial six points of the second stanza to square the game on Tate's layup.

Iowa went stone cold after drawing even, and Wisconsin soon after embarked on a 13-3 burst to push out to a 45-32 advantage. Flowers' layup and a pair of free throws each by Butch and Krabbenhoft capped the stretch.

The Badgers rolled to victory from there.

Game Notes

Iowa committed 14 turnovers to just seven for the Badgers...Wisconsin shot 55 percent in the second half and held the Hawkeyes to 36 percent shooting and a 2-of-10 effort from beyond the arc...Wisconsin's leading scorer Hughes (14.3 ppg) was held to just six points on 2-of-8 shooting...Iowa made only 7-of-15 from the charity stripe...Wisconsin has won three in a row over Iowa and nine of the last 10 meetings.