INDIANAPOLIS — Jon Tonje scored 32 points to help No. 18 Wisconsin beat No. 7 Michigan State 77-74 on Saturday in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament.
John Blackwell added 14 points as the Badgers (26-8) won for the third time in four days. They will play No. 11 Maryland or No. 22 Michigan for the tournament title on Sunday.
Jase Richardson had 21 points for the Spartans (27-6). Jeremy Fears Jr. had 14 points and six assists, but he had the ball knocked away in the waning seconds as he tried to tie the score with a heave from near the midcourt logo.
Michigan State, the conference’s regular-season champs, had won eight in a row.
Wisconsin erased a 45-41 deficit with an 11-0 run in the second half. The Badgers were pushed to the very end, but they used four straight points to make it 72-67 with 1:10 to play.
After Tonje missed a 3-pointer with 34 seconds left, Blackwell tried to chase down the rebound, but his path was impeded by Jaden Akins, who was called for the foul. Blackwell made both free throws to give the Badgers a 74-70 lead with 31.4 seconds to go.
Big Ten Tournament
Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
Wednesday’s games
- (13) Northwestern 72, (12) Minnesota 64
- (15) Iowa 77, (10) Ohio State 70
- (14) USC 97, (11) Rutgers 89
Thursday’s games
- (8) Oregon 72, (9) Indiana 59
- (5) Wisconsin 70, (13) Northwestern 63
- (7) Illinois 106, (15) Iowa 94
- (6) Purdue 76, (14) USC 71
Friday’s quarterfinals
- (1) Michigan State 74, (8) Oregon 64
- (5) Wisconsin 86, (4) UCLA 70
- (2) Maryland 88, (7) Illinois 65
- (3) Michigan 86, (6) Purdue 68
Saturday’s semifinals
- (5) Wisconsin 77, (1) Michigan State 74
- (2) Maryland vs. (3) Michigan, 2:30 p.m., CBS-2
Sunday’s final
- (5) Wisconsin vs. Maryland/Michigan, 2:30 p.m., CBS-2