In a classic Big Ten battle, the Badgers (16-7, 7-3 B1G) finally triumphed over their kryptonite; the Iowa Hawkeyes. It took two overtimes, but Wisconsin made enough big plays to seal the deal and beat Iowa for the first time since 2011. We'll have more reaction and analysis in the morning, but for now we give you our player grades. 

Player	Stats/Thoughts	Grade
Ben Brust, G	18pts, 6 rebounds, 6-14FG's, 3-4FT's,  45 min. Brust had a solid game, knocking down a few big threes along with a number of hustle plays throughout the game. You have to be pleased with the effort Brust gives night in and night out.
Mike Bruesewitz, F	4pts, 7 rebounds, 2-8FG's, 1 assist, 41 min. Bruesewitz did not have a pretty night offensively, that's for sure. But with the hustle, rebounding and overall effort the Bruiser puts in, how could I ever give him a bad grade?
Ryan Evans, F	15pts, 9 rebounds, 5-14FG's, 5-11FT's, 5 assists, 40 min. The Ryan Evans rollercoaster was on full display tonight. Right after Evans made a beautiful pass to Berggren on a cut to the basket, he threw away a bonehead turnover that let Iowa get back in the game. Evans was a big part of the win, and for that he deserves a respectable grade.
Traevon Jackson, G	13pt, 3-10FG's, 5-6FT's, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 turnovers, 43 min. Despite his early turnovers and overall offensive struggle throughout the game Traevon "Friendly Roll" Jackson hit another HUGE shot late in regulation. He tied the game, giving UW a chance in overtime, where they eventually prevailed.
Jared Berggren, F	16pts, 14 rebounds, 5-14FG's, 6-8FT's, 7 blocks, 43 min. Berggren's night was probably overlooked by most people. His 16 rebound and 7 block night was absolutely ridiculous! The amount of shots he altered throughout the game went a long way in UW's win.
George Marshall, G	0pts, 0 rebounds, 0-4FG's, 3 fouls, 14 min. Marshall couldn't find the bottom of the net tonight, even on some good looks. The Freshman is still looking to find his niche in this rotation.
Sam Dekker, F	5pts, 2 rebounds,  2-4FG's, 18 min. Sam Dekker has ice in his veins. After sitting on the bench for a considerable amount of time, the Freshman came in to the game in double OT and hit a HUGE three to help lead UW to a victory.
Frank Kaminsky, F	3pts, 1 rebound, 1-3FG's, 6 min. Though the numbers don't show it, Frank did some really nice things on offense tonight. The swing seems to run better when he's on the floor.

While the football teams haven't met in the past two years it's safe to say the basketball teams have helped fill the void of hatred between Wisconsin and Iowa. First it was Iowa sweeping the season series last year, then it was Jarrod Uthoff transferring to Iowa from Wisconsin, and then it was Iowa making it three in a row over the Badgers. What's next? 

It sure would be a nice boost to the Badgers to finally solve the mystery that has been the Hawkeyes under Fran McCaffery, huh? Bo Ryan and the rest of the Badgers will get their crack at avoiding a second straight sweep on Wednesday night at 8pm Central on the Big Ten Network. 

We've also reached the halfway point of the B1G season and while the Badgers haven't been lucky against the Hawkeyes, the Hawkeyes haven't been setting the world on fire either, so what can we expect from the rematch?

The Opposition:

Like we've pointed out, Fran McCaffery has been a major thorn in the side of the Badgers and with the 3 game win streak the Hawkeyes now have a 2 game lead in the all-time series at 79-77. Last time out it was a 70-66 win against UW for the Hawkeyes and while the final score may tell you the game was close those of us who saw that game from start to finish can tell you it was more along the lines of a desperate comeback by UW that couldn't quite get over the hump. 

All offseason Wisconsin fans were hearing that Frank Kaminsky was a changed young man - both in his body and his mindset - yet, when the season started we didn't see much of that. We began to see it against Indiana, but a freak eye injury took him out of action early and made him sit nearly two weeks. On Sunday, he picked right up where he left off, scoring a career high 19 points and helping the Badgers complete a season sweep of Illinois, 74-68. 

Kaminsky wasn't even the leading scorer in the game though as teammate Ben Brust poured in 20 points and senior Ryan Evans got back on the upswing with 15 points to lead UW. 

Don't let the final score fool you though, it took a furious comeback from Illinois to even get back in the game. They went on a 19-11 run to end the game and make it look far closer than it actually was. 

Illinois struggled to hit from deep and it cost them in the game, shooting just 15.4% (2-13) from 3 point land. It's what helped them dig a hole they couldn't quite come back from.

So, how did UW's players fare in this one? Let's get to grades -

Coming off a disappointing loss at OSU, Wisconsin (14-7, 5-3) travels south to Champaign to take on the Illini of Illinois (15-7, 2-6 B1G). You can catch the game on BTN with a 2:30 tip from Assembly Hall. 

In their previous meeting this season, Illinois met Wisconsin in the thick of their best play all season. You could tell the Badgers were rolling early on, as they jumped out to a 14-0 lead to start the game. It didn't get any prettier, and Wisconsin soared to a 74-51 win thanks to Jared Berggren's best performance of the year with 15 points and 12 rebounds.

In that game Wisconsin played exceptional defense on Illinois' star PG Brandon Paul, who shot just 1-11 with 8 points. The Illini's 51 points that game were the fewest they have scored all season. 

Earlier today we were able to sit down and talk with Bill Friedman, a Coordinating Producer for the ever popular BTN series "The Journey" as this week's episode will feature a story on Wisconsin Badgers point guards Traevon Jackson and George Marshall, along with the story of Jackson and his father - the famed Jimmy Jackson from Ohio State. 

We chatted about everything from the origins of the series to a great idea for a new version of the show (o.k., maybe not so great of an idea) and much more in between. So give it a listen:

There is no doubt that watching the Badgers basketball team has been a roller coaster ride of a lifetime this season. Just when you think you have them figured out something surprising, new, and even old pops up to remind us all that we know very little about which version (good or bad) of this team will show up from game to game. If the fan base is on a roller coaster ride it's really got to be hard to be one Ryan Evans these days - his personal roller coaster ride has been considered by some as the reason for Wisconsin's ups and downs this season.

Evans seems to be the favorite whipping boy of the fans when things are going wrong. But, is it really fair to put it all on his shoulders?

After all, he is one of five players on the court at any given time and unless your name is Deshaun Thomas you aren't going to be able to put your team on your back and will it to victory nearly every time out. That much should be a given. 

However, on the other side of the equation are these stubborn things called stats and facts. Those stats and facts add up to a picture of both Wisconsin and Ryan Evans' roller coaster 2012-13 season. They also tell us that perhaps it is indeed fair to put the roller coaster ride on the shoulders of Evans.

With 13:00 to play in the second half, the Badgers led Ohio State 41-37 and looked to be on their way to a win. 7 minutes and 13 seconds later, the Buckeyes held a 52-41 advantage. That's right, for 7:13, Wisconsin did not score ONE point. Sound familiar?

Yes, the infamous Wisconsin scoring drought strikes again. The Badgers (14-7, 5-3) ultimately fell to the #11 Buckeyes of Ohio State (16-4, 6-2) in a dissapointing 58-49 loss Tuesday night.  

In the end this could be a game we all circle that doomed any shot Wisconsin had at winning the Big Ten title. Simply put, they let this one slip right through their three-point shooting fingers.

On to the player grades and reactions: