It could have been the last game of his college career for La Crosse native Johnny Davis.
The sophomore scored 17 on 4-of-16 shooting, going 0-for-7 from beyond the arc as the University of Wisconsin men’s basketball team fell to 54-49 to Iowa State in the second round of the NCAA tournament Sunday at the Fiserv Forum.
Davis, who was 9 of 11 from the line, hit two free throws with 3:09 remaining to pull Wisconsin (25-8), within five but that’s as close as it got down the stretch.
“They played a really good pressure defense. They did a really good job of taking away passing lanes,” said Davis, who was 4 for 16 from the field. “I just think that we just straight up missed shots and didn’t share the ball the way we were supposed to.”
After winning just two games last season, Iowa State (22-12) advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2016 and the sixth time in school history. It will play 10th-seeded Miami — a 79-61 winner against No. 2 seed Auburn — in the Midwest Region semifinals on Friday in Chicago.
Both teams shot horrendous and combined to turn it over 32 times — 17 by the Badgers.
Wisconsin hit 29.8% (14 of 47) from the field, including 2 of 22 from deep. Iowa shot 34.5% (20-for-68), including 3 of 14 from beyond the arc.
TOP PHOTO: Wisconsin’s Johnny Davis loses the ball in front of Iowa State’s Gabe Kalscheur during the second half of a second-round NCAA college basketball tournament game Sunday, March 20, 2022, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)