Wisconsin fends off North Carolina for 2nd straight Elite Eight appearance

Wisconsin got all it could handle from fourth-seeded North Carolina, but in the end, the No. 1 Badgers did just enough to escape with a 79-72 win and advance to their second straight Elite Eight.

Sam Dekker led the way with a career-high 23 points and 10 rebounds. He almost single-handedly kept Wisconsin in contention in the first half, scoring 15 of his team's 31 points, including a buzzer beater that cut North Carolina's lead at the break to two.

Big Ten Player of the Year Frank Kaminsky was held to four points over the opening 20 minutes, but turned it on in the second half to finish with 19 points and eight rebounds. He was 8-of-8 from the free-throw line including nailing four from the charity stripes in the last 16 seconds.

The Badgers are no strangers to come-from-behind victories, having erased at least seven-point deficits in all three of their Big Ten tournament wins. They trailed by the same seven-point margin with 11 minutes to go on Thursday but put together a 23-11 run that gave them a late 69-64 lead.

From there, Marcus Paige tried valiantly to bring the Tar Heels back. He nailed a pair of 3-pointers on identical plays near the end of the contest, but a Dekker layup sandwiched in between helped Wisconsin hang on to a one-point lead.

A pair of Bronson Koenig free throws pushed the edge back to three and then Isaiah Hicks, usually a 62.7 percent free-throw shooter, missed both of his opportunities from the line, effectively ending North Carolina's bid for the upset.

Traevon Jackson made his return for the Badgers after missing the previous 19 games due to a broken foot, scoring four points off the bench. Kennedy Meeks suited up for the Heels despite a sprained knee, but he was clearly not himself, finishing with four points and four boards, well below his season averages.

Next up the Badgers will meet the winner of the Arizona-Xavier game in an Elite Eight battle on Saturday.