INDIANAPOLIS, March 15 (UPI) -- Michael Flowers had a steal and layup with 27.2 seconds left Saturday to give No. 6 Wisconsin a 65-63 win over No. 19 Michigan State in the Big Ten semifinals.
The Badgers trailed for nearly the entire game and had to rally from a late 10-point deficit to tie it at 63-63 with under a minute to play.
Michigan State had the ball but Flowers deflected a pass and raced the other way for a layup. State's Drew Neitzel missed a three-pointer just before time expired.
Neitzel finished with 26 points for the Spartans (25-8) , who haven't won the Big Ten tourney title since 2000.
Brian Butch scored 19 points and Marcus Landry added 18 for Wisconsin (28-4), which won the conference regular-season title and will face Illinois for the tournament crown on Sunday. The Badgers will play in the championship game for the fourth time in the last five years, but won only in 2004 when they beat Illinois.
