OSU MEN'S BASKETBALL Wisconsin rallies to knock off Buckeyes, 78-73

Ohio State made one basket over a six-minute stretch near the end.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Alando Tucker had 27 points and 16 rebounds to lead Wisconsin to its third straight victory, a 78-73 win over No. 12 Ohio State on Wednesday night.
Trailing 64-59, Wisconsin (18-7, 8-4 Big Ten) scored seven straight points -- five by Ray Nixon and two free throws by Tucker -- to give the Badgers their first lead since midway in the first half.
Jamar Butler hit a jumper for Ohio State (18-4, 7-4), the Buckeyes' only field goal over a 6-minute stretch, to tie the game. But Nixon, who finished with 13 points, answered with another 3-pointer to give the Badgers the lead for good at 69-66.
Brian Butch, who finished with 17 points, hit a 3-pointer 1:46 left to make it 72-68 and Ohio State never had a chance to tie again.
Dials early spark
Terence Dials was 5-of-5 from the field and hit both free throw attempts in the first half. He scored 12 of the Buckeyes' first 14 points as Ohio State led by as many as nine points.
Dials finished with 24 points and 11 rebounds, while Butler had 17 points and Matt Sylvester added 14 for the Buckeyes.
Tucker and Kammron Taylor combined for Wisconsin's first 15 points of the second half and the Badgers tied the game at 57. Taylor finished with 12 points.
But Butler hit a jumper, then Je'Kel Foster made a steal and found Sylvester on a fast break for a three-point play that gave the Buckeyes a 62-57 lead.
Ohio State set the tone early, taking a double-digit lead and prompting Badgers coach Bo Ryan to yell "Get over here!" to his team after a blown assignment led to easy points for the Buckeyes.
Taylor, second on the team at 15 points per game, didn't score until there was 2:06 left in the first half.
O'Brien wins lawsuit
Ohio State's first loss in February came on the day former coach Jim O'Brien won a lawsuit that the university improperly fired him after he loaned money to a recruit. A judge in Ohio said the $6,000 loan to Aleksandar Radojevic didn't warrant O'Brien's firing.
O'Brien sued the university for $3.5 million in lost wages and benefits after he was fired in June 2004. With interest and other damages, he could receive nearly $9.5 million. Damages will be determined after another hearing, and Ohio State said it has to wait until afterward to decide whether to appeal.
Radojevic, who had lost his amateur eligibility, never played for the Buckeyes, and O'Brien said he didn't tell university officials because it was a moot point.
O'Brien, 55, coached the Buckeyes to a 133-88 record that included two Big Ten titles and a Final Four appearance in seven seasons.