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HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. (AP) - BYU left Ben Brust open on the perimeter and Wisconsin's sharpshooter made them pay.
The sophomore reserve scored 21 points on seven 3- pointers and keyed a second half surge as the No. 11 Badgers beat BYU 73-56 Saturday night to win the Chicago Invitational Challenge championship.
"He was able to make those shots and that really hurt us," said Cougars forward Noah Hartsock, who scored a team-high 18 points. "And we got ourselves in a hole and we weren't able to dig ourselves out."
Brust was 7 of 10 beyond the arc as the Badgers improved to 6-0 for their best start since the 1996-97 season. Brust had five 3s in the second half.
Tournament MVP Jordan Taylor added 18 points, while Mike Bruesewitz and Jared Berggren had 13 points apiece for Wisconsin.
The teams were tied at 42 when Brust hit the first of his trio of 3-pointers during an 11-0 run that gave the Badgers a 53-42 lead with 8:47 to play.
"Teammates found me and I just knocked them down," said Brust, who hit five 3s in the second half. "When you're open you've got to shoot it."
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Saturday's game was the first meeting between Wisconsin and BYU in nearly 80 years. The Badgers beat the Cougars 32-16 on Dec. 11, 1931, in Madison.
Wisconsin made its first six shots - including five 3-pointers from four different players - on the way to an early 22-10 lead. Taylor had two 3s in the hot start.
But BYU took advantage of five missed Wisconsin shots and three turnovers to tie it at 24 on freshman Damarcus Harrison's 3-pointer at the 8:57 mark. The Cougars claimed their first lead at 28-26 on Stephen Rogers' fadeaway baseline jumper.
The Badgers shot 51 percent (27 for 53) from the field, including 13 for 24 from 3-point range. BYU shot 43 percent (22 for 51) and went 1 for 10 from long range.
Until Saturday, no opponent had scored more than 50 points on Wisconsin.
"We've just got to be a finisher, we've got to play tougher," Hartsock said. "We didn't do that tonight and it showed."
Wisconsin and BYU both resume play Wednesday. The Badgers travel to top-ranked North Carolina while the Cougars host Northern Arizona in the Lumberjack Classic.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
