With Harvard up 56-49 with 39 seconds left in regulation, a quarterfinal WBIT win looked inevitable and many Wisconsin fans could be seen heading to the exit of the Kohl Center.
The Badgers, though, had faith in themselves, hitting big shots and forcing multiple Crimson turnovers to improbably send the game into overtime.
Wisconsin held onto a one-point lead with three seconds left on the scoreboard when 5-foot-2 senior guard Ronnie Porter was called for a foul against Harvard’s Abigail Wright that would send the junior forward to the line for two free throws.
Given an extra challenge call in overtime, the Badgers’ coaching staff asked for a review and the call was ultimately reversed, sending the home team and their fans into a frenzy.
After graduate guard Destiny Howell sank two free throws, Harvard junior guard Karlee White had one last chance to send the game into double overtime, but her three-pointer from the top of the key hit high off the backboard and the Crimson season ended with a 64-61 defeat.
Had Harvard won, it would have faced Columbia in a WBIT semifinal matchup after the Lions, as a No. 4 seed, topped No. 3 California on the road, 74-68, after the Harvard-Wisconsin game Thursday night.
Columbia held off the Golden Bears by finishing the game on an 8-2 run in the final 2:06 after the hosts pulled ahead at 67-66, a run strung together with key shots from junior guard Riley Weiss and senior guard/forward Perri Page. Those two combined to deliver 46 of Columbia’s 74 points, setting up the Lions to face Wisconsin in a semifinal showdown in Wichita, Kan. Monday at a time to be determined.
Harvard’s battle in Madison was a physical slugfest, reminiscent of its conference clashes against Princeton and Columbia.
Both teams had their chances at runs over the first three quarters, but neither could open up a double-digit lead.
There were 11 lead changes by time Wright connected on a jumper at the 3:47 mark of the third quarter to give Harvard a 34-33 lead.
The Second Team All-Ivy forward added an old-fashioned three and another jumper to stretch the team’s advantage to six with 90 seconds left in the frame.
Just when it seemed that the Crimson could finally gain control of the contest, junior guard Kyrah Daniels sank a triple from the right side and senior guard Lily Krahn sank two free throws after being fouled with one second on the shot clock to finish the quarter with Harvard up 39-38.
The Crimson started off the fourth quarter well, stretching their lead to seven in the first two-plus minutes.
But when White sank a layup to make it 47-40, she finished the play favoring the same right knee she injured late in the season and had to come off the court for several minutes.
While Harvard was still up six, 52-46, when White returned at the 3:26 mark, her absence stalled the team’s momentum and gave the Badgers a lifeline.
Both teams struggled offensively over the next few minutes, but senior forward Katie Krupa managed to connect on two free throws to increase the lead to 54-46 with 46 seconds left in regulation.
Coming out of a Wisconsin timeout, Daniels got the inbounds and quickly put up a deep three from the left elbow that hit the bottom of the net to cut the deficit to five.
Krupa was again sent to the line and again made both to make it 56-49.
On the Badgers’ next possession, Daniels got open on the left baseline and hit another triple, her third of the quarter, to reduce the Harvard lead to four.
White inbounded the ball to Olivia Jones, but the Ivy League Rookie of the Year couldn’t control it and Wisconsin took over.
Daniels faked another three before finding first-year center Dorja Zaja streaking through the lane for a layup.
Without any timeouts to regroup, the Crimson got the ball to Krupa, who was triple teamed and forced into a jump ball. Unfortunately for Harvard, the arrow was in the Badgers favor.
Coming out of their last timeout, Daniels took the inbounds on the left side and found Howell, who got a step on Harvard sophomore guard Lydia Chatira for a game-tying right-side layup with 11 seconds on the clock.
Jones went coast-to-coast for a game-winning layup, but her shot was an airball, and the teams went to the extra session.
Harvard had the ball and a 61-60 lead with 1:40 left in overtime.
Krupa missed a triple, but the rebound went out of bounds off of Wisconsin.
Senior guard Saniyah Glenn-Bello missed a quick three from the right baseline and the Badgers used the long rebound to start a fastbreak layup by Zaja to put Wisconsin up 62-61 with 1:13 remaining.
White got the ball down low during the next possession, but her bank shot was too hard, and the rebound ended up in the hands of Wisconsin.
Harvard had one last chance, following a missed jumper from Howell and opted to run its offense instead of taking its last timeout.
Krupa drove the left side of the lane with four seconds to go and had her layup blocked out of bounds by senior forward Gift Uchenna.
Jones got the inbounds to Wright, who was driving to the hoop on the left side of the lane. The 6-foot-1 Harvard big got the ball and immediately put up the shot over the diminutive but feisty Porter, and the foul was called on the guard.
Two weeks ago, the final play of overtime in the Harvard-Columbia Ivy League Tournament semifinal ended in favor of the Crimson after a last-second foul was overturned. What the basketball gods gave in Ithaca, they took away in Madison.
Wright led the way for the Crimson with an 18-point, 11-rebound double-double performance, while White added 16 points in a heroic effort playing injured in the final minutes.
In their final games in Harvard uniforms, Krupa and Glenn-Bello finished nine points each.
Daniels and Howell, the late-game heroes for the Badgers, ended the night with 15 and 13 points, respectively, but Uchenna kept Wisconsin in the hunt throughout the evening with 17 points, nine rebounds and four blocks.
Unlike Harvard, Columbia survived Thursday night by authoring a decisive finish, with a go-ahead jumper from Weiss putting the visitors ahead for good at 68-67 with 1:46 left and Page scoring inside with 50 seconds left to extend the lead to 70-67.
Following a key Page steal and equally clutch Page defensive rebound off a free-throw miss, sophomore guard Mia Broom and Weiss put the game away with four free throws.
Weiss finished with 22 points on 9-for-14 field-goal shooting, enough for her to surpass Abbey Hsu for the all-time program single-season record. Page led all scorers with 24 points on 11-for-17 shooting from the field, adding seven rebounds and four steals.
Columbia led 35-29 at halftime and used tempo to its advantage, outscoring Cal 12-5 in fastbreak points.
“It’s just focusing on what’s in front of us now,” Page told ESPN+ postgame.