Here’s a look back at the only previous meeting.
Date: Dec. 28, 1961.
Site: Madison Square Garden.
What: New York Holiday Festival.
Score: Wisconsin 105, Dayton 93.
Game story: Dayton led 40-27 in the first half only to be outscored by 25 in the final 25 minutes. Tom Hatton, a 925-point scorer in his career, led Dayton with 28 points. Bill Chmielewski, who ranked second on the team in scoring that season with 15.4 points per game, scored 23.
Ron Jackson led the Badgers with 33 points. Tom Gwyn scored 29.
Wisconsin earned a spot in the championship game against Cincinnati, while Dayton settled for a consolation game against La Salle. Dayton beat the Explorers two days later 81-67. Wisconsin lost 101-77 to UC.
Dayton coach Tom Blackburn declined to talk to reporters after the game, according to a report by Ritter Collett in the Journal Herald. One player, Garry Roggenburk, did talk to Collett and said, “Tom said, ‘No comment,’ to a couple of writers who got to him as he went out the door, and that better be my line.” Roggenburk led the Flyers with 16.0 points per game and ranks 26th in school history with 1,398 points.
Aftermath: Dayton finished 24-6 that season and returned to Madison Square Garden to win the NIT championship in March. It was Dayton’s first NIT win after five losses in the championship game. Wisconsin finished 17-7.
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