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Issue link: http://catalog.e-digitaleditions.com/i/143421
'93 opener, a 106-84 beating of overmatched UWMilwaukee at the UW Field House. Griffith had 27 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists. It was the first of 11 straight victories; the school's best start in 78 years. This was definitely a team that had the firepower ― Finley, Webster, Griffith ― to rewrite some ancient history at Wisconsin. There were some challenging stretches, though. "As I remember it, we hit a wall and had a string of losses," said Kilbride in reference to a fourgame losing streak in February. "We were putting our NCAA tournament hopes in peril." But the Badgers got a critical home win over No. 3-ranked Michigan in early March and Kilbride acknowledged, "There was still that belief that it was going to happen." Despite a losing Big Ten record (8-10), the 1994 NCAA selection committee recognized UW's strength of schedule and rewarded the Badgers with an at-large invitation and a No. 9 seed in the West. It was Wisconsin's first trip to the Big Dance in 47 years ― the program's third overall ― and it came on the heels of the Badgers football team returning to Pasadena for the first time in 31 years. "For me, as a kid growing up, all I ever wanted to do was play in the NCAA tournament," said Kilbride. "Getting that at-large bid was a big weight off everyone's shoulders. "I remember the press conference that night after we got into the tournament and it just felt different ― very special. I still think about it today and how much work we put into accomplishing it. "It was pretty amazing and incredible to be a part of something where we thought we were laying the foundation for a successful program and it was sort of the first step in a turnaround." The Badgers upset No. 8 seed Cincinnati, 8072, in an NCAA first-round game in Ogden, Utah. "And I actually thought we had a pretty good shot of beating Missouri," Kilbride said. In a wild shootout, UW fell just short in a 10996 loss to the Tigers, a No. 1 seed. Finley, who had 22 against the Bearcats, led the Badgers with 36 points. Webster had 27 and Kilbride had 15. Kilbride's fondest memories from that season are of Finley (who played 15 years in the NBA and won a championship ring with San Antonio in 2007) and Webster (now an assistant coach at Tennessee). "Number one, they were really good people and they were really easy to play with," he said. "They also demanded the best out of everyone because they each played at such a high level. "Some of the passes that he (Webster) made were just breathtaking and nobody could finish better than Mike in the Big Ten during that period. 41