MINNEAPOLIS — Two minutes and four seconds of game clock had passed when the first sign of the knockdown, drag-out fight about to ensue materialized between Wisconsin and Purdue during a Big Ten tournament semifinal game Saturday.

There was 7-foot-4 two-time national player of the year Zach Edey dunking over Wisconsin’s Steven Crowl after being called for a loose ball foul. And Crowl discarding Edey with his left elbow. And Edey and Crowl jawing at each other while teammates encircled. And official Jeff Anderson issuing technical fouls to both players.

“We were just exchanging pleasantries,” Edey said. “I said, ‘How’s your family?’ He said, ‘They’re doing well.’”

What followed was 43 more minutes of passion, intensity and high-level playmaking during one of the best games of the conference tournament season. It ended in overtime with Wisconsin guard Max Klesmit connecting on a floater in the lane with 4.8 seconds remaining and Purdue’s Lance Jones missing a last-second 3-pointer to help the Badgers secure a stirring 76-75 victory. Fifth-seeded Wisconsin moved on to face No. 2 seed Illinois in the conference championship game Sunday.

Beating top-seeded Purdue was always going to be a monumental task for a Wisconsin team that had played reasonably well against the Boilermakers twice this season and yet lost both games — 75-69 in Madison and 78-70 in West Lafayette to close the regular season six days earlier. But Badgers players said they had their sights set on potentially playing Purdue a third time in the semifinal when they saw the conference tournament bracket. They played like a group hungry to show their full potential and one that would not back down to a challenge, beginning with that early-game scuffle.

PAINT THE TOWN RED!!! WE ARE HEADED TO THE FINALS pic.twitter.com/gCejgH3YfP

— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) March 16, 2024

“He was trying to set the tone for them, and we were not dealing with any of that bullcrap today,” Badgers forward Tyler Wahl said. “I give my teammates a whole lot of credit because we all jumped right in there and said, ‘Nah, this is not the way the game’s going to go today.’”

Edey, as he is for every team, was a major problem for Wisconsin and broke Rick Mount’s all-time program scoring record, which stood for 54 years. Edey finished with 28 points and 11 rebounds and contributed to fouling out three Badgers frontcourt players: Crowl, Wahl and freshman Nolan Winter. Wahl’s fifth foul, in particular, drew scrutiny in the arena and on social media because he appeared set while attempting to draw a charge as Edey ran him over. Purdue coach Matt Painter went to bat for Edey after the game.

“I’ve never seen somebody so good get so much s— for no reason,” Painter said. “It just blows my mind. … All the things that happen and go on in a game, just because people with his size are normally not very good at basketball. He’s really good. So he gets a lot of attention.”

Purdue shot 32 free throws (Edey took 19) while Wisconsin attempted only nine. Still, the Badgers kept coming right back at the Boilermakers. Purdue led 66-64 with 2.7 seconds remaining in regulation after Edey made one of two free throws. Wisconsin called timeout and Badgers coach Greg Gard drew up a play called Wagon, which would put point guard Chucky Hepburn in the paint and circle him around the perimeter until he caught the inbounds pass on the right wing. The same play was used when Wisconsin guard Bronson Koenig buried a game-winning 3-pointer from the right corner to beat Xavier 66-63 in the second round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament.

This time, Hepburn opted not to take the 3-pointer because Purdue guard Braden Smith was defending him so closely. Hepburn drove past him to the rim and made a layup at the regulation buzzer to send the game into overtime.

“Just a savvy play by the best point guard in the country,” Klesmit said.

Hepburn, who finished with a team-high 22 points, did not play in Wisconsin’s quarterfinal game against Northwestern on Friday because of a knee injury. He said he received regular treatment — which included acupuncture — over the previous 24 hours to improve his health from 40 percent to 85 percent full strength.

“Oh, I was screaming,” Hepburn said of the acupuncture. “The whole hotel heard me when they put it in me in the back of my knee.”

In the overtime, Smith fouled out of the game when Hepburn drew an offensive foul on him with 21.3 seconds left. On the next possession, Hepburn dished on the left wing to Klesmit, who drove into the lane and lofted a shot — one his teammates call the “Neenah floater” to signify his hometown — over the outstretched arm of Jones and Edey. Purdue guard Foster Loyer, who was trailing Klesmit on the drive, said he prayed the ball would bounce out. Instead, it bounced off the back rim, off the glass and in.

“I love the floater,” Klesmit said. “That’s something I work on. That’s in my game, so it’s just my ability to trust that, late-game, early game, whatever it is, it’s the same shot that you work on. So don’t be afraid to pull it out whenever in a game.”

For Wisconsin (22-12) it was a moment of jubilation that showcased how good the Badgers can be when they’re locked in. Wisconsin closed the regular season 3-8 over its last 11 games but now looks like the team that elevated to No. 6 in the AP Top 25 poll earlier this season.

Purdue, which dropped to 29-4, already has guaranteed itself a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament with a path that should put the Boilermakers in Indianapolis. As players sat in chairs in front of their lockers after the game, they were disappointed but far from heartbroken. Last year, they won the Big Ten Tournament only to lose five days later as a No. 1 seed in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament to Fairleigh Dickinson. They know they have the talent to achieve far bigger goals.

“We understand that if we were to win this tournament again, great,” Purdue guard Mason Gillis said. “But now we get a little bit more time off to rest for our main goal of the season. It’s not like we wanted to lose. It’s not like we were trying to lose.

“Our perspective is going and getting a national championship. We’re not losing any confidence. We know who we are. We won the Big Ten outright by however many games. So we’re still confident.”

(Photo of Chucky Hepburn: Bailey Hillesheim / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)