When it came time to deliver the knockout blow, nothing came.

Either that, or the University of Wisconsin women's basketball team just plain whiffed.

The Badgers had Wyoming reeling after building a 10-point halftime lead in the rematch of last season's Women's National Invitation Tournament title game.

But instead of closing the deal, avenging last year's loss to the Cowgirls and putting Saturday's forgettable performance against Marquette out of their minds, the Badgers wilted on their way to a 67-66 overtime loss Tuesday night at the Kohl Center.

The 5,671 fans who came to UW's home opener saw the Badgers (1-2) avoid the problems that vexed them in their first two games of the season during a first half in which they built a 32-22 advantage.

They weren't throwing away possessions (nine assists vs. seven turnovers) or giving up easy baskets (Wyoming shot just 35 percent and had 11 turnovers before the break).

But after halftime, UW couldn't find the basket -- it scored just two points in a 7 minute, 57 second-span early in the second half -- and reverted to its form from Saturday, when it turned the ball over 29 times against Marquette.

"When you're up 10, you need to put them away," Badgers coach Lisa Stone said. "The start of our second half was sluggish."

But even after stumbling into overtime, UW still had a chance. It jumped out to a four-point lead in the extra session, but Cowgirls senior forward Justyna Podziemska hit a pair of free throws to give Wyoming (4-0) its first overtime lead at 67-66 with 59 seconds left.

The Badgers' final chance came with 5.4 seconds left, but Anderson couldn't handle senior guard Janese Banks ' handoff attempt, and the buzzer sounded before anyone could corral the ball. Anderson, who scored a game-high 25 points, also had a shot at the end of regulation, but she stumbled as she drove and threw up a last-second shot that hit the front of the rim.

"It just comes down to one possession here or there," Wyoming coach Joe Legerski said, "and we were fortunate to have the ball bounce our way."

It shouldn't have come down to that, though.

But the Badgers turned it over 14 times after halftime, including three in overtime and four down the stretch in regulation.

"Some quick shots and some poor decisions in terms of the turnovers," Stone said. "That execution has to improve. But I don't think it was fatigue or nerves or focus. This team wanted to win this game, there's no question about that."

And as UW's offense struggled in the second half, Wyoming's came alive.

The Cowgirls shot 50 percent (13-for-26) from the field and made five of their nine 3-pointers after the break to get back into the game. They gave the Badgers fits with their motion offense, finding backdoor cutters throughout their comeback.

"Once we don't execute on offense, then that leads to terrible defense for us," Anderson said. "It always has."