Wisconsin fans filled the Kohl Center to get some warmth on a numbingly cold December night in Madison Dec. 3 as the University of Wisconsin-Madison Badgers (6-2, 1-0 Big Ten) took on Northwestern (5-3, 0-1 Big Ten) in both sides’ first Big Ten matchup of the early season.
Coming off of the disappointing and surprising 74-63 loss to TCU in the finals of the Rady Children’s Invitational Friday, Nov. 28, Badgers head coach Greg Gard made an adjustment to Wednesday’s starting lineup to start Big Ten play.
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Gard decided to have sophomore transfer big man Austin Rapp come off the bench as freshman big man Aleksas Bieliauskas got the nod instead, and the change sparked Wisconsin’s efficient first half offense.
After Northwestern got out to a 6-5 lead, the following 10 minutes were all the Badgers’ as they outscored the Wildcats 33-9 to amass a 38-15 lead with 6:55 left in the first half. Led by junior guard John Blackwell’s 23 first half points, Wisconsin posted 55 points in the first half, with Blackwell’s scoring proving to be the difference in a 55-32 Badgers halftime lead.
The Badgers first half shooting, though stout, was not the most impressive number from the first frame as the team managed to turn the ball over zero times before the break. After Coach Gard pointed to poor execution on ball screens and fundamental mistakes leading to a season-high 17 turnovers against TCU, he was surely relieved to watch the team play with more diligence offensively.
Wisconsin held a lead of 20 or more points for much of the beginning of the second frame before a Jordan Clayton corner three cut the lead to just 16 with 10:26 left in the contest. But, solid defense and long offensive possessions from the Badgers kept the lead at 16 or more until a Nick Martinelli jumper put the score at 81-68 with just 3:01 remaining. This proved to be too little too late for the Wildcats as Wisconsin was able to secure a big Big Ten home opener on home soil.
Greg Gard pointed to great transition play and efficient and effective ball movement on offense as the main catalysts of this big win. It was the 11-year coach’s 55th birthday, but that wasn’t the only reason to celebrate. The Badger’s win was also capped off by huge milestones from Blackwell and senior guard Andrew Rohde as they both eclipsed 1,000 career points on Wednesday.
Wisconsin will look to take this positive momentum into this weekend rivalry game against the Marquette Golden Eagles (5-4, 0-0 Big East) at the Kohl Center Saturday, Dec. 6. The Badgers next Big Ten contest will take place Wednesday, Dec. 10 against Nebraska (8-0, 0-0 Big Ten).