The Wisconsin Badgers earned their third win of the season with an 86-55 victory over the Ball State Cardinals. Just like the Northern Illinois game, the Badgers got out to a quick start. Wisconsin jumped
out to a big 27-6 start, and it appeared Ball State was going to be run out of the Kohl Center by halftime.
However, the Cardinals outscored the Badgers 20-12 in the last 11:11 of the first half. The Badgers, efficient on offense to start the game, settled for way too many three-pointers and failed to take care of the ball. The Badgers finished that half with seven turnovers and shot 6-of-23 from behind the three-point line.
With the Badgers holding a 39-26 halftime lead, Wisconsin’s second-half offense seized control of the game by attacking the paint and finishing at the rim. After the Badgers worked inside against the Cardinals, the offense appeared more in sync, shooting high-percentage three-pointers and extending the lead to over 30 points in the second half, before cruising to victory.
One statistic worth mentioning in this game was Wisconsin’s dominance in the rebounding category. The Badgers outrebounded the Cardinals by a 45-25 margin, with 30 defensive rebounds. It was a strong performance on the boards tonight for the Badgers.
Here are three Badgers standouts from Wisconsin’s win over Northern Illinois on Tuesday.
Nolan Winter
Winter arrived in Madison on Tuesday. The junior forward achieved his second double-double of the season with 19 points, one point away from his career-high, and 10 rebounds against Ball State. In addition, he finished 2-for-3 from three and rejected three shots in the game.
Yet, even after notching another double-double, Greg Gard still wants more from Winter.
It’s been a solid start for Winter in November 2025, but if Gard wants more for the big man, the Big Ten must watch out.
Aleksas Bieliauskas-Will Garlock tandem
Coming off the bench, Bieliauskas had a solid game with six points and an impressive eight rebounds, second only to Winter, and two blocks. It’s a small sample size with three games, but Bieliauskas is showing signs of adapting to college basketball in his first year with the Badgers, especially on the boards.
Helping Bieliauskas out was the passing of Garlock, especially at the top of the key. The freshman from Middleton finished with three assists off the bench.
Braeden Carrington
I wanted to highlight bench contributors, and Carrington impressed in Tuesday’s win. The veteran guard scored 12 points in 18 minutes and tallied four rebounds, one assist, and one steal.
After the game, Gard spoke highly of Carrington, stating that he “was getting more comfortable with who he is as a player and in game situations.”
Should Carrington continue providing solid bench production, we might see more minutes from him in future games.
