The Wisconsin Badgers pulled off an impressive 92-71 victory over the No. 10 Michigan State Spartans at home on Friday evening, using a strong first half to pull away and get their second-straight Top 10 win after upsetting the No. 8 Illinois Fighting Illini on the road on Tuesday.
It was a big-time performance from the Badgers, who shot 15 of 35 (42.9 percent) from three and played some stellar defense, while leading for 39:18 of the 40 minutes of the game. The win got Wisconsin to 18-7 on the year
and 10-4 in conference play, marking their ninth win in 11 games.
Here are three quick takeaways from Wisconsin’s 92-71 win over Michigan State on Friday.
Fast start
The Badgers and the Spartans have struggled at times this year with slower starts. So it was going to be important to be the team on top early on Friday, and that was the Badgers.
Wisconsin came out flying with the threes, as Andrew Rohde hit a pair to open the game off assists from Nick Boyd and John Blackwell. And the Badgers went on to hit their first five threes, getting out to an early 17-10 lead despite struggling inside the arc.
Defensively, the Badgers gave up a couple of buckets to Coen Carr, but did a good job at forcing tough shots and limiting second-chance opportunities, which kept them ahead early in the half.
The crowd was a big factor as well early on, as they added to Wisconsin’s early momentum. But the Badgers knew their formula for winning and executed that well from the jump, which was crucial to the victory.
Then, in the second half, after leading by 17 at halftime, it was imperative that the Badgers didn’t take their foot off the gas. Michigan State could not cut the lead to single digits, as Wisconsin responded anytime the Spartans were looking to gain some momentum, and kept a good distance.
It’s the same formula the Badgers had in their two-point win over Illinois on Tuesday. They needed every bit of the strong start they had in the first half, second half, and overtime. Those early bursts were a big factor again on Saturday.
First half explosion
It’s pretty darn hard to score 51 points and blow out Michigan State in the first half. But that’s exactly what Wisconsin did, which set the tone for the remainder of the game.
Nick Boyd was phenomenal with 20 first-half points, leading the charge as John Blackwell was in foul trouble. He orchestrated the offense well, charged up the crowd, and even hit threes at a high rate (4 of 5 from deep). But Wisconsin was stellar offensively as a whole, hitting 10 threes and shooting 57.6 percent from the field.
Physicality was going to be crucial in this one. And it was important that Wisconsin compete there from the jump. While both teams had 19 rebounds in the first half and Wisconsin allowed eight offensive rebounds in the opening period, the Badgers did not allow second-chance points. In fact, they outscored Michigan State on second chance opportunities 11 to 5, despite hauling in only five offensive rebounds. It was a battle between two of the best teams in the conference at scoring on second chances, so winning that battle was important for the Badgers.
Defensively, though, is where the Badgers shone. They shut down top scorers Jeremy Fears Jr. and Jaxon Kohler, who combined for only six first-half points on 1 of 7 from the field. As a whole, they limited Michigan State to 31.3 percent from the field, and defense turned into offense often on Friday evening.
It was a great first half for the Badgers, and one that showed they could compete with any team in the country.
Resume
When you think about the start of January, Wisconsin was potentially out of the NCAA Tournament picture after its losses to the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Villanova Wildcats. Then, they got blown out at home by the Purdue Boilermakers in a game that was close at halftime before getting blown wide open to start the second half. Things weren’t looking great for this squad then.
Since then, Wisconsin has pulled off wins over the No. 2 Michigan Wolverines, No. 8 Illinois Fighting Illini, and the No. 10 Michigan State Spartans. Those are three huge Quad 1A wins for a Badgers squad that was lacking them heading into the past month.
The Badgers have been one of the hottest teams since. They’re now winners of nine of their last 11 games, with the two losses being a two-point loss to the USC Trojans, where they blew a lead, and the controversial one-point loss on the road to the Indiana Hoosiers.
Their resume has gotten significantly stronger, and the two wins this week likely bring Wisconsin back into the Top 25 and cement their status as an NCAA Tournament team. We’ll see where they’re (or if) ranked on Monday, but this Badgers team has a chance to go on a deep run to end the season.
They face Ohio State, a team they’ve already beaten this season, on the road on Tuesday before hosting Iowa at home next weekend. After that, it’s a road trip to the West Coast to face Washington, which has gone 4-10 in the Big Ten, and Oregon, which has gone a Big Ten-worst 1-12 in conference play.
Then, the Badgers end the season at home against 10-14 Maryland before hitting the road to face Purdue in the regular-season finale. They’re already 10-4 in the Big Ten, and have the opportunity to get even higher in the conference standings before the tournament.
Quite a turnaround for this team over the last month.
