Wisconsin's four-game win streak came to an end inside the Barclays Center on Monday night during a 62-52 defeat to Richmond in the Roman Legends Classic.
BadgerBlitz.com breaks down five observations from the tournament match-up, which showed a recipe ripe for a loss.
1. The Wisconsin scoring attack seen recently cooled off considerably.
On the evening, Wisconsin (4-2) shot just 17-of-50 from the field (34 percent). Over half of the Badgers' attempts came from three-point range -- and they made merely seven of 27 (25.9 percent).
Particularly in the second half, it appeared Wisconsin put up a few shots that looked ill-timed and not high percentage. It reflected in the final 20 minutes where the team made only seven of 24 overall (29.2 percent).
After two straight games of six Badgers scoring in double figures, only two -- Nate Reuvers and Kobe King -- scored in double figures against the Spiders on the night. For that matter, only one player from Greg Gard's team, true freshman Tyler Wahl, shot over 50 percent for the game. Redshirt junior forward Aleem Ford did not connect on any of his five attempts from the field, missing three of those from beyond the arc.
2. The Badgers could not contain Blake Francis and Grant Golden
On the flip side, Richmond shot over 46 percent for the game -- 48 percent in the second half. The duo of guard Blake Francis and forward Grant Golden combined for 35 of the Spiders' 62 points on 15-of-30 shooting.
The guard paced Richmond with a game-high 19 points and shot 8-of-18 overall while also dishing out six assists. For Golden, Wisconsin gave up a double-double to the big man (16 points and 12 rebounds) and made seven of his 12 attempts on the evening.
3. Wisconsin also gave up a lot of points in the paint while not attacking it enough.
Along with just 23 of its 50 field goal attempts coming from within the arc, the Badgers did not attack the rim and were outscored, 28-10, in the paint on Monday. Even against Green Bay last week, and perhaps a premonition of what was to come, the Phoenix led that category, 36-26.
Not to harp too much on this, as those available to play need to figure out how to compensate until Dec. 21, but Micah Potter's inside presence likely would have helped against Richmond.
4. Turnovers cost Wisconsin, and Richmond took advantage.
The Badgers committed 15 on the night -- eight in the second half where the Spiders eventually outscored them 31-23 (nine points came off of those turnovers). King and junior guard Brad Davison combined for seven in Brooklyn. Overall, Richmond held a 17-5 points advantage in capitalizing off of turnovers.
UW's assist total (seven) showed a team that did not pass the way that it did last week against Green Bay when it recorded 24.
5. One bright spot: Wisconsin again continues to make good at the free throw line.
I will give a positive from the game, and it's a trend that Wisconsin continued early on this season. The team made 11-of-14 free throws, good for 78.6 percent. Reuvers, who scored a team-high 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds against Richmond, made all four of his attempts. King and Ford each made three of four from the line as well.
On the flip side, the Spiders only attempted six shots from the free throw line, burying four.
On the season, Wisconsin has made 82.1 percent from the charity stripe and has attempted 34 more free throws than opponents through six contests.
