MADISON, Wis. – Big Ten play is still in its infancy for the University of Wisconsin but it’s easy to see that the Badgers are bringing an offense that could make them a dangerous team in the months to come.
No.21 Wisconsin and its offense kept moving along Saturday, overwhelming Nebraska with its size, space, and efficiency in an 88-72 victory at the Kohl Center.
The only Big Ten team without a conference loss, the Badgers (11-3, 3-0 Big Ten) have developed depth and balance that are making them a challenge to defend. Shooting 55.0 percent from the field, Wisconsin put five players in double figures for the second time this season (Tyler Wahl 17, Chucky Hepburn 13, Connor Essegian 12, and John Blackwell and A.J. Storr 10) and averaged 1.375 points per possession.
Even changing the game due to a foreign substance didn’t help, as the Badgers scored 74 points on their first 51 possessions and 14 points on their next 11 possessions before they started emptying the bench.
A program that struggled to score points last season, the Badgers are now averaging 75.8 per game, 10.5 points more than a year ago.
Everything seemed to click for Wisconsin from the opening tip, a clinic that saw the Badgers average 1.5 points on their 34 possessions, shoot 54.9 percent from the floor and get at least eight points from four players. The 51 first-half points were the most by Wisconsin in a conference game in over 25 years.
Wisconsin blew a 17-point lead in Lincoln last season but never came close to repeating that dubious fate Saturday. The Badgers never let their second-half lead dip below 11 as they went over 80 points in the back-to-back Big Ten games for the first time since the 2014-15 season.
Nebraska (12-3, 2-2) got a team-high 17 points Keisei Tominaga, who burned the Badgers last season scoring 17 of his 22 points after halftime. He had only five in the Saturday’s second-half, as the Huskers five-game win streak ended.
What it means: Wisconsin was expected to be tested by Nebraska’s defense, which was giving up its fewest points (65.8) since 2015. The Badgers blew past that total with 13:41 remaining to finish 4-0 on their longest homestand of the season.
Star of the game: It’s impossible to pick one player from this game, so the praise will go to UW’s bench, as the six main reserves scored 36 points.
Stat of the game: Wisconsin entered Saturday 235th nationally in three-point shooting, making only 32.4 percent of its attempts. UW went 7-for-13 in the first half and finished with a season-high 13 on 26 attempts.
Reason to be Concerned: The success of Wisconsin’s offense glossed over breakdowns defensively. The Huskers were 46.2 percent from three-point range and averaged 1.13 points per possession, numbers over UW’s season average of 34.4 percent and 0.90, respectively.
Don’t overlook: After playing the final 20 seconds against Iowa, Essegian played 6:22 in the first half and made an impact, hitting three of his five three-point attempts and doing so in rhythm with no hesitation. Essegian finished with a season-high in points, an encouraging sign that the sophomore might be trending in the right direction.
What’s next: Wisconsin makes its first road trip since Dec.9 when it travels to Columbus to face Ohio State Wednesday. Ohio State (12-2, 2-1) has won eight of its nine home games this season and is led by the trio of guard Bruce Thornton (17.4 ppg), guard Roddy Gale Jr. (14.9) and Minnesota transfer forward Jamison Battle (14.9). The Badgers are 26-56 in Columbus but have won three of the last four meetings at Value City Arena.
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