MADISON, Wis. – On the eve of his team restarting Big Ten play, Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard told a small media gathering that Minnesota was better than its .500 record suggested. He also added that fans and onlookers should get a bucket of popcorn ready for the craziness about to commence.

“Buckle in,” he quipped, “It'll be a wild ride.”

Both premotions turned out to be spot on, as the Gophers pushed the Badgers, who had to adjust on the fly after senior Tyler Wahl – arguably their best player – went down early in the first half and didn’t return. What followed in the 31-plus minutes with Wahl in the locker room and on the bench could be labeled as encouraging and discouraging but rewarding in the fact Wisconsin’s 63-60 victory made them the league’s first 3-0 team.

Here are my takeaways from Wisconsin’s fifth straight win over the Gophers.

Every game, according to junior Steven Crowl, Gard tells every player in the locker room to stay ready and be ready for their number to be called on. A lot of times it comes off as coach speak. It didn’t on Tuesday.

Wisconsin lost its best player less than nine minutes into the first half after Wahl came down awkwardly on his right ankle. Trying to gut through it, Wahl didn’t return over the final 11 minutes and was ruled out after not participating in second-half warmups, unable to get the same kind of push and explosion he needed to get into a full stride.

Without Wahl, UW was carried by the other two members of the big two with Crowl and Chucky Hepburn combining for 33 points, the kind of performance that was needed given the situation. Hepburn was big over the final six minutes of the first half when Crowl had to sit with foul trouble, hitting a pair of three-point shots that helped the Badgers close the half on an 8-0 run

It took more than the two veterans to lift the Badgers past a persistent Minnesota team. Jordan Davis salvaged an ugly possession by banking in a three-point shot in the second half, stopping an 11-0 Minnesota run that cut the lead to one and ignited a 7-1 run. It was a stretch that flipped momentum and played a big part in the outcome.

The absence of Wahl changed bench rotations, giving Carter Gilmore a career-high 30 minutes and putting sophomore Markus Ilver on the floor in critical moments. Playing 14 minutes, 25 seconds in the last eight games combined, Ilver played a career-high 14 minutes, hit a three-pointer, and had some halfway decent defensive positions on leading scorer Dawson Garcia (14 points, 5-for-13).

“The encouraging thing about Markis is he knows exactly (what he needed to do better),” said Gard, adding Ilver’s growth in the strength department and his mentality of getting his nose dirty has been noticeable.

UW has three days off before traveling to Illinois Saturday afternoon, and Gard couldn’t project what Wahl’s status would be. Regardless of whether he plays or not, Wisconsin showed itself that it can win without him.

“Hopefully in the long run this helps us in strengthening and developing our bench more,” Gard said. “As I told them in the locker room, good teams find a way when you’re not playing and clicking on all cylinders. Sputtering at times, good teams find a way to dig down and find a way to get it done.”

Up three in the waning seconds following Crowl’s miss on the front end of the bonus, Gard said Wisconsin wanted to foul. Ironically, it was a near-exact situation the Badgers had practiced the day before. Hepburn was ready for it.

“It was one of those where you can either steal it or foul,” Hepburn said. “So I stole the ball.”

Hepburn had a team-best 20 steals entering the game and padded his total considerably with a career-high five swipes. Someone who watches plenty of tape to pick up tendencies, Hepburn had Ta’lon Cooper marked and registered steals that caused four of his six turnovers.

“He’s got a great base,” Gard said of Hepburn’s ability to notch steals. “He’s hard to move when you’re coming at him. He takes physical contact, doesn’t really get knocked. He’s able to read people and stop their initial direction. As they go to counter, he is really good at reading. The ball gets exposed, he’s able to get his hand on it enough to disrupt the dribble and then he bulldogs his way toward the ball.”

Minnesota and Wisconsin both shot 24 of 55 from the field and both made seven free throws. The Gophers won the rebounding battle, 40-24, and allowed only two offensive rebounds, but the Badgers forced 20 turnovers that led to 21 points. The Gophers scored only five points off nine UW turnovers.

“Tale of the tape for us,” Minnesota coach Ben Johnson said of the last possession. “We got a little loose with the ball and had one of the turnovers in league play you just can’t have.”

Not only does Wahl’s absence cause a void from a scoring and leadership standpoint, but the Badgers also lost their most versatile defender. Max Klesmit had five points and two turnovers in 35 minutes but his impact on Minnesota guard Jameson Battle was just as impactful as any of his teammates.

An All-Big Ten honorable mention selection last season, Battle was averaging 12.9 points and shooting 34.4 percent from three-point range. Klesmit helped hold him to 13 points on 15 shots and going 2-for-7 from the perimeter. Battle also committed six turnovers, two directly caused by a Klesmit steal.

“I was really impressed with him,” Hepburn said of Klesmit. “Battle is like 6-6, 6-7 (and) has a height advantage, but Max is a dog. That’s what I love about him. I’ve always said he has the Brad Davison in him, and you saw that tonight.”

Thought to be more of a scorer when the Badgers plucked him out of the transfer portal, Klesmit was complimented by Johnson for his ability to press in and run Battle off screens, forcing tight catches and contested looks. Battle had some open looks that didn’t fall, but Klesmit made sure those kinds of opportunities were limited.

“He really locked in and did an exceptional job with him,” Gard added.

Coming out of the locker room on a 13-4 run, Wisconsin lead by 15 points with 16:17 to go. Yet, in the postgame press conference, Hepburn was apologizing for giving out more heart attacks to fans when the lead shrunk to one.

There are many things to point out on tape to a number of players. The Badgers missed on a handful of block outs and weren’t physical at times with Minnesota’s best players, allowing them to get comfortable with their shot making.

“Those little things that start to snowball, whether it’s a simple thing as a free throw block out or even blocking out within the possession in a non-free throw situation,” Gard said. “Little plays like that can give a team momentum and give them some confidence.”

Without a truly dominant big, Wisconsin is going to struggle to put up massive rebounding totals this season. The Badgers entered the night 275th in the country with a minus-1 average rebounding margin. After getting outrebounded by 16, that number will take a hit. The Gophers aren’t a great rebounding team either (12th in the league in team rebounds) but still managed to turn 11 offensive rebounds into 12 second-chance points.

UW also needs to find a way to get to the line more now that the physicality of conference play has returned. The Badgers shot just nine free throws against Minnesota, the fourth straight game being held to 13 or fewer attempts.

“It’s good learning when you get through a game when you have those types of things happen and you’re still on the left-hand side,” Gard said. “There will be teaching points that these guys will remember and we got to continue to get better in those areas.”

14 - The Badgers have won 14 of the last 16 against Minnesota dating back to 2014. UW now leads the all-time series 106-104.

.667 - Wisconsin is 42-21 (.667) in Big Ten play over the last four seasons, owning the second-best mark in the conference. Only Illinois (UW’s next opponent) is better at 44-18 (.710).

.635 - Gard’s .635 winning percentage in Big Ten games ranks sixth among Big Ten coaches of the last 40 years, trailing Bo Ryan (.717), Bob Knight (.710), Tom Izzo (.679), Thad Matta (.658) and Mark Turgeon (.643).

13 - UW posted a season-high 13 steals and the team's most since having 13 vs. Illinois on Feb. 27, 2021. The Badgers have posted at least 10 steals in three games this season after doing it just once last season.

40 - UW shot 40.0 percent from 3-point range, going 8-for-20. The Badgers have shot 40.0 percent or better in each of the last three games and eight times this season, going 7-1 in those games.

16.2 – After scoring 17 points (including 13 in the second half), Steven Crowl extended his double-digit scoring streak to five games and is averaging 16.2 points in that stretch.

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