MADISON, Wis. - A busy opening week of college basketball for the University of Wisconsin delivered a trio of desired results against overmatched opponents. That won’t be the case when No.10 Arizona comes in on Friday, but the foundation for the success has been laid.

Wisconsin put five players in double figures, smothered Appalachian State with its defensive pressure, and kept the pedal down in the second half for an 87-56 victory.

Holding an opponent to 37.5 percent from the field and 56 points is one thing, but the Badgers (3-0) also forced 18 turnovers, had 14 steals, and kept a team that scored 108 points in a game four days ago off-balanced and frustrated.

Can UW do this when a tougher opponent – say No.10 Arizona on Friday – appears on the schedule?

“We’re going to find out,” head coach Greg Gard said. “I hope so. It needs to be … You want to be able to do it in these types of games to execute against bigger and better teams.” Here are my takeaways from the Kohl Center.

A goal for Wisconsin defensively is to build consecutive stops. Three in a row is labeled “a kill” largely because of what it does to an opponent’s momentum. UW has to ponder what to label 15 straight stops during Tuesday’s film session.

While Wisconsin’s offense was scoring at will in the post, the Badgers shut down 15 consecutive possessions by forcing 10 missed shots, giving up only two offensive rebounds, and creating six turnovers that were part pressure and part athleticism.

One sequence saw John Tonje (17 points, seven rebounds, five assists, two steals, no turnovers) extend his fingertips near the free throw line to get his hands on a cross-court pass. The senior subsequently led the break and drove past freshman guard Anthony Alston before finishing over forward Jalil Beaubrun to push the lead to 30-17.

Wisconsin handled itself well playing against a bigger frontcourt for the first time this season. Senior CJ Huntley led App State in points (13) and tied for rebounds (six) but was just 1-for-2 on two-point shots. Senior Myles Tate scored 21 points in the season opener against Miami (OH) but was only 2-for-10 Sunday.

Four UW players registered multiple steals, and nobody was more active than Max Klesmit. After registering two steals in both wins last week, Klesmit (15 points) tied his career high with five as he read Tate like a children’s book.

“Tate is going to look for this throwback if comes off the ball screen if he doesn’t have the lob, so being able to bunt the roller and fall back in the passing lane for my guy,” Klesmit said. “It just comes down to experience and having played in so many games, seeing so many different looks, being able to adjust on the fly in game of what point guard likes doing what.”

The box score was a mixed bag by the 12-minute mark of the first half. The Badgers had been active defensively, getting into passing lanes and pressuring ball handlers, resulting in five turnovers on App State’s first 12 possessions. The other seven possessions were problematic, all converted into contested and uncontested baskets. Giving up 1.3 points per possession, UW found itself down early multiple possessions to a mid-major opponent for the second time in a week.

But once UW settled it, the Badgers showed their growth from the opener with their ability to defend ball screens and dribble handoffs, getting into the passing lanes, and pressuring the ball in the halfcourt. That execution put the Mountaineers on their heels and kept them disjointed on the perimeter.

Appalachian State entered the afternoon ranked fifth nationally with 60.4 percent of its attempts coming from 3-point range. The Mountaineers were just 28.1 percent on those attempts. After starting 3-for-4 from the perimeter, UW limited them to 4-for-20 the remainder of the afternoon, part of the reason the Mountaineers scored just 39 points in the final 32 minutes, eight seconds of the game.

“We finally started to put some things together like we have been talking about,” Gard said. “We’ve shown it in flashes but not consistently over a stretch of time. That’s a good sign going forward.”

Klesmit missed a three-pointer on Wisconsin’s second possession that was in Stephen Curry’s range, an attempt in transition by the coach’s box. It was part of four misses to open the game and 12 misses over the first 16 attempts that dug another hole. A little gentle nudging saw the Badgers flip the script.

Once John Blackwell hit a driving layup in the paint with 12:34 left, the Badgers became relentless inside. The next eight possessions involved post touches and post offense: Nolan Winter hit a driving layup or was fouled inside, Klesmit drove to the rim trying to facilitate, and Tonje scored in the paint or kicked out to open perimeter shooters. Kamari McGee scored inside, Steven Crowl mixed things up against varying matchups.

Pushing the run to 24-0, the longest by the program since a 25-0 one against Arkansas-Pine Bluff nearly four years ago, the Badgers flipped a nine-point deficit into a 15-point lead and never looked back.

UW owned a 26-6 in points in the paint in the first half and finished outscoring App State, 48-24. That went along with 10 steals and six offensive rebounds, three of which were grabbed by Winter. In the starting lineup for the third straight game, Winter had a team-high eight rebounds (six offensive) and leads the Badgers with 6.7 boards per game.

“He’s active, he’s got a nose for the ball, and he’s long and bouncy,” Gard said of Winter. “He’s got long arms and he’s quick off the floor. You can be a great rebounder and not have those things as long as you have a nose for the ball and a willingness to go get it. His willingness to pursue is the most important thing.”

Crowl saw a matchup he liked, an opponent with a bigger frontcourt presence that he could muscle. After a less-than-strong start to the season, Crowl was in the offense’s focus throughout his time on the court Sunday.

Being targeted by his teammates in transition possessions and the low post, Crowl bruised the Mountaineers’ bigger bodies with 17 points on 7-for-12 shooting, including shooting 6-for-9 on attempts around the low post.

Appalachian State threw multiple defenders on Crowl which the graduate senior continuously posted up and still got high-quality shots by playing physically and through contact.

“Playing one-on-one, there’s not a lot of guys in the country who are going to be able to handle him over the course of the time he has on the floor,” Gard said. “I want him with an aggressive-first mindset.”

He didn’t lose his passing identity either when the Badgers had open cutters to the rim, orchestrating a perfect give-and-go with Tonje late in the first half that was set up in part by an Appalachian State forward looking like he was preparing to be backed down by him.

Appalachian State head coach Dustin Kerns lamented how tough of a matchup Crowl is for teams, especially with how well the center passes to all the good-shooting guards on the floor. With all the double teams Crowl has seen, Kerns attempted to trap him off the dribble.

“I don’t get the impression he goes into a game thinking he’s got to get 20 points,” Kerns said. “That’s what makes him so good. I’ll get my 10 or 12 but I’m going to get my six or seven assists. He’s an elite passer, can step up and shoot the three. There are so many different things you have to prepare for.”

Even with Wisconsin’s desire to take more open looks from the perimeter, Crowl said trying to develop productive post looks for himself and his teammates is a process that continues to develop.

“We have a bunch of new guys,” he said, “so trying to blend the new guys with what we’ve had from years past is starting to come together and work a little bit better.”

1 - Wisconsin went 13-for-16 (81.3 percent) from the free throw line and is now shooting an NCAA-leading 92.5 percent (49-for-53) from the line on the season.

5 - Wisconsin had 5 players score in double figures for the first time since doing so at Indiana (2/27/24).

47 – Wisconsin has averaged 47.0 points in the second half during its first three games.

83.7 - UW is averaging 83.7 ppg on the season, having scored at least 79 points in each of the season's first three games for the first time since the 2007-08 season.

222 - With four assists Sunday, Crowl pushed his career total to 222, the most by any Big Ten player measuring at least 7 feet tall.

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