MADISON - The Wisconsin Badgers welcomed the Division III UW-Stevens Point Pointers to the Kohl Center for a Wednesday night exhibition game ahead of Wisconsin's season opener against Arkansas State on Monday.

Like most of these opening exhibition matchups against lower-division opponents, this one wasn't much of a barn-burner, as the Badgers nearly doubled Stevens Points' total. Wednesday was treated by Greg Gard as more of a mini-preseason, as every available player got minutes. It'll be the only opportunity to see what the Badgers look like against an opponent ahead of the real season opener.

Here are my three biggest takeaways from Wednesday's win.

The lack of stakes, as well as the lopsided score, meant that Gard was going to try to play as many of his guys as possible. All 17 players who suited up logged minutes on Wednesday, and nine finished with at least 10. But the most meaningful bench contributions came from two of some of the youngest players on the roster.

AJ Storr was the star of the first half, but freshman guard John Blackwell might have stolen the show in the second. His most impressive sequence came with about eight minutes left in the game, when he rebounded his own missed free throw, then scored an and-one on the put-back.

Blackwell showed incredible comfort with the ball in his hands and a level of competency that’s rarely seen in a freshman. He shook his defender at the perimeter and could have scored an easy layup, but passed it to Connor Essegian for a 3-pointer.

Perhaps more impressive than anything was the immense effort he played with all night. Blackwell’s six rebounds were tied for second on the team along with Steven Crowl, who’s eight inches taller than Blackwell.

“Freshmen sometimes ride the rollercoaster, most times. I thought he had been more consistent,” Gard said of Blackwell. “He’s fearless, as you can see. He’s not tentative at all, for a freshman. And that’s a good sign.”

He also scored eight points off the bench, which was second only to his fellow freshman, Nolan Winter.

Winter was the first reserve to sub in for the Badgers, and he validated Gard’s confidence.

Stevens Point wasn’t sure how to deal with his overbearing size and length. There was a sequence in the second half where he logged three rebounds in about 40 seconds.

Winter also showed some of the range that was evident in practice. His 3-pointer was Wisconsin’s last basket of the first half.

“When the summer finished, I felt really confident in the system, where I was physically,” Winter said after the game. “I figured that I could have a role on this team.”

He may have to get used to a greater role, as it was announced Wednesday that fellow freshman big man Gus Yalden would temporarily step away from the team to deal with a family issue.

Gard can at least feel comfort in the fact that there’s another young big man off the bench he can rely on.

It was just an exhibition game, but Storr jumped off the court.

He logged 13 minutes in the first half, then just five in the second, but stole the show whenever he did play. The St. John’s transfer finished with a team-high 14 points, 12 of which came in the first half, while shooting 5-7 from the field and 2-3 from 3.

Much of the pure athleticism that was evident in pre-season practices translated seamlessly to game action. His second basket of the game was a dunk that required more vertical than anybody else on the roster is capable of.

Storr isn’t just limited to driving and slashing. He made two corner, catch-and-shoot 3-pointers in the first half.

“He has a pretty good feel with the ball in his hands,” Gard said of Storr. “He can get downhill, at his size and as strong as he is, as quick as he is. He can put the pressure on the rim.”

Some of his natural athleticism also worked well on the defensive end. One of his best plays of the day came when he used his vertical to block a midrange shot from Josiah Butler, who was the only player to finish with more points than Storr, with 15.

It shouldn’t surprise anybody if he finished this season as the team’s leading scorer. And scoring is just one of his many skills.

“He’s learned how to play hard, all the time,” said Gard.

Storr and the freshmen stole the show, but the Badgers will still live and die by the play of their big men, specifically the two starters.

Tyler Wahl’s 17 minutes were the lowest of any starter, but make no mistake, it’s still his team.

His leadership was clear from the opening tip, as he controlled Wisconsin’s offense for most of the beginning of the game. Stevens Point quickly picked up on his value and role, as they began to swarm him whenever he touched the ball. He still finished with nine points, all of which came in the first half.

The other starting big man, Crowl, played a similarly quiet-yet-impactful game.

He took advantage of Wisconsin’s height advantage more than anybody. The average height of their starting five was about 6-foot-3. Crowl even had four inches on the tallest Stevens Point starter, who was just 6-foot-8.

This led to some incredibly easy layups and post shots. His six rebounds were tied for second on the team, and they all came in the first half.

Whenever it wasn’t Chucky Hepburn starting plays and leading the offense, it was Wahl or Crowl.

This exhibition game wasn’t about them, but it’s clear that they’re still the backbone of the team.

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