Overtime: Wisconsin Collects Fourth Win in a Row

MADISON, Wis. — Picking up their fourth consecutive win, Wisconsin (13-5, 5-2) held off a late charge from Rutgers (9-9, 2-5) to hang on for a 96-87 win on Saturday. The Badgers led by as many as 26, but things got a little dicey late, with the Scarlet Knights using a 13-3 run to get within 81-74 with just under ifve minutes to play.

“Obviously, a really good 20 minutes. Second half, I want to look through the tape before I do anything other than opinions,” UW head coach Greg Gard said. “I thought Rutgers was more aggressive. I thought we were less aggressive. Like I said, really good in the first, and a lot of things I’ll have to look through and get figured out for the second 20.

“We need to be much better than that.”

Wisconsin Has Caught Fire From 3-Point Range

We knew this Wisconsin team was going to be heavily dependent on the 3-point shot. This four-game winning streak reflects how important the deep ball is to the Badgers.

Against Rutgers, UW went 12-of-30 from downtown. Before going cold late, the Badgers 12-of-21 from deep. Breaking out of a slump, UW has made 41 triples in its last three games while shooting 43 percent from beyond the arc.

“It’s amazing when you make shots, right,” said Gard. “It’s a simple game. We’re running the same offense, we’re doing the same stuff. When you make shots, it cures a lot of ills, it covers up some warts.”

The Badgers Played With Their Food Again

Saturday was far from the first time Wisconsin held a huge lead in the first half, only to get disinterested and see the opponent crawl back into the game.

Rutgers had separate runs of nine and eight points, respectively, in the second half. After a 13-2 spurt, the Scarlet Knights were able to make things interesting, pulling within 81-74 with just under five minutes to play.

I don’t get overly critical of letting teams back in the game. It’s only human nature to let up, and the Badgers led by as many as 26 and were up 71-45 with 13:27 remaining. However, this is happening enough to UW where you wonder when it will catch up to them, and if they need to let one get away from them in order to learn the lesson.

“First half, as a team, we were connected, all together. We started the game out with some fire and a little bit of edge to us,” said junior forward Nolan Winter, who had 18 points, five rebounds, and two assists. “I think going into halftime, I don’t know if we got complacent, or whatever it was, we lost that edge. Going forward, we know there needs to be two completed halves from us.”

After Purdue, UW Has Turned Things Around

There’s still a ton of season left, and by no means has Wisconsin arrived as a Big Ten title threat, but things looked a little bleak after the 89-73 home loss to Purdue on Jan. 3. It marked the fifth double-digit loss of the season for the Badgers, who were searching for answers.

Certainly, there’s bigger fish to fry than Rutgers, but all of a sudden, UW seems to be putting some things together and looking like the team we thought they were in the preseason.

“There’s a lot of internal things we’ve focused on,” said Winter. “Obviously, we’re making shots, and that helps, and we’re getting wins, but I think internally, our mindset has flipped ever since that game to a more aggressive team, a more ‘at you team,’ rather than taking that first blow and getting on our heels early. I think moving forward, if we continue to do that, we’re going to be in a good spot.”

Game Ball

When things got dicey, Nick Boyd took over for Wisconsin.

In the final 6:31, Boyd scored 10 of his game-high 32 points to help the Badgers close the door. Boyd had a huge three-point play to spell the 13-2 Rutgers run. Boyd also had a career-high nine assists, drew 10 fouls, and at one point, scored or assisted on 13 straight points for UW.

“I thought his ability to attack, especially against that defense, you have to have people break them down,” said Gard.

Big Picture

Wisconsin has already gotten hot, but can they stay hot? You look at this upcoming schedule for the Badgers, and they won’t face a ranked opponent until Feb. 10 at Illinois. The best team UW plays before them? Arguably, Ohio State on Jan. 31, and that one will be at home. Three of the next five are also at the Kohl Center, while the road trips are at Penn State and Indiana, who are a combined 3-10 in league play.

Beyond the Box Score

1.47: Wisconsin averaged 1.47 points per possession in the first half.

4: UW made its last four shots to end the first half, taking a 51-29 lead into the break.

4:50: Rutgers committed four turnovers in a span of 4:50 in the first half.

6: The Badgers made six of their first 10 3-point field goals.

6:31: Boyd scored 10 points in the final 6:31.

8: Boyd scored eight consecutive points for UW in the first half.

9: The Badgers missed their last nine attempts from 3-point range.

10:21: The Scarlet Knights went 10:21 betwen two-point field goals.

11: UW used an 11-0 run to take a 16-7 lead in the first half.

13: Boyd scored or assisted on 13 consecutive points for the Badgers in the first half.

14: The Badgers were 14 of 18 around the rim

17: RU had separate runs of nine and eight points, respectively, in the second half.

17: Nolan Winter had a +/- of 17.

18: UW’s 18 second chance points were the most in Big Ten play this season.

20: UW had 20 assists, their most in Big Ten play this season.

24: The Scarlet Knights registered just 24 points in the paint, the fewest allowed by UW in Big Ten play.

37:50: The Badgers led for 37:50.

41: UW has made 41 3-pointers in its last three games on 43 percent shooting.