The No. 24 Wisconsin Badgers set the tone early Friday, dismantling the Northern Illinois Huskies 97-72 at the Kohl Center behind a career high 25 points from transfer guard Nick Boyd.
The Badgers improved in each of their first two games, and are now 2-0 to open up their season.
Boyd led Wisconsin in scoring, clearly hungry coming into this game and started off hot on both ends, hitting three 3-pointers in the first half.
Just two games into the season, it’s obvious Wisconsin’s up-tempo offense works well for Boyd.
“I wanted to go to a program that was getting up and down a little bit more. I have the freedom to just push the ball as fast as I want,” Boyd said after the game.
Guard John Blackwell scored 15 points on 4-for-8 shooting with six rebounds.
Boyd and Blackwell complement each other well in the backcourt, with their chemistry and ability to facilitate elevating the efficiency and flow of the offense.
Defensively, the Badgers were anchored by junior forward Nolan Winter. Winter solidified a consistent presence near the basket, accounting for two blocks and seven blocks. Winter also scored 12 points.
Senior guard Andrew Rohde, who ended the night with eight points, also helped the Badgers defensively. He was an aggressive presence and punctual on his defensive rotations, contributing more than what the stat sheet shows. Although he was seen reaching in and grabbing a couple unnecessary fouls, he’s a player that would rather be physical then let the opponent gather free points.
On the visiting end, it was JJ Taylor leading the way for the Huskies. He ended the game with 17 points and four rebounds. He found ways to penetrate Wisconsin’s defense and find opportunities to try and keep the Huskies in the game.
Gianni Cobb was another contributor. He used his quickness and crafty ball-handling to manipulate the defense and consistently find his way to the rim, keeping the Huskies’ offense alive in the early going. He ended the game with eight points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field.
Wisconsin’s scoring opened up with a 3-pointer from Rohde on the wing, setting the Badgers up for a 12-2 run that got the crowd roaring and allowed the Badgers to go on cruise control the rest of the night.
The energy was electric to start the game, and it gave the Badgers an immediate spark. Boyd came out firing, scoring seven of Wisconsin’s first 12 points within the opening three minutes. On an inbound play, he showed off his quickness, cutting to the rim and finishing a smooth reverse layup to cap off the hot start.
Throughout the night, Wisconsin’s bench provided a spark that helped the Badgers breeze past the Huskies, combining for a total of 32 points.
Freshman forward Aleksas Bieliauskas was the top bench performer of the night, scoring eight points. He came out hot, scoring five points in his first two minutes of game action, which helped give the Badgers a 20-5 lead.
Will Garlock, Hayden Jones and Isaac Gard each added five points. Guard Jack Janicki had the crowd roaring after a runaway steal led to a monster dunk, his only two points of the night.
As the Badgers built a sizable lead, head coach Greg Gard did not shy away from mixing up his rotations. “I want to continue to develop different combinations that we can use and see who works well together,"” Gard said after the game.
Despite the lopsided victory, there are aspects of their play that Wisconsin can improve on as the season progresses. By the end of the night, Wisconsin had three players — Janicki, Rohde and Garlock — in foul trouble. While the game was physical, Wisconsin will need to clean up their play on the defensive end before they start competing against higher-level teams. Wisconsin’s fouling led to free points for the Huskies throughout the evening, especially on shots in the paint.
Wisconsin will look for their third win of the season when they face Ball State on Nov. 11. The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. at the Kohl Center.
