A struggling Wisconsin Badgers team matched up against the Villanova Wildcats Friday night in Milwaukee, desperate to get their season on track after dropping two straight games. But Wisconsin was unable to overcome a miserable first half, losing 76-66 and falling to 7-4 on the season.
In a game of tempo, the Wildcats came out victorious. Over the past few years, the Badgers dictated games by pushing the ball up the court at a rapid pace, putting opposing defenders out of position. But against Villanova, Wisconsin was unable to thrive through their usual fast paced offense.
Villanova has been one of the slowest-paced teams this season, ranking 346th in tempo across the country. They controlled the tempo and slowed the Badgers down, forcing them to make crucial mistakes and lose possessions. The Badgers were also forced into 16 turnovers.
The Wildcats started the game hot from beyond the arc, building an early 18-8 lead in the first nine minutes of the game. 12 of those points came from 3-pointers, which plagued the Badgers throughout the game.
The Badgers were neck-and-neck with Villanova for the first five minutes of action, but soon became embedded in a nearly five-minute long scoring drought that turned a two-point deficit into a 10-point hole.
Villanova would go on to control the boards and score easily in stretches against a lackadaisical Badger defense. The Wildcats caught fire from beyond the arc and made a big run to secure a 13 point lead at the break.
After a disappointing first half, the Badgers sparked some hope for the fans with much improved second half play. They only allowed the Wildcats to score 21 points the entire second half, forcing the game into overtime. Guard John Blackwell got into a groove after a sloppy first half to help the Badgers put themselves back into the game. His 14 second half points was the fuel to the flame that the Badgers needed to secure a comeback.
In overtime, however, the Badgers lost steam. A pair of threes by Villanovas’ Bryce Lindsay put Villanova up 63-57 early in overtime, and the fatigued Badgers were unable to fight their way back. Villanova stretched Wisconsin’s defense and attacked the paint in overtime, and won 76-66.
Nolan Winter, recording yet another double-double, tallied 23 points and 11 rebounds, making it to lead the Badgers. It was a very intense game for the big man, and he obviously wanted to have this game be the turning point for the Badgers. Through his intensity, he has continuously set a high standard for this Badger squad, even if they haven’t seen the fruits of success yet.
Winter started his scoring with a three from the top of the key to end an early first half scoring drought. He ended the game 4-6 from beyond the arc and 9-12 from the field. The loss was taken hard by Winter, who was emotional in his postgame press conference.
“This team’s full of winners. For myself, I know I’m a winner,” Winter said . “And to go through losses and some trials like that, it’s not what I hold this team to be. And as a leader of this team and with Nick [Boyd] right here, I know that we got more in the tank, and I know what it means for us to wear Wisconsin across our chest and to go out there, to go out there and not show the effort that the state of Wisconsin deserves, the program deserves.”
Boyd did his part, contributing 19 points off of 7-of-17 shooting from the field. For Boyd, the fast paced offense comes natural to him as he is always seen pushing the ball up the floor. He has established himself as leader on this Badger squad despite it being his first season with the team. After Saturday's contest, Boyd is averaging 20.1 points on the season, which is fifth in the Big Ten.
“I gotta reflect on myself first and what can I do better for the team, as a leader, as an older guy to set the tone.” He thinks very highly of this Wisconsin team and knows what they can accomplish if they start small and work their way up,” Boyd said after the game.
Head coach Greg Gard said players needed a consistent 40 minutes to improve through the rest of the season.
“We’re not chasing a ghost anymore,” Gard said. “We know what it looks like, and I also know you can do it. So now it’s a matter of doing it again. It’ll be again tomorrow when we practice and get ready for Monday. So it’s, do it again and then do it again. And I thought we made some steps defensively in practice over the week, things that we worked on. And it showed me in the second 20 that, okay, we’re capable of doing it.”
Despite the loss, Gard and his group seem resilient in the face of adversity. Their next test will be another non-conference matchup, this time against Central Michigan on Monday.
