After two straight wins over top-10 opponents, the Badgers travelled to Columbus on Tuesday hoping to avoid a trap game. But for Wisconsin, the lights were too bright, and just over a day after returning to the AP Poll, the No. 24 Badgers were battered by Ohio State 86-69.
After early back-and-forth play, Devin Royal led an abrupt 18-4 Buckeye run, giving OSU a 22-10 lead midway through the first half. Royal was outstanding all night, finishing with a season-high 25 points. His biggest contribution was in the first half, where he rattled home 16 points, accounting for over 42% of his team's points.
Wisconsin’s poor offensive start doomed them from the tipoff. Coming off two 40% 3-point shooting performances, the Badgers hit just seven of their 26 deep balls, going a measly 1-for-8 in the opening period. Their seven makes are tied for the second fewest in a game this season. OSU, which held the Badgers to 9-for-26 from deep earlier this season, efficiently eliminated Wisconsin’s most lethal weapon yet again.
Nolan Winter was the lone bright spot for the Badgers in the first, tallying 10 points and five boards, but he was kept scoreless the rest of the way.
Coming into the night playing their best ball of the season, Nick Boyd and John Blackwell both struggled mightily, going just 11-for-26 from the field combined and 2-for-9 from 3. Braeden Carrington was the only guard who could find a rhythm, scoring 20 points — 18 in the second half — to lead the way for Wisconsin.
Freshman product Hayden Jones played 15 minutes in the game, scoring six points. Jones provided a spark with relentless effort on both ends, grabbing three offensive rebounds. However, with a chance to cut the lead to 11 with 13:23 remaining, Jones missed both free throws, swinging the momentum back to the Buckeyes.
Free throws were a problem for the rest of the squad as well. The Badgers went just 8-for-16 from the stripe, a season low mark.
Wisconsin never cut the lead under 12, the number they trailed by at half, and led for just 44 seconds of the game. The Ohio State lead reached as much as twenty due to Bruce Thornton’s second-half heroics. 24 of his game-high 27 points came in the second-half, often ending any momentum the Badgers had.
Ohio State shot well above average from 3, hitting 52% of them, their second highest mark of the season. Still, the Buckeyes’ offense wasn’t particularly efficient, turning the ball over 14 times. Wisconsin couldn’t capitalize on Ohio State’s mistakes, tallying 12 turnovers of their own, the most in five games.
The loss concludes a week-long joyride for the Badgers, potentially putting their tournament odds in jeopardy. Ranked wins seem to come easy, but games they should win on paper do not.
Wisconsin looks to get back on track Sunday when Iowa (19-7, 9-6 Big Ten) comes to town. The Hawkeyes continued their strong season Tuesday, taking down No. 9 Nebraska 57-52. Tip is set for 3 p.m.
