The Badgers showcased their young guys in a nice win on Monday.
The Wisconsin Badgers got back on the winning track with an 88-61 win over Central Michigan on Monday night.
Wisconsin took a 40-28 lead into halftime, but it was far from a stellar first-half performance. The Badgers allowed the Chippewas to hang around thanks to inconsistent defense, as Wisconsin players failed to communicate with one another on open shooters and on rotations. That defensive showcase was enough for Big Ten basketball analyst Rapheal Davis to give it a thumbs down at halftime.
The Badgers took control of the game in the second half by holding the Chippewas to two field goals through the first 10:20 of the half. By the time Central Michigan scored at the 9:40 mark, the Badgers had ballooned the lead to over thirty points.
While Wisconsin earned an expected win over an overmatched opponent, it must continue improving its defense and shooting better at the free-throw line.
The Badgers made only 17-of-26 free throws on Monday, and that will not fly against a Quad 1 opponent. That said, Wisconsin shot 54 percent on the day, down a starter in John Blackwell, and outrebounded the Chippewas 41-22. In addition, Wisconsin’s bench players scored 44 points, their highest point total of the season.
Here are three standouts from Wisconsin’s win over Central Michigan.
Austin Rapp
After a brutal performance against Villanova with zero points and zero rebounds, many Badger fans, including myself, questioned Rapp’s role moving forward.
Against Central Michigan, Rapp took a step forward with 18 points off the bench, including 4-of-7 from the three-point line, and collected seven rebounds.
His defense still needs work, especially on opponent drives to the rim, but it was a good bounce-back game for Aussie.
Nolan Winter
Winter told reporters in an emotional speech after the Villanova loss about how the recent losses are not the standard of Badger basketball. Winter backed up his words with 18 points and eight rebounds against Central Michigan.
He did go down with an ankle injury in the second half and did not return to the game, but the injury does not appear serious at the moment.
Young Guys
Wisconsin fans witnessed extended minutes from Hayden Jones, Will Garlock, and Zach Kinziger. Jones earned his first start of the season with Blackwell out and gave the Badgers six points and four rebounds. His best play of the game came in the second half when he caught a pass from Jack Janicki and finished a nifty reverse layup while getting fouled.
Garlock had a nice game off the bench with four points and five rebounds in fourteen minutes of gametime, while Kinziger connected on two three-pointers in his Badgers debut. After the game, Gard raved about Kinziger’s improvement this season.
Category: General Sports
