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Home > The Swing > Wisconsin 85, Northwestern 73: Last word
Podcast: The Swing
Episode:

Wisconsin 85, Northwestern 73: Last word
Category: Sports & Recreation
Duration: 00:00:00
Publish Date: 2025-12-04 06:05:33
Description:

MADISON — Wisconsin built a 23-point halftime lead and withstood an uneven second half to beat Northwestern 85-73 in the Big Ten opener for both teams on Wednesday night at the Kohl Center.

Player of the Game: John Blackwell

The junior guard was fantastic, especially in the first half. That’s when he scored 23 of the team’s 55 points, hitting five of the six 3-pointers he attempted. He had just three points after the break, but did collect a career-high tying 11 rebounds on the night. It gave him his first double-double of the season and the third of his career. Blackwell added three steals and he now has nine in his last three games.

The good: The first half on offense

The Badgers were great on the offensive end in the first half, shooting 50-percent from the field on their way to 55 points. They got it done in a variety of way, going 9-for-21 from 3 and 12-for-13 from the free throw line. They had a remarkable 15 assists on 17 field goals and didn’t turn it over once.

The not so good: The second half

The second half was the opposite of the first and was a complete slog for the Badgers. At least some of that is a credit to Northwestern picking up their defensive intensity, but it was just a sloppy effort. Wisconsin turned it over seven times and had just four assists. Many of the turnovers were unforced and just aren’t plays you can make in tight games. Thankfully, the Badgers had built that big halftime lead and it didn’t end up costing them.

Stat of the Game: 18

That’s how many points Nick Boyd had in the second half. Wisconsin’s lead actually dipped to 13 points with 2:38 left when Boyd got downhill for a pair of layups to put the game away. He finished with 20 points on the day.

In Case You Missed It

— Freshman Aleksas Bieliauskas got the first start of his career in place of Austin Rapp. Bieliauskas hit a 3-pointer early in the game and finished with six points and three rebounds

— Rapp came off the bench for the first time at Wisconsin, scored 13 points. It included a 3-for-6 effort from beyond the arc

— Two Wisconsin players went over 1,000 points in their careers. Blackwell’s third 3-pointer of the night pushed him over that mark, reaching it in 79 career games — the ninth-fasted by a UW player in the last 40 years. Andrew Rohde, who spent his first three seasons at St. Thomas (1) and Virginia (2), also topped 1,000 points for his career

— Rohde also tied a career-high by dishing out nine assists and the first time he’s done it at Wisconsin

— Wednesday was Greg Gard’s 55th birthday

What’s next?

Wisconsin (6-2, 1-0) will host Marquette (5-4) on Saturday. Tip is at 1 p.m.

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