9 thoughts from Wisconsin basketball's win vs. Ohio State
The Badgers once again found a way to dig itself out of an early hole and get the W. Here's what stood out.
MADISON, Wis. — The University of Wisconsin basketball team found itself in a familiar quandary less than six minutes into another Big Ten contest.
Luckily, the Badgers are used to clawing themselves out of a hole.
Wisconsin trailed by 11 points about 5 minutes, 45 seconds into its matchup with Ohio State after a Taison Chatman 3-pointer. But it took just over five minutes of game time for the Badgers to even things back up, and they eventually pulled away later in the first half and never trailed again on way to a 92-82 victory over the Buckeyes at the Kohl Center.
“I thought we were getting good looks,” Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said. “Nick (Boyd) had a few around the rim that we didn’t finish. So there was no panic. … It’s a long game. So as long as you’re getting the shots you want and you’re not making erroneous, silly mistakes defensively, you’re gonna chip away.
“And it didn’t take long, right? It was about three possessions, and bang, we were back right there. So like I said, the game can flip so fast. We’ve seen it flipped the other way for us, too, or against us. You don’t get too high. Don’t get too low. Knowing that … after those first five minutes, you got another 60, 65 possessions you have to go. It’s a long road.”
The Badgers changed the narrative of its season during the month of January, but it’s had to show some moxie while significantly trailing. This weekend’s victory was the fourth time in the last seven contests, according to Wisconsin, where the program’s trailed by double digits before staging a comeback and pulling out a W.
Here are some other thoughts from Saturday’s win.
John Blackwell sparked Wisconsin’s first-half comeback
Blackwell scored five consecutive points after Ohio State went up 15-4 to cut the deficit to six, but it was a 4-point sprint by the junior guard minutes later that ignited a resurgence.
Ohio State led 21-11 when Blackwell drained a long 2-pointer, then stole the ball and laid it in seconds later. That started a 13-2 run that ultimately gave Wisconsin its first lead of the game.
“I really wanted a steal like that. But I think I knew it was going to (Ohio State guard Bruce) Thornton,” Blackwell said postgame alongside forward Austin Rapp and guard Nick Boyd. “There was no one else down the court, so I just tried to hide, and then got the steal. And then whatever my team needs.
