That moment after: Wisconsin – inside the hall

Thoughts of one 76-64 Losses To badgers:

On paper, this looked like a hard matchup for Indiana.

On the field it turned out to be just that.

Wisconsin’s 3-point skill appeared early and buried Hoosiers. When Indiana lost shooters in Halfcourt and the transition, Badgers knocked down 6-of-7 from deep to start the competition. That led to a 26-4 lead of the 12: 38 mark, where Wisconsin scored an insane 2.0 points per year. Possession with an effective field target percentage of 92 to start things in this one.

Indiana’s numbers in the same stretch? Just .31 points per Possession with an effective field target percentage of 20.

To IU’s credit, it doesn’t quite wilt it away, as we’ve seen in other games this season. Bryson Tucker hit 2-AF-3 from deep, a rare sight. Myles Rice came to the line (4-of-5) and hit both of his field goals on scoring eight points. The Hoosis cut the lead to 12 points at the break, 40-28.

A Luke Goode 3-Pointer on the 19: 05 mark in the second half got Hoosiers within 11 (42-31). But it was as close as they would get the rest of the competition. While the badger did not shoot so well from deep over the last 20 minutes (3-of-13), they were able to just drive Hoosiers to buckets on several occasions to help grow the lead. And then a Carter Gilmore 3-Pointer with five minutes left they gave them their biggest lead of the game at 23 points (68-45).

Badgers took their feet away from the gas from there, which allowed Indiana to make some late buckets make the end result look better. But makes no mistake: Wisconsin owned this game and drove through the second half.

Mike Woodson tried some different lineup combinations to try to find something. Trey Galloway and Goode started the second half instead of Malik Reneau and Anthony Leal. Reneau then got some extended run next to Goode in Frontcourt in the second half while Oumar Ballo was resting. Reneau still looks rusty from the knee injury, but his nine minutes in the second half were his most effective since returning. He scored six points on 3-of-4 shooting and remained out of bad trouble for the game and just recorded one.

Wisconsin did a better job than Purdue by dealing with Galloway in high ball screen action, which helped badgers keep Indiana at one point per day. Possession (.97). Indiana also made a unified effort to try to keep up with Wisconsin from Deep as it shot 27 3-Pointers tonight, but did only seven (25.9 percent). Badgers went 12-of-29 (41.4 percent) from 3-point range and scored 1.15 points per Possession.

Indiana has now lost 21 right in Madison going back to 1998. Tonight’s loss was the seventh with double digit this season. The Hoosians are 11. In the big ten positions. They have lost four equal and six of seven.

The trend is not good right now. Can Hoosiers turn it and pick up a Quad 1 victory at home against Michigan on Saturday?

(Photo Credit: IU Athletics)

Filed to: Wisconsin Badgers