Wisconsin Basketball Defeats Ohio State 62-54: Here’s What Stood Out

After 18 grueling days, Greg Gard and the University of Wisconsin men’s basketball program put an end to their four-game losing skid. 

The No. 20 Wisconsin Badgers (17-8, 9-5) held on despite Chris Holtmann and the Ohio State Buckeyes (14-11, 4-10) making a run in the second half to secure a 62-54 win at the Kohl Center. 

Here’s what stood out from the Badgers home win over Ohio State. 

Wisconsin Basketball Played Through Steven Crowl 

It’s no secret that Wisconsin Badgers junior big man Steven Crowl hasn’t been playing his best basketball as of late. But getting him back on track was a clear point of emphasis for the Badgers on Tuesday night. 

Crowl took advantage of the 1-on-1 opportunities the Buckeyes gave him and finished with a team-high 16 points on 7 of 14 shooting from the floor, 10 rebounds (2 offensive), and two assists. 

Big night for Big Steve! @steven_crowl

16 PTS | 10 REB | 7-14 FG pic.twitter.com/AFgSWP2prL

— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) February 14, 2024

“Throw him the ball,” Gard told reporters regarding how you get a more aggressive Crowl. “It wasn’t a suggestion; it was a mandate. He’s gotta have the ball. He’s too good for us not to find him.

“It wasn’t suggested the last couple of days; it was pretty directly communicated.”

Although the Minnesota native had four turnovers in the game, I thought Crowl showed some toughness in the low post and provided the balance this Wisconsin basketball offense desperately needed. 

Let’s see if Crowl can string together a few more games like this. 

Wisconsin Basketball Got a Much More Patient AJ Storr 

During the losing streak, many things weren’t going well offensively, which may have caused sophomore forward AJ Storr to start forcing the issue. That led to poor shot selection and some questionable turnovers. 

I thought Storr was terrific on Tuesday night and let the game come to him. The 6-foot-7 wing scored 14 points on nine shots from the field and re-committed to getting to the basket instead of settling for jumpers. 

He also added 12 rebounds (six offensive) to notch his second double-double of the season while turning the ball over just once. 

“I thought AJ [Storr] was really good,” Gard told reporters after the game. “For as hard as I’ve been on him, I thought he really responded by taking good shots and being aggressive at the rim.”

It wasn’t Storr’s flashiest game, but he kept the ball moving on offense, attacked when opportunities arose and focused on trading looks he could get any time for great ones. 

The Wisconsin basketball coaching staff is still working to help Storr strike a balance between being a Ferrari and playing within the system. T

Other Wisconsin Badgers Musings

It’s no coincidence that Wisconsin basketball found a way to win when Steven Crowl and starting point guard Chucky Hepburn stepped up.

Hepburn was impactful on both ends of the floor, finishing with nine points, seven assists (0 turnovers), five rebounds, and two steals in total 39 minutes.

Chucky Hepburn creates so much offense with his defense. 💥@ChuckyHepburn x @BadgerMBB

💻: Peacock pic.twitter.com/Pdu8gNTINj

— Big Ten Men’s Basketball (@B1GMBBall) February 14, 2024

The offense looked much better, and his playmaking was a big reason for that. On the flip side, this team needs to get healthy because playing Hepburn that many minutes per game will come back to bite you later on.

***

It worked tonight, but I continue to have a gripe with Greg Gard not using the bench enough to keep guys fresh.

I understand that becomes much more difficult to rotate guys in when you’re down Kamari McGee and John Blackwell and want to roll out the guys you can trust.

But there were no substitutions during the final 10 minutes and change of the game. I’m not saying you need to have any one player in particular gobble up a ton of minutes; instead, you find windows to steal a few to get players a break whenever possible.

That said, Carter Gilmore was the only Badgers player with a positive plus/minus in the box score, so they clearly don’t see that as being worth the risk late in games.

I fear that if Wisconsin basketball doesn’t get back to full strength or something close to it, the Badgers could run out of juice in March.

***

Turnovers were still a bit of a problem. Wisconsin basketball turned the ball over on 21.1% of their possessions. Coach Gard has repeatedly said that the number needs to be closer to 10%.

Overall, it felt like a better outing offensively, but 12 turnovers are still more than you’d like to see.

***

Next up for the Wisconsin Badgers basketball team is a trip to Iowa City to take on Fran McCaffery and the Hawkeyes on Saturday at 1:15 PM CT on Big Ten Network.

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