Wisconsin Basketball Pulls Away Late for Win Over Jax State

Wisconsin basketball returned to the Kohl Center early Thursday evening. With hopes of bouncing back after a loss at Arizona, the Wisconsin Badgers showcased inside scoring ability early. That set the tone for the rest of the evening as UW defeated the Jacksonville State Gamecocks 75-60.

Wisconsin Basketball Dominated the Paint

By the first media timeout, Tyler Wahl had already made his presence known. The forward scored Wisconsin’s first eight points of the night. He finished with 16 as the Wisconsin Badgers doubled up Jax State on points scored in the paint 40-20.

Michigan State’s Carson Cooper, right, guards Wisconsin’s Tyler Wahl during the second half on Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.

At times, Wahl looked like he could not be stopped one-on-one. Jax State double-teamed him on a few occasions, but it apparently was not a defensive rule for the Gamecocks despite the Lakeville, Minnesota native’s early domination. The graduate student scored in various ways, from crafty reverse layups to well-timed cuts.

Junior Steven Crowl, however, led all scorers with 19 points. The seven-footer got his around the rim and capped off his night with an emphatic dunk before checking out for the final time with 1:29 remaining. However, he struggled at the free-throw line, making only four of eight attempts.

When Wisconsin basketball failed to finish at the rim, it still got to the free-throw line. The Badgers attempted 26 free throws compared to the Gamecocks’ eight attempts. UW is 71-18 under head coach Greg Gard when attempting at least 20 free throws.

Wisconsin Badgers Defense Swallows Up Gamecocks Down the Stretch

With 10:12 remaining in the second half, Jax State brought the game within nine. Wisconsin basketball had kept the Gamecocks at arm’s length most of the game but had not quite yet put Jax State away. Then, UW finally got the impressive defensive stretch it needed to secure a victory.

The University of Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team defeated the University of Virginia Cavaliers as they faced off in the 2023 Fort Myers Tip-Off tournament Monday, November 20, 2023. The Badgers won with a final score of 65-41.

The Badgers held Jax State scoreless for the next four minutes and five seconds. By then, the Wisconsin basketball team had gone on a 9-0 run and put the game out of reach. It was an impressive stretch in which UW forced three turnovers. The Gamecocks turned the ball over 15 times on the night – seven more times than the Badgers.

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