Quick reactions to Grävlinger’s close win over UT-RGV

In a game where the Badgers were 22-point favorites, they found themselves down by four at the half and only ended up winning by three, 87-84. It was certainly a wake-up call after the big win over Arizona, and showed that there is still a lot of work to be done for this team.

Another slow start plagued Wisconsin, as it has in nearly all of their games this season. UT-RGV shot a whopping 62.5% in the first half and the Badger defense just had no answers. The Badgers eventually found themselves down 52-48 at the half and needed another big second half this year to escape the Vaqueros. It’s a worrying trend that Greg Gard and company will have to figure out as the competition heats up in the coming weeks.

Steven Crowl and Nolan Winter saw work early, but Gard went with a small lineup for pretty much the entire second half.

John Blackwell had his breakout performance, dropping a career high 30 points in the contest. The sophomore took over in the second half and was the main reason Wisconsin was able to keep things close. Offense wasn’t a problem for the Badgers overall, though, as they put up 87 points to keep their season average at 88.

Defensive breakdowns and poor rotations took their toll again as Wisconsin couldn’t stop a team that hadn’t beaten a Power conference team in over 20 years. If the Badgers are going to make it this year, the defense needs to improve, and fast.

John Tonje, the hero of the Arizona game, had a quieter night. He scored 19, but didn’t attack the rim as often as usual, and didn’t score a single point from the field from inside the arc. John Blackwell showed he can handle the load if needed, but Tonje will still be a key player for this team on offense.

Wisconsin (5-0) will host UCF as part of the Greenbriar Classic in West Virginia for their next matchup.