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Biggest Takeaways from Wisconsin Badgers' 97-72 win over Northern Illinois

No.24 Wisconsin puts three players in double figures to move to 2-0 for the fifth time in six seasons.
Benjamin Worgull|
Wisconsin Badgers center Nolan Winter attempts a shot in the paint against Northern Illinois at the Kohl Center on November 7, 2025. Wisconsin won 97-72.
Wisconsin Badgers center Nolan Winter attempts a shot in the paint against Northern Illinois at the Kohl Center on November 7, 2025. Wisconsin won 97-72. | UW Athletics

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MADISON, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin let Campbell hang around well into the second half before dropping the hammer down offensively. The Badgers weren't as gracious to Northern Illinois.

No.24 Wisconsin came out firing on both ends of the floor to run away from the Huskies quickly, never letting the visitors come up for air in a dominant 97-72 victory at the Kohl Center on Friday night.

The first meeting between the two programs in 23 years was never close, as the Badgers (2-0) put three players in double figures as they continue building their synergy on both ends of the court with their tough road games coming up on the horizon.

Here are my takeaways from the Kohl Center

Boyd has a career night ... and can get better

It took less than a minute of game time for Nick Boyd to start hyping up the crowd.

Boyd had already hit guard Andrew Rohde for a three-pointer on the game's opening possession, but the senior was amped after he ended Northern Illinois' first defensive possession with a steal and finished with a layup on the offensive end.

It was part of a string of nine straight possessions that the Badgers came away with points, building a 20-5 lead in a little more than five minutes than never dipped below 10 and kept building the rest of the way.

"They got to respect my teammates on the court so much that it gives me so much space to play, which is why I wanted to come here," Boyd said. "When we get stops, I got the freedom to fly down the court, and I love that, too."

Boyd has never been asked - or given the right opportunity - to be a dominant scorer in his career. He was the starting point guard but more of a role player on Florida Atlantic's 2023 Final Four team. He spent last year at San Diego State and was the Aztecs leading scorer but averaged just 13.4 points per game on a team that was 245th nationally in adjusted tempo.

Wisconsin was 24th nationally in that category last year and sold Boyd on him being a point guard who could push the tempo and create within the offense. With the ball in his hands, Wisconsin has topped 90 point in consecutive games to start the season for the first time since 1993.

"I wanted to go to a program that was getting up and down a little bit more," Boyd said. "The trend on this offense is just crazy."

By his own admission, Boyd is far from a finished product. He cited a number of instances where he missed open shooters and cutters to the rim or missed on ball screens on the wing. When that start connecting, the offense could push to an even higher level for a player his head coach calls "a bulldog."

"As the season goes on," Boyd said, "I'll get more simpler with what I need to do and how I can be effective."

Defense takes a step

Much like Wisconsin, Northern Illinois is trying to build chemistry and flow with its transfers, but the Huskies have an entirely new 16-man roster. The group looked solid on Monday. The Huskies put up 102 points, four players scored in double figures, two players recorded double-doubles (another player was two rebounds shot), and they shot 65.6 percent in the second half with 23 assists on 56 field goals.

The Badgers made those numbers a memory. UW's size led to a 36-25 rebounding advantage, the Badgers' length at guard led to seven steals (Jack Janicki has seven steals through two games), and a combo of both led to four blocks.

Wisconsin limited Northern Illinois to four offensive rebounds and two second-chance points, a far cry from the 15 offensive rebounds and 21 second chance points the Badgers put up.

"As time goes on, we're just meshing," Boyd said. "For guys like me and Rohde, we've been in different programs so maybe just some of the terminology is a little bit different ... We got the guys to really guard. As time goes on, I think we'll be a really good defensive team."

The Badgers carried the momentum of holding Campbell to no field goals in the final 10:35 of the second half Monday to hold Northern Illinois to .917 points per possession in the first half. The big difference was Wisconsin was more intense defensively from the start.

Two of Northern Illinois' first three possessions ended in turnovers and three of the first six, the beginning of what turned out to be a 17-turnover night for Northern Illinois.

"We really were working on defense these last few days in practice, just communicate with each other," Rohde said. "I think we did a good job tonight. We definitely took some steps."

Gard experiments with combinations

A sizable scoring advantage and foul trouble was the perfect opportunity for head coach Greg Gard to start getting a little creative.

Having stuck with a 10-man rotation throughout the exhibition season and the season opener, with the starters and top two guard reserves logging the heavier minutes, Gard was able to take advantage of the early lead and put together different combinations in both the frontcourt and backcourt.

At one point early in the first half, Gard had guards Braeden Carrington, Janicki, and Hayden Jones on the floor together. Boyd was on the bench for two-and-half minutes while Blackwell sat for more than three while Carrington and Jones worked.

"I'm still learning Carrington's game. I still want to get Hayden Jones more time, which I think for both of those guys tonight was good," Gard said. "I'm still learning ... I need to get Carrington more comfortable with us (and) same thing with Hayden. When you are able to do that, it's always a benefit to get guys more experience and more laps around the track."

Running a four-man rotation in the frontcourt, Austin Rapp picked up two early fouls and sat for the final 10:51 of the first half. Gard let freshman Aleksas Bieliauskas play most of the minutes and saw him score eight points and grab two rebounds in the half.

"It was good for Aleksas to get in and get some rhythm and play in longer stretches," Gard said. "Specifically for Aleksas, just getting more comfortable because of just everything. That's been a huge transition for him ... He's done a really good job of really being positive and continuing to ask what I can do help; how can I get better."

Freshman center Will Garlock tried to play early but was whistled for three fouls in five minutes. They were learning lessons that had an immediate impact considered he played most of the final eight minutes of the game and chipped in three points and an offensive rebound during the stretch.

Gard was even able to give redshirt freshman Jack Robison some run in the first half in the frontcourt with Garlock and Rapp dealing with fouls.

"I trust him on the offensive end to make good decisions," Gard said of Robison. "As I tell them all the time, stay ready so you don't have to get ready because you never know when I'm going to call your name."

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Benjamin Worgull
BENJAMIN WORGULL

Benjamin Worgull has covered Wisconsin men's basketball since 2004, having previously written for Rivals, USA Today, 247sports, Fox Sports, the Associated Press, the Janesville Gazette, and the Wisconsin State Journal.

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