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Shorthanded Wisconsin Badgers pull away in the second half to beat Central Michigan, 88-61

Eleven players score for Wisconsin, as the Badgers cruise past Central Michigan to remain unbeaten at home
Benjamin Worgull|
Wisconsin guard Hayden Jones drives to the basket in the first half against Central Michigan.
Wisconsin guard Hayden Jones drives to the basket in the first half against Central Michigan. | UW Athletics

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Wisconsin Badgers

MADISON, Wis. - A little home cooking was exactly what the University of Wisconsin needed.

Returning to the friendly confines of the Kohl Center, the shorthanded Badgers pulled away in the second half for an 88-61 victory over Central Michigan Monday night.

Nolan Winter delivered a workmanlike effort, scoring 18 points, eight rebounds, and two assists, most of which came around the basket on a night where Wisconsin (8-4) dominanted the paint. After struggling to finish around the rim on Friday, going 10-for-22 on layups in a 76-66 overtime loss to Villanova, the Badgers were 13-for-17 on layups and delivered three dunks.

Forward Austin Rapp added 18 points off the bench, as UW scored a season-high 44 bench points with starting guard John Blackwell and his 19.1 points per game missing the game due to an undisclosed injury. UW had only two bench points on Friday.

Freshman Hayden Jones made his first collegiate start in his place and had six points and four rebounds in 24 minutes.

Wisconsin came in on a two-game losing streak, both coming away from home, where the Badgers have struggled this season. The Badgers are 1-4 on the road, scoring only 72.6 points on 40.2 percent shooting. It's been the opposite at home, where Wisconsin owns a 7-0 record and has averaged 91.7 points on 48.4 percent shooting.

That bodes well for upcoming Big Ten games against No.6 Purdue and UCLA, especially if the offense functions like it did around halftime.

A six-point game with 4:20 remaining in the first half, Wisconsin closed the first half with an 8-2 run and started the second half with an 31-8 run to build a 35-point lead.

UW shot 59.1 percent in the first half and 53.7 percent for the game.

Guard Tamario Adley had 13 points for Central Michigan (4-9), which made its first trip to Madison since 1984.

What it means: An undermanned Wisconsin team broke a losing streak by beating up an overmatched team from the MAC which had only two Division-1 wins on the season. It was a good for the mental psyche, but a Quad-4 win isn't exactly what the Badgers need. Even so, this was a good night for reserve players to get some minutes and some confidence.

Star of the game: Emotional after Friday's loss to Villanova, Winter continues to take advantage of favorable matchups. He scored 13 points and seven rebounds in the first half when no other UW players had more than six. He also continues to grow his defense prowess by blocking and altering shots at the rim. The only bad part of his night was having to miss the last 5:46 after hurting his ankle.

Stat of the game: Wisconsin went on a 20-1 run in the second half that was a combination of production at the rim and went 4-for-8 from three-point range.

Reason to be concerned: Wisconsin gave up its first two points getting beat off the dribble and allowing a bucket at the rim, something that has been problematic for them all season and was again through the first half. CMU was getting out in transition and succeeding in the half court because UW had trouble chesting-up defenders and falling for pump fakes. It was better in the second half, but the problems are still there.

Don’t overlook: True freshman Zach Kinziger checked it at the 13:37 mark of the first half, a surprising move that he decided to not to utilize his redshirt. He finished with six points 2-for-4 shooting (all threes)

What’s next: Wisconsin's final nonconference game of the season will take place against a familiar opponent, as the Badgers will host Milwaukee on Dec.30. The Panthers (6-6) are one of two teams undefeated in Horizon League conference play and were impressive in their 88-87 win over South Dakota State in the Milwaukee Hoops Showdown, playing right before UW's game against Villanova.

UW leads the all-time series, 33-2, but the two schools haven't met since 2019. The tip is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be televised by the Big Ten Network.

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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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