Wisconsin Badgers lock down Milwaukee in 80-60 victory to wrap nonconference play

Wisconsin finishes its nonconference schedule 8-3, as the Badgers beat Milwaukee before restarting conference play.

Wisconsin junior guard John Blackwell attempts a shot in the first half against the Milwaukee Panthers. | UW Athletics

MADISON, Wis. - The warm-up round is over for the University of Wisconsin, and the Badgers hope their dominant home performances can carry over against some of the top teams in the country.

The Badgers jumped on Milwaukee in the opening minutes, building a 20-point lead that allowed them to keep the Panthers at an arm's reach in an 80-60 victory over the Panthers at the Kohl Center Tuesday night.

Guard Nick Boyd scored 16 points to lead Wisconsin (9-4), which improved to 8-0 at home, averaging 90.3 points per game. Only one of those wins has come against a power-conference opponent with a winning record. Of Wisconsin's nine remaining home games, the Badgers will face six teams ranked in KenPom's top 40, starting with fifth-ranked Purdue on Saturday.

Ending 2025 with a 👐 pic.twitter.com/YP72uHPkHD

— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) December 31, 2025

Starting the game against the Boilers the way the Badgers did against the Panthers wouldn't hurt. UW pounced on Milwaukee early with an 18-2 start that was built on drawing shooting fouls and rebounding. UW went 5-for-7 on Milwaukee's first three fouls and had a 12-5 edge in rebounds through the first 7-plus minutes.

The Panthers made their first shot but missed their next 12, unable to find open space near the rim, get perimeter shots to fall, or rebound their misses.

UW held the Panthers to .583 points per possession in the first half, a number that rose when the visitors made six of their nine field goals in a four-minute stretch late in the half.

Josh Dixon scored a game-high 17 points for Milwaukee (7-7), which led by as many as 35 points in its Monday win over Purdue Fort Wayne but never could find much a flow in shooting 33.3 percent overall and 13.6 percent from three (3-for-22).

After missing Wisconsin's win over Central Michigan on Dec.22, John Blackwell returned to the starting lineup. He finished with eight points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals, and no turnovers in 27 minutes.

What it means: Wisconsin got itself back to full strength and played a solid game on both ends of the floor against a tired-looking Quad-4 opponent. The Badgers won't have that luxury any more with conference play about to resume.

Star of the game: Listed as questionable entering the game, Nolan Winter's performance was important in giving the Badgers an inside presence on a night where Aleksas Bieliauskas and Austin Rapp battled foul issues. In 21 minutes, Winter had 14 points and seven rebounds.

Stat of the game: Milwaukee finished with a +33 rebounding margin (53-20) in its Monday win, leading to a 24-0 advantage in second-chance points. UW tied the Panthers on the boards (40-40) and gave up only 13 offensive rebounds on 42 missed shots.

Reason to be Concerned: Wisconsin needs its three-point shot to work if the Badgers want to knock off quality Big Ten schools, and going 4-for-22 from the perimeter like they did against Milwaukee isn't going to cut it.

Don’t overlook: Braeden Carrington did not appear for Wisconsin until he checked in with 9:24 remaining and the Badgers leading 61-43. UW instead went with reserves guards Jack Janicki, Hayden Jones, and Zach Kinziger in the first half. Carrington missed the overtime loss to Villanova with a hip injury, a game where UW scored only two bench points, before returning to the lineup three days later. Carrington finished with five points in six minutes.

What’s next: Wisconsin will not be able to ease into Big Ten play, as the Badgers host No.6 Purdue on Saturday night. The Boilermakers (12-2, 2-0) might have one of the best frontcourts in the country in Trey Kaufman-Renn (13.9 ppg) and center Oscar Cluff (12.8 ppg), not to mention one of the nation's best three-point shooter in Fletcher Loyer (32-for-76 3FGs), but the Boilermakers work because of Braden Smith.

The nation's leader in assists per game (9.6), Smith has become a more complete player this season. In the last five games, Smith is averaging 11.2 points, 10.4 assists, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.2 steals per game.

UW has won the last two meetings between the schools but have lost the last two meetings in Madison. The tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be televised by Fox.

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