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Wisconsin Badgers stave off Minnesota with buzzer-beating three-pointer by John Blackwell

It may have taken Herculean efforts from John Blackwell and Braeden Carrington, but the Badgers held on to defeat a feisty Golden Gophers squad on the road.
Cam Wilhorn|
Jan 13, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Wisconsin Badgers guard John Blackwell (25) celebrates his game winning three-point basket against the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the second half at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
Jan 13, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Wisconsin Badgers guard John Blackwell (25) celebrates his game winning three-point basket against the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the second half at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

Coming off a season-altering victory over then-unbeaten Michigan in Ann Arbor, the Wisconsin Badgers knew they couldn't wallow in the thrill of victory.

Minnesota, though being without two starters due to injury, is certainly no pushover, especially at the Barn. The Golden Gophers had already knocked off Indiana and Iowa in Minneapolis, both of whom were ranked at the time.

The Badgers almost became the third team to fall to the Golden Gophers as the road team in recent weeks, but John Blackwell came up clutch, stepping into a buzzer-beater three-pointer to send Wisconsin home with its third straight win, 78-75.

Wisconsin put itself in a hole early as Minnesota, headed by point guard Langston Reynolds, picked apart the Badgers defense. Reynolds scored or assisted on four of Minnesota's first five possessions.

The Badgers bled easy looks at the rim, allowing the Golden Gophers to score on each of their first 10 possessions and going 9-for-11 from the field, with 14 of their first 17 points coming inside the painted area.

On the offensive end, the Badgers did enough to keep within striking distance for most of the half before falling into a nasty dry spell. Wisconsin went scoreless over the final 5:11 of the first half, a stretch where they committed their only four turnovers of the half.

The slump aligned with Niko Medved's switch to a zone defense. Wisconsin had minimal answers, winding up taking tough jumpers late in the shot clock or succumbing to the Golden Gophers stout half court defense.

Yet, Wisconsin trailed by just eight points at the break.

Then, the three pointers started falling. The Badgers went 4-for-15 (26.7%) from distance during the first half before knocking down 10 of 18 attempts in the second half.

The game turned on its head midway through the second period, as the Badgers went on a 23-6 run over the course of nearly eight minutes. During that stretch, Braeden Carrington knocked down four triples.

But Wisconsin's nine-point lead with fewer than four minutes to play wasn't safe. In a repeat of the first half, the Badgers offense went cold. They went 3:30 without a field goal, the lone point being scored on a Nick Boyd free throw.

After a few possessions of intentional fouls, it was a three-point game with 12 seconds left. Nolan Winter approached the charity stripe and missed both.

Racing down the floor, Minnesota got the ball to its top scorer, Cade Tyson, who nailed a three-pointer with five seconds to play.

But the Golden Gophers sagged off as Blackwell brought the ball up the court, allowing the star junior to step into a three-pointer that found nylon, sending the Badgers bench into a frenzy and giving the team its 10th consecutive win over Minnesota.

What it means: Wisconsin has avoided a "trap game," maintaining the positive momentum its built over the past two games and evading a Quad 2 loss in a dangerous road environment. It's a huge sigh of relief for Wisconsin's NCAA Tournament resume.

Star of the game: One of the storylines of the Border Battle the last few seasons has been homecoming for the Badgers' many Minnesota natives. Braeden Carrington, of Brooklyn Park, MN, and a former Gopher himself, had a particularly sweet return. He drilled seven three-pointers for a career-high 21 points. He led the team in plus-minus.

Stat of the game: It was another stellar three-point shooting game for Wisconsin. After going 14-for-33 Tuesday night, they're now 39-96 (40.6%) from three-point land over the past three games. In the two games before that, Wisconsin was 8-47 (17%)

Reason to be concerned: Wisconsin has to be better from the free throw line in crunch time. It's now back-to-back games where the Badgers have given their opponents chances to tie or win the game because of shortcomings at the charity stripe. Wisconsin is a high-level free-throw shooting team, but they need to show more mental strength at the line late in games.

Don't overlook: Nolan Winter has been a workhorse for the Badgers recently. The junior forward played for 39 minutes of Tuesday's game, finishing with a 12-point, 11-rebound double-double. His only time off the court came from 12:22-11:15 in the first half. It was his fourth straight game playing at least 35 minutes.

What's next: The Badgers (12-5) will head back to Madison for a matchup with Rutgers (9-8) at the Kohl Center. Wisconsin will look to extend its win streak to four games.

The Scarlet Knights have rebounded from a slow start to the season, having won four of their last six games, including victories over Oregon and Northwestern. However,
Rutgers hasn't won a road game.

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Cam Wilhorn
CAM WILHORN

Cam Wilhorn is a University of Wisconsin School of Journalism Graduate and Wisconsin native. He's been covering Wisconsin sports since 2023 for outlets like BadgerBlitz.com, Badger of Honor and The Badger Herald.

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