Wisconsin basketball held on to win 70-68 after taking a 17-point lead into halftime against Ohio State.
It appeared as if everything was going according to plan in the first half for Wisconsin. Steven Crowl had 10 points, John Blackwell had nine, and the Badgers defense stood strong for 20 minutes, allowing just 20 points. However, things went awry in the second half. Ohio State began making their shots, and Wisconsin started fouling, allowing the Buckeyes to get to the free-throw line for 14 attempts in the second half. However, the Badgers made enough free throws down the stretch to secure the win.
Takeaway #1: Carter Gilmore is extremely valuable to Wisconsin (and underappreciated by fans)
If you talk with Badger fans, they will tell you that they do not understand why Carter Gilmore gets so much playing time. Well, he showed why last night. As Ohio State began knocking down shots in the second half, it became evident that leaving both Steven Crowl and Nolan Winter on the floor was not an option. With Crowl’s recent scoring burst, it was Winter who spent most of the second half on the bench.
Carter Gilmore played lockdown defense last night. He moves well enough to stay up to defend the three and against a drive. He uses all of his size (6’7, 225 lbs) to prevent easy buckets from under the hoop. Gilmore’s stats might not blow you away at first glance… he had just five points and three rebounds against Ohio State. However, in his 28+ minutes of playing time last night, he had the highest plus-minus of any Badger at plus-seven.
Takeaway #2: Wisconsin’s free throw shooting has given them multiple wins this season
Wisconsin is the number one team in the nation at the free throw line, connecting on 85.4 percent of their free throw attempts. The Badgers were 25-for-28 (89.4 percent) from the line against Ohio State. They make it very difficult for teams to overcome late deficits because when it is time to intentionally foul, Wisconsin cashes in on their free throws.
When talking about Wisconsin’s strength at the free throw line, you have to talk about John Tonje. Tonje ranks 6th in the nation in free throw percentage at 93.6 percent and ranks 10th in the nation in free throw attempts (125). 117 out of his 309 points this season have come from the charity stripe. Tonje was a perfect 10-for-10 from the line against the Buckeyes.
Takeaways #3: Ohio State continues to come up just short
Ohio State lost by two against Oregon last week, and by just seven against Michigan State two weeks ago. Ohio State simply needs to be more consistent when shooting the basketball. They were just 5-for-17 on their three-pointers, which is not going to cut it, as they do not have the talent to create easy shots from short distances. They are an undersized, gritty team. When that is the case, you have to do all of the little things right… and they simply have not done that.
Next up for Wisconsin (14-3, 4-2): at USC (11-6, 3-3) – Jan. 18 at 12 p.m. PST
Next up for Ohio State (10-7, 2-4): vs. Indiana (13-5, 4-3) – Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. CST