Overtime: Wisconsin Stomps In-State Rival Marquette

MADISON, Wis. — For the fourth time in five tries, Wisconsin has defeated its in-state rival. The Badgers (7-2) stomped Marquette (5-5) 96-76 for their 17th consecutive non-conference home victory.

“When I first came in, I didn’t know how big the rivalry was,” said junior guard John Blackwell. “When I came here, and the guys taught me how big the rivalry is, I took it personal. It was an honor to beat them. There was a sour taste in our mouths from them beating us at their crib last year.

“It was a good feeling beating them and getting the fans what they deserve.”

Wisconsin Handled Marquette’s Pressure

Marquette came in forcing 16.0 turnovers per game. The Golden Eagles get 13.0 of those off steals, which ranks in the top 20 nationally. Two games ago, Wisconsin committed 17 turnovers in a loss to TCU. In last season’s loss to MU, the Badgers coughed up the ball 16 times.

UW was much better this time around. Granted, 12 turnovers isn’t the benchmark — three came before the first media timeout. Four more occurred after the Badgers blew the game open in the second half.

Most impressively, UW got to the foul line 29 times while forcing 18 23 fouls, making MU pay for being aggressive on that end of the floor.

The Badgers Answered the Physicality Question Marks

Wisconsin had its toughness questioned in losses to BYU and TCU earlier this season. Marquette was going to put the Badgers to the test once again. Granted, the Golden Eagles aren’t in the same ballpark as the aforementioned foes, but MU still plays a physical, in-your-face brand of basketball built on ball pressure and downhill attacking.

The Badgers had 12 turnovers, which wasn’t great by their standards, but still lower than what the Golden Eagles force per game. A lot of those came early and late as well. UW also had a 46-33 edge on the glass and matched MU with eight offensive rebounds apiece. The Golden Eagles did get 18 layups/dunks, but many of those occurred after the game was out of hand. A Badger frontcourt that isn’t overly physical, forced 12 misses by the Golden Eagles.

“I liked the fight that we showed. I liked the toughness that we’ve shown,” said UW head coach Greg Gard. “That’s an area that we’re growing in.”

Bieliauskas Into the Starting Lineup Was a Good Move

It raised eyebrows at first, but through two games, Aleksas Bieliauskas has been exactly what Wisconsin has needed. Ignore his career-high 11 points (4-4) for a minute. They gave the Badgers a boost, but Bieliauskas’ impact started with his interior defense. The Lithuanian forward kept Marquette away from the rim, grabbed 10 rebounds, and also had a block, and a steal in 27 minutes.

Bieliauskas changed that game for UW in the first half, wiping away what appeared would be easy points for MU. The true freshman forward’s block came against Golden Eagles’ star wing Chase Ross, meeting the senior right at the summit.

“I think Aleksas is getting more and more comfortable,” said Gard. “He’s learning. He’s got to meet all new teammates, all new coaches, and he missed the whole summer. If he had the eight weeks here, it’d be a little easier transition.

“I can’t be more proud of him of how he’s stayed the course. He’s tough. He wants to get better. He’s just thirsting for knowledge and instruction. Just happy for him that he’s, you know, in a short period of time, he’s progressed and really immersed himself in the team as much as he can.”

Game Ball

Before the game, John Blackwell was honored for scoring 1,000 points at Wisconsin. The junior guard added to that in a big way on Saturday. Scoring a game-high 30 points (8-17), Blackwell is the third Badger to hit the 30-point mark against Marquette since at least 2000.

Blackwell scored seven in a row at one point to give the Badgers a commanding 78-56 lead, sucking the life out of Marquette. Blackwell was 6-of-12 from 3-point range and also dished out three assists in 31 minutes.

“Blackwell’s a special player,” said MU head coach Shaka Smart. “I’ve coached a couple of guys who are now in the NBA. He’s that good.”

Big Picture

Rivalry games aren’t supposed to be that easy. They’re supposed to be what those first seven minutes looked like when Wisconsin led 7-6. The 20-point margin was the most lopsided win UW in this series since 1952.

We knew the Badgers could score. And they proved that again, scoring 96 points despite struggling for the first seven minutes of the game. UW had five players in double figures and connected on 14 3-pointers, while also getting 30 points in the paint and 24 from the foul line.

Now, is the defense starting to catch up? Providence and Marquette certainly weren’t juggernauts in that regard, but Wisconsin has had stretches where they have smothered the opposition, even in a pair of uptempo, high-possession games. On Saturday, the Golden Eagles started the game 3-of-20 shooting.

“I think there’s still things we have to get better at,” said Gard. “We’ve got a lot of weapons. We’re not solely dependent. A good team tries to continue to find other ways, when one thing is taken away, we have to go to plan ‘B,’ ‘C,’ or ‘D.'”

Beyond the Box Score

1.28: Wisconsin averaged 1.28 points per possession.

3: The Badgers had three turnovers in the first 4:32.

3: Marquette started the game shooting 3-of-20 from the field.

6: Blackwell matched his career-high with six 3-pointers.

10:50: UW hit the double bonus with 10:50 remaining in the second half.

11: The Badgers scored 11 unanswered points in the second half.

12: Marquette started 1-of-12 from 3-point range.

14:10: In the second half, both teams were in the bonus with 14:10 remaining.

17: Andrew Rohde‘s 17 points were his most in a UW uniform.

20: Blackwell has scored 20 points in three consecutive games.

27: The Badgers led by as many as 27.

29: Nick Boyd had a +/- of 29.