Greg Gard Provides Injury Update on Forward Nolan Winter
MADISON, Wis. — Almost the entire Kohl Center went silent as Nolan Winter layed down on the floor in excruciating pain with 7:01 remaining during Wednesday’s 78-45 win over Maryland (11-19, 4-15). The Badgers may have won the game, but could have lost something bigger, their junior center for the foreseeable future.
While going in for a putback, which Winter converted, the seven-footer came down awkwardly and clutched his foot/ankle. Teammates would eventually come to the aid of Winter, who needed two to help get him off the floor and into the locker room.
“We’ll know more tomorrow. Early indications, hopefully, we avoided the worst,” UW head coach Greg Gard said in his post-game press conference. “We’ll see where everything, with the testing, goes tomorrow, the evaluation goes tomorrow. We’ll know more in 24 hours or so.
“He hasn’t rolled that ankle. It’s the other one. Always, when you do that the first time, there’s an extra amount of pain. He was in decent spirits in the locker room and stuff. He’s already doing treatment.
“We’ll see what we learn tomorrow and have a path forward to get him healed up.”
Winter finished seven points (2-4), six rebounds, one block, and one steal in 21 minutes. On the season, Winter is averaging 13.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per game while shooting 57 percent from the field, including 34 percent from 3-point range.
“Nolan is a fighter,” said junior guard John Blackwell. “If Nolan has the goal to play, he’s playing. Whether it’s one leg, two legs — he’s playing. We’re going to keep battling for Nolan how he battles for us.”
Should Winter be out, the Badgers could start sophomore forward Austin Rapp or go with their small-ball lineup, starting senior guard Braeden Carrington, who has scored 48 points in UW’s last two games.
“I think we’ve got a lot of guys who can step into that,” said Gard.
Wisconsin concludes the 2025-26 regular season at No. 15 Purdue on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m.
