Defense: A
Wisconsin’s defense was able to make Ohio State’s offense uncomfortable for most of the game as the Buckeyes had to earn each point.
As the Badgers challenged each shot the Buckeyes took and made sure Ohio State couldn’t consistently generate open looks for themselves. The Buckeyes finished the game 18-for-49 (36.7 percent) from the field as they only registered seven assists on their 18 made field goals.
In particular, the Badgers defense did well of taking Ohio State’s leading scorer Kaleb Wesson out of his game as he finished with eight points 2-for-11 shooting from the field, which includes him missing all four of his 3-point attempts.
Only Wesson’s brother Andre reached double figures for the Buckeyes as he finished the game with 11 points on 3-for-7 shooting from the field.
One area where Wisconsin’s defense succeeded in the second half was making sure Andre didn’t have the same success from three. Andre went 3-for-4 from 3-point range over the first 20 minutes but the Badgers defense made sure he didn’t attempt a three in the second half preventing him from establishing the same kind of shooting rhythm in the second half.
Wisconsin’s strong defense also meant the Badgers were able to force Ohio State into making a mistake with the basketball as the Buckeyes turned the ball over 14 times.
Wisconsin was able to register seven steals in the game as five players for the Badgers registered a steal. Pritzl and Tyler Wahl each registered two steals. Overall the Badgers turned the Buckeyes miscues into 15 points.