Takeaways from Wisconsin’s stellar Big Ten Tournament win over Northwestern

What are your takeaways from Wisconsin’s big win over Northwestern?

Wisconsin basketball advanced to the Big Ten Tournament semifinal Friday afternoon with a decisive 70-61 win over the Northwestern Wildcats.

The Badgers continued the flash the form that led them to a blowout win over Maryland in the previous round, a form which the team has lacked since February began.

Related: Wisconsin social media all-in after Badgers big win over Northwestern

A.J. Storr led the Badgers with a dominant 30-point output, while center Steven Crowl seems to be finding his stroke at the right time — as he scored 19 points on 8/12 from the field and 3/5 from three-point range.

Wisconsin’s sudden excellence is terrific news as the Badgers enter the NCAA Tournament in search of their first Sweet 16 trip since 2016-17.

The news is obviously all positive after the clean win over Northwestern. Here are specific takeaways from the performance as the Badgers go on to face Purdue on Saturday afternoon:

Wisconsin basketball was ranked No. 6 in the country entering February for a reason. The team boasted one of the nation’s best offenses, a dynamic attack with versatile athletes and a solid complementary defense.

That team vanished in February and the first half of March. It’s safe to say it is now back after the last two performances.

Keep in mind: Wisconsin took care of Northwestern without Chucky Hepburn playing a minute. That’s an all-around performance, led by Storr’s dominance, without one of the team’s most important players touching the court.

Again, look out if the Badgers are truly back to their January ways.

A.J. Storr’s night ended with 30 points on 10/16 shooting, 3/5 from three-point range and six rebounds. He was the Badgers’ engine all afternoon, and provided a glimpse of shotmaking and offensive dominance that could propel a run in March.

Most Final Four teams have a go-to option when they need a bucket. Storr looks to be that player, it’s a question of the rest of the team rising to the occasion.

I don’t have stats on this, but it feels like Wisconsin wins every game that Steven Crowl shoots well from deep.

The team dominated Maryland Thursday when Crowl shot well, and it got the job done against Northwestern with the big man going 3/5 from deep.

Crowl’s versatility brings a needed dimension to the offense, especially as the team gets set to face opponents with good big men. His red-hot shooting is terrific news entering Saturday, and entering next week.

Adversity comes in the form of a 3-8 skid through six weeks of basketball, which the Badgers seem to now be out of. It also comes in the form of Chucky Hepburn being a late scratch, and the team not missing a beat once the game begins.

Hepburn was ‘ready to play if needed.’ But he wasn’t needed, because the rest of the team all rose to the occasion. This is the adversity that teams must battle through if a Final Four run is possible.

More terrific news: the loud Greg Gard detractors on social media are all quiet after a second straight terrific performance.

Those detractors should stay quiet indefinitely if the Badgers make an Elite Eight or Final Four run, which is even more of a reason to root for it.

After a breakout performance against Maryland, Blackwell shot only 1/8 this afternoon for three points. But he still played terrific defense on Northwestern star Boo Buie, plus added three rebounds, two assists and two steals.

That, and he still had the confidence to pull this deep three despite his struggles on the day:

Look out for Blackwell turning into a star as March Madness begins.

Who knew Kamari McGee was one of the more important players on this Badgers team. It feels like the team has turned a corner since he returned from injury against Rutgers.

McGee finished this contest with four points in 23 minutes, but also three rebounds, an assist and a huge block. He’s the perfect backup point guard to have, and will be a valuable depth piece for whatever run the Badgers can put together.

I’m usually hesitant to buy into teams in the postseason, but these last two games have been direct flashbacks of the dominance we saw in December and January. For that reason, I’m back in on the Badgers being a dark horse Elite Eight or Final Four contender.

Greg Gard has big-game tournament experience, Storr is the go-to scorer the team needs, Hepburn is the perfect floor general and (hopefully) Crowl and Tyler Wahl are both on point for the big matchups.

There have been numerous Wisconsin teams to let fans down in the last decade, lets hope this isn’t also one of them.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

Takeaways from Wisconsin’s crushing loss to No. 13 Illinois

What are your takeaways from the loss to Illinois?

Wisconsin basketball continued its slide Saturday afternoon with a 91-83 loss to No. 13 Illinois.

Reciting the Badgers’ struggles since the start of February is like a broken record at this point. The team has lost seven of its last nine, with each loss feeling more crushing than the last.

Related: Wisconsin basketball social media despondent after Badgers loss to Illinois

The road will not get much easier for Greg Gard’s team. Up next is a home matchup with Rutgers, before a season-ending trip to West Lafayette, Indiana, to face No. 3 Purdue. Then comes the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments. It doesn’t take a genius to know Wisconsin needs to step up its game to have any hope at a deep run.

Before we get to that, here are our takeaways from the loss to Illinois:

Takeaways from Wisconsin’s blowout loss to Rutgers

Thoughts on the loss to Rutgers?

Wisconsin basketball lost in blowout fashion at the hands of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights yesterday afternoon.

The loss is the Badgers’ fourth straight and drops them to 16-8 on the season and 8-5 in Big Ten play.

Related: Where Wisconsin Badgers stand in first expanded Big Ten 2024 recruiting rankings

This may sound like a broken record, but Wisconsin entered the month of February ranked No. 6 in the nation and in first place in the Big Ten with a 16-4 (8-1 Big Ten) record.

Not only is the team now 16-8 (8-5 Big Ten), but it is a full three games behind first-place Purdue, down to No. 18 in KenPom and set to continue its slide in the AP Poll.

Things are not right at the moment and yesterday’s performance at Rutgers seemed to accentuate all of the team’s issues. Here are takeaways from the blowout loss:

Takeaways from Wisconsin’s deflating loss to No. 2 Purdue

Thoughts on the loss to Purdue?

Wisconsin fell just short of a signature win Sunday afternoon: No. 2 Purdue entered the Kohl Center and escaped with a 75-69 victory.

The Badgers were in it throughout, though always lacked the defining moment or run to take control.

Related: Wisconsin social media irate after the Badgers’ narrow loss to No. 2 Purdue

The loss is the team’s second of the week against a Quad 1 opponent (Thursday at Nebraska). It’s a massive missed opportunity, too. Purdue holds a 1 1/2-game lead atop the Big Ten standings.

There’s a lot to say about the contest and what it means for the Badgers. First, here are our takeaways:

Notes and observations from 2024 Senior Bowl National Team practice Day 2

Notes and observations from 2024 Senior Bowl National Team practice Day 2

With the 2024 NFL draft just months away, the NFL world has gathered in Mobile, Ala. this week for the 2024 Reese’s Senior Bowl. Teams will be watching how some of the top draft-eligible players across the country perform as they compete against each other in practices leading up to the all-star game.

The team’s took the field for a second time as units on Wednesday. Here is our notebook for the second day from the National Team practices:

Five takeaways from LSU women’s basketball’s loss to No. 1 South Carolina

The Tigers came out on the losing end of Thursday’s heavyweight fight.

Trying to snap a 14-game losing streak to South Carolina, LSU came up just short on Thursday night in front of a packed PMAC crowd.

It was a game that featured the two leading national title favorites according to the oddsmakers. This was a heavyweight fight, and it played out like one too.

The final was 76-70 with South Carolina coming up with some key buckets in the final two minutes.

All 10 players that started the game scored double-digit points, with LSU’s [autotag]Aneesah Morrow[/autotag] notching a game-high of 16. For South Carolina, it was Chloe Kitts leading the way with 14.

Here are five takeaways from LSU’s close loss.

8 key takeaways from the Saints’ 2023 season

8 important takeaways from the New Orleans Saints’ 2023 season: What we learned after ending another year short of the playoffs

What did you learn about the New Orleans Saints this year? That’s the question we’re looking to answer in our takeaways from the 2023 season, with each of our staff writers sharing notes and observations after reviewing the campaign.

It wasn’t a successful season. The Saints missed the playoffs for the third year in a row after catching so many breaks. But the show must go on, and the team is already preparing for 2024. One last look back might be helpful in identifying what comes next. Here are our thoughts:

15 takeaways from the Broncos’ first season under Sean Payton

Here are 15 quick takeaways from Sean Payton’s first season with the Broncos.

After starting 4-11 last season, the Denver Broncos fired first-time head coach Nathaniel Hackett with two games remaining. Jerry Rosburg then took over on an interim basis and the club split their final two games to finish the year with a 5-12 record.

After firing Hackett, the Broncos’ new ownership group wanted to go big, so they agreed to trade first- and second-round draft picks to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for a third-round pick and the rights to head coach Sean Payton last January.

While Denver did not qualify for the playoffs, the team did take a step forward in Year 1 under Payton, improving from 5-12 in 2022 to 8-9 in 2023. That marked the team’s best record since 2017. The next step is posting a winning record and qualifying for the postseason in 2024.

So, what did we learn from Payton’s first season in Denver? Here are 15 quick takeaways from the Broncos’ 2023 season.

5 takeaways from Broncos’ 16-9 win over Chargers

Here are five quick takeaways from the Broncos’ 16-9 win over the Chargers on Sunday.

The Denver Broncos defeated the Los Angeles Chargers 16-9 on Sunday afternoon, but the team was also eliminated from NFL playoff contention due to other results in the AFC. Here are five quick takeaways from the victory.

7 takeaways from Saints’ 23-13 win over the Buccaneers

7 takeaways from the Saints’ 23-13 win over the Buccaneers: Offense finally clicks, defense regains its footing

We learned a lot about the New Orleans Saints in Week 17’s big win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It was their most complete win against a quality opponent all season, and they did it on the road against a division rival that knows them well. This is the kind of game that a good team should be expected to win, and this time the Saints came through. Too often this season they’ve failed to meet expectations.

Here’s a quick rundown of our notes and observations from the game: