MADISON, Wis --- On a chilly Tuesday night, Indiana lost its 21st straight at the Kohl Center, falling to Wisconsin 76-64.
This one was lopsided from the beginning as, before you could even blink, Wisconsin was up 24-4 after starting out blistering hot from three.
The Badgers' lead even got up to 22 in the first half after this 3-point barrage, though Indiana cut the lead to 12 before the half, showing fight that wasn't there to begin the game.
Despite this, Wisconsin dominated once more in the second half, doing so with defense and 2-pointers rather than shots from the outside.
When it was all said and done, Wisconsin shot 26-for-60 from the field and 12-of-29 from three, while IU went 23-for-57 from the field and 7-27 from beyond the arc.
This is Indiana's sixth loss in its last seven games, moving it to 5-7 in Big Ten play, 14-9 overall.
With all that being said, here's how it happened from a building Indiana hasn't won in since 1998:
WISCONSIN LIGHTS IT UP FROM 3, GRABS 1ST HALF LEAD
For a team known for its 3-point shooting, Wisconsin didn't waste much time getting things going from deep.
The Badgers went 7-of-8 from three to begin the ballgame, a stretch that resulted in a commanding lead early on, with UW leading 29-8 with 11:30 to go in the first half.
During this stretch, Indiana shot 2-of-11 from the field and 0-of-5 from three, making things just that much worse as Wisconsin was hitting three after three.
The Badgers finished the first half 9-of-16 from three, while IU made just 4 of its 15 3-point attempts, creating a huge difference that led to the 40-28 Badger lead seen at the half.
The Hoosiers defended UW well late in the first half, Wisconsin going just 4-of-16 from the field to end the first, but two of those were major 3-pointers that ended momentum that IU had at the time.
Despite this, Wisconsin's start to the game gave it the breathing room it needed to still secure a double-digit lead going into the break.
It was truly a balanced attack for the Badgers, as no one player had more than seven points or made more than two threes, but Wisconsin did it with impressive depth, six players making a shot from deep in the first 20 minutes.
IU just couldn't compete with this type of shot-making from Wisconsin early on, digging it into a 20-plus point hole that it couldn't get out of in the first half. Even with it playing impressive defense as the game went on, this 3-point barrage from Wisconsin was just too much for the Hoosiers.
WISCONSIN PULLS AWAY AS INDIANA CAN'T FIND OFFENSE
While the Hoosiers showed some fight to end the first half, it was all Badgers to begin the second, as it put any doubts of a comeback to bed.
IU was down by just 12 at the half but the Wisconsin lead ballooned to 22 in less than 10 minutes of gametime, though doing it with a different style than the first half.
Wisconsin made just one three in the first 10 minutes of the second half, going 1-of-7 in that stretch, but its defense was the difference in whether IU could sustain a comeback or not.
Indiana turned it over five times early in the second, only making two shots in the first nine minutes of action after the break. This made a run essentially impossible as, even when the Hoosiers got a bid stop on defense, it couldn't convert on the other end.
Indiana looked confused coming out of the half, as its offense struggled mightily when it needed points the most, allowing for the runaway Badger victory.
The Hoosiers tallied just 13 made shots on 28 attempts in the second half, Wisconsin going 12-of-27 in the final 20 minutes.
This wasn't an impressive number for the Badgers by any means, but with its superb defense and Indiana's ability to make shots, UW it did more than enough to pull away.
Just like the first half, it was a very balanced attack for the Badgers, with 7 players entering the scoring column.
All this resulted in a blowout victory for Wisconsin, one that possibly in question at the half, but with the Badgers stifling the Hoosiers on defense, there was never a doubt in the final 20 minutes.
FINAL STATS
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