MADISON, Wisc. – Indiana fell to No. 11 Wisconsin 91-79 on Friday night in Madison.
The Hoosiers are now 12-7 and 4-4 in Big Ten play. They have a week off before returning to action next Saturday to face Illinois in Champaign.
Here’s how it happened:
Shorthanded Hoosiers lack offensive firepower
Wisconsin came into the evening with college basketball’s sixth-best offense by adjusted offensive efficiency. Even at the methodical pace the Badgers are comfortable operating at, they were able to slowly, surely distance themselves from a shorthanded Indiana team who didn’t feature starting 7-foot center Kel’el Ware.
Ware watched on from the Indiana sideline with a boot on his right foot as a balanced Badger scoring attack helped Wisconsin ice away the contest on a chilly night inside the Kohl Center. It came from both units for Greg Gard’s side, led by a red-hot Max Klesmit, who finished with a team-high 26 points.
Outside of Indiana's Malik Reneau (28 points) and Mackenzie Mgbako (17), the help in the scoring column wasn't enough to overcome the shortcomings Indiana faced roster-wise on the night.
Indiana unravels as things go from bad to worse
It was another solid start for Indiana on the road, looking to emerge victorious from a building it hasn’t in a quarter century. Yet, once again, as the Badgers began to push back and attempt to regain control of the game, the visitors found no answer.
Indiana’s shot selection favored long twos midway through the shot clock instead of more efficient looks at the rim or beyond the arc. When executed, the Hoosiers had flashes of success in getting to the rim, but the frequency of said drives dwindled as the deficit piled up
In turn, a frustrated Hoosier team instead opted to make matters worse by losing its cool and composure down the stretch. Ceding its last possession of the first half after an ill-advised shot attempt from distance, Indiana’s Xavier Johnson fouled – his third of the half – and put the Badgers on the free throw line instead of forcing a shot from the field to head into the intermission.
Coming out of the break, Indiana once again flashed with one of its few signs of life, putting together a 9-0 run to draw within seven points. In response, Klesmit sparked a 12-2 run by himself, culminating in two made free throws earned by a Flagrant 2 foul committed by CJ Gunn, who elbowed Klesmit out of seeming intention.
That’s three flagrant fouls now in the last four games for Indiana. When things have gone bad for this group as of late, it can’t help but make things worse through its own wrongdoing.
Suddenly, a couple of possessions later, the Wisconsin lead had ballooned to 23 points and the Badgers paced the Hoosiers for the rest of the contest. The score was never again within single digits.
Full Box Score
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