Frank Kaminsky didn’t miss a shot in the first half and the Badgers shot 55.4 percent as a team as Wisconsin easily handled Boise St. at home Saturday night, winning 78-54.
The No. 3 Badgers improved to 4-0 on this young season, handing the Boise St. Broncos their first loss of the year.
Wisconsin jumped out to an early lead and built up a 14-point advantage by the end of the first half, thanks largely to Frank Kaminsky. The big man was perfect in the first 20 minutes, scoring 17 points on 7-of-7 shooting (3-of-3 from deep). He finished the game with 26 points on 11-of-13 shooting, hitting 4-of-5 three point attempts.
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Nigel Hayes added 15 points, Traevon Jackson scored 11, and Bronson Koenig added seven points on the night. Sam Dekker, Kaminsky and Hayes each pulled down five rebounds, and Jackson added five assists to lead all players.
Wisconsin proved its depth, with eight players playing at least 10 minutes on the night.
Game recap
Josh Gasser got things rolling with a trey for Wisconsin, and Kaminsky added a pair of threes to put the Badgers up 9-6 early in the first half. Boise St. tied the game on a Montigo Alford three -pointer, but Hayes scored from the low post to put Wisconsin back up 11-9 sparking a 13-2 Wisconsin to give the Badgers a 22-11 lead with under nine to play in the half.
The Broncos dropped in seven straight points to narrow the lead to 22-18, but Kaminsky answered with his third three-pointer of the day, making the score 25-18. Hayes then found Duje Dukan under the hoop for an easy two, then picked a Boise St. pass and started a fast break, which Kaminsky cleaned up with an offensive board and a put-back. The Badgers took a 29-18 lead to the under-four timeout.
Boise St. scored four points around a pair of Hayes freebies, but Kaminsky knocked down a slick turnaround jumper and Dukan drained a three moments later to give Wisconsin a 36-22 lead. A Boise St. layup from Derrick Marks made it a 12-point game with 20 seconds left in the half, but Jackson knocked down an uncontested jumper to put Wisconsin up 38-24 at the break.
Behind Kaminsky’s 100 percent effort from the field, Wisconsin shot 62.5 percent from the field as a team in the half, including a 6-of-11 effort from three-point range.
After a three-pointer from Boise St.’s Nick Duncan to open the second half, Hayes answered with a layup. Two free throws from Boise St. made it a 40-29 lead for Wisconsin, but Hayes found Dekker for an easy layup, then Jackson found Hayes for an open dunk, forcing a Broncos timeout as the Badgers led 44-29 less than 2.5 minutes into the half.
Anthony Drmic put in a bucket for the Broncos, but Kaminsky found Jackson for the answer on a jumper. Following a Hayes rebound on the next possession, Kaminsky launched a three for his first miss of the game at about the 16-minute mark of the second half.
Koenig knocked down a three-pointer to give Wisconsin its biggest lead of the game – 49-33 – but Boise St. answered with an Alford layup.
The Badgers then went on a 11-5 run before Marks hit a three-pointer to slow the Wisconsin onslaught, making the score 60-41. Wisconsin pushed the lead to 66-43, capped by a no-look fast break pass from Koenig to a streaking Kaminsky, who slammed it home with an emphatic flush.
Bronson Koenig no-look pass sets up Frank Kaminsky for the two-handed @BadgerMBB flush. http://t.co/BwcfOc1U64
— Wisconsin On BTN (@WisconsinOnBTN) November 23, 2014
Wisconsin was able to sub in the final minutes as the game was under control, and the Badgers earned the 78-54 victory.
The Badgers will take the court next week at the Battle 4 Atlantis.