Wisconsin basketball sweeps season series with Penn State

By Joey Lovell | Feb 9, 2023

COLUMBUS, OH - FEBRUARY 02: Head coach Greg Gard of the Wisconsin Badgers talks with Connor Essegian #3 during the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at the Jerome Schottenstein Center on February 2, 2023 in Columbus, Ohio. Wisconsin defeated Ohio State 65-60. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images) /

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MADISON, WISCONSIN – JANUARY 17: Carter Gilmore #14 of the Wisconsin Badgers looks to pass while being guarded by Evan Mahaffey #12 of the Penn State Nittany Lions during the first half of the game at Kohl Center on January 17, 2023 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images) /

This section has written itself for the majority of the season, as Wisconsin basketball is hapless in its rebounding and free-throw percentage.

Against a team that saw their biggest man at 6’10”, the Badgers could only muster 26 rebounds, five behind the Nittany Lions. However, Wisconsin’s Jordan Davis provided a spark in this category with five boards in 18 minutes off the bench.

Why does Wisconsin basketball struggle so mightily at the foul line? Last night, they were 12-19, for 64.2%, which almost reached their season average of 65%.

But even this area of concern was mitigated by the increased volume of foul shots. While they only made 12 last night, that’s still one more than they attempted in their most recent game against Northwestern.

Luckily for Wisconsin, Penn State uncharacteristically suffered at the foul line as well. Had they hit their season average of 76%, the Badgers would have lost the game.

Maybe Wisconsin’s foul shooting woes are contagious?

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