The Wisconsin Badgers started off their season with a big win, running away with a 96-64 victory over the Campbell Fighting Camels in the opener at the Kohl Center.
Wisconsin had a slow start on both sides, but surged to end the first half, scoring 47 points in the first 20 minutes. Then, after Campbell kept things competitive in the second half, the Badgers closed the game strong in a blowout, outscoring the Fighting Camels 31-4 over the final nine minutes to pull off the victory.
Here are three quick takeaways from the Badgers 96-64 win over Campbell on Monday.
The Wisconsin Badgers have eight new faces on the team, but the most important one was their top returner: guard John Blackwell.
It didn’t take long for the star to make his impact, as Blackwell engineered Wisconsin’s offensive firepower after a slow start, pouring in 17 first-half points on 5/9 from the field.
He found a way to his spots, hitting a pull-up jumper inside the arc to kick things off five minutes into the game. From there, Blackwell looked to be aggressive, getting to the rim later for a physical and-1 as he fought through contact. That aggressiveness remained as Blackwell looked to take the baseline to attack the rim or set up teammates.
He even hit a pair of threes, finding range from the corner before later getting a nice stepback triple to fall in the first half. Blackwell also led Wisconsin’s efforts at the free-throw line with a 5/5 first half, having an uber-efficient start as the go-to guy for the Badgers.
In the second half, Blackwell’s scoring mainly came from the corner as he hit four triples off assists from teammates, with two being crucial in Wisconsin’s late-game run to pull away with the win.
He finished the game with 31 points and six triples, while shooting 10/19 from the field in a dominant start to the season.
Spark plugs off the bench
Wisconsin had a great team in 2024. That was in big part because of breakout seasons from Blackwell and John Tonje. But, it was also because of the strong depth the Badgers had. Kamari McGee, Carter Gilmore, and Jack Janicki all had crucial roles for the team at points in the year, giving Wisconsin key minutes off the bench.
Well, in the opener, Wisconsin got that from both Janicki and transfer wing Braeden Carrington.
Carrington came in early and was immediately aggressive, attacking for a layup on his first offensive possession. Later, he worked the pick-and-roll well to find an open Aleksas Bieliauskas, who missed a floater. Carrington also moved well off the bench, getting a nice backcut for a layup in the first half off an Austin Rapp feed, being physical at the rim. Another drive of his led to a kickout, with John Blackwell working to hit a stepback three.
Janicki, on the other hand, made his impact known with winning plays early. He had three steals in his first five minutes of action, hustling to the ball and even recording ones on back-to-back plays. After one steal, he got an offensive rebound, which led to second-chance points. Then, he later hit a corner three in the first half, adding some offense.
Janicki is going to provide valuable minutes for this team as a top player off the bench because he makes those winning plays. That showed up on Monday in the season opener.
Nick Boyd’s speed was on display in the opener, as the Badgers point guard got to the rim several times with nice finishes for layups. That was seen in transition as well on several occasions, but Boyd especially clicked off the pick-and-roll, where he consistently made good decisions to attack.
There was an early hiccup with Boyd dribbling into traffic, forcing a jump ball, but he played cleanly for the most part and gave a good glimpse of what to expect going forward. He kept his foot on the gas pedal in the second half, finding his teammates off drives for a couple of assists while scoring 10 points in the period.
Boyd finished with 21 points, four assists, and three rebounds for a quality debut in a Badgers uniform.
Andrew Rohde had shown some good things in practices open to the media, specifically with his underrated passing and three-point shooting ability. But, in the exhibition games and on Monday, I came away feeling he needs to be more aggressive.
Rohde didn’t look to attack when initiating pick-and-roll actions early, picking up his dribble and swinging the ball. In the second half, it felt a bit of the same, where he picked up his dribble early twice, with one leading to a turnover on an errant pass in the paint. Later in the final period, Rohde had a good lane to attack off a pick-and-roll, but kicked the ball out and had a deflected pass (Wisconsin recovered the ball).
He did have some good moments, including an early find to Austin Rapp for a layup and an aggressive drive to the rim from the corner off an out-of-bounds play. But, he needs to find his rhythm alongside a group of good ball-handlers and assert himself more to create more open looks, both for himself and his teammates. At the moment, it feels like he’s too passive. He’s too talented to play that way.
Speaking of Rapp, it wasn’t the biggest day for him on the score sheet, but I came away pleased with him making the right plays. This offseason, we’ve seen Rapp’s ability as a passer, which head coach Greg Gard calls his most underrated skill. That was on display on Monday, as Rapp found some open cutters for shots at the rim. There’ll be days with more volume for him offensively, but it was a good start for him with his vision.
Rapp had a couple of drives where he didn’t finish, showing his willingness to get to the rim, where most of his points came on Monday (as well as a trio of free throws). He finished with 13 points and four assists on the night.
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