MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Steven Crowl had 19 points and nine rebounds, Tyler Wahl added 16 points and No. 23 Wisconsin beat Jacksonville State 75-60 on Thursday night.
Wahl scored the first eight points for the Badgers (8-3), who never trailed as they bounced back from a lackluster performance in last Saturday’s 98-73 loss at No. 1 Arizona. Wahl went 6 of 9 from the field in the first half as Wisconsin led 38-30 at the break.
The 7-foot Crowl and the 6-9 Wahl dominated inside as Wisconsin scored 40 points in the paint.
“Playing through the paint, we know we wanted to pound the ball inside when you have a size advantage,” Badgers coach Greg Gard said.
“You don’t want to get into a jump shot contest all the time and let them neutralize what our advantage is in playing through our bigs. I think Steve demanded the ball for the most part, and Tyler in there really set the tone.”
KyKy Tandy scored 16 points for Jacksonville State (4-7). Marcellus Brigham Jr. came off the bench to score 10 first-half points for the Gamecocks, but he didn’t score after halftime.
The Gamecocks had 15 turnovers, including nine in the second half.
“It’s self-inflicted problems with our turnovers, just bad decisions,” Jacksonville State coach Ray Harper said. “At one point, we had four or five consecutive turnovers in the second half.
“You can’t do it against bad teams, but you really can’t do it against good teams.”
A.J. Storr had 13 points for Wisconsin, which has won seven of its last eight games.
The Badgers’ Chucky Hepburn matched a career high with five steals. He scored seven points.
Crowl capped a 12-3 run with a layup that gave the Badgers a 29-17 lead with 5:39 remaining in the first half.
Jacksonville State’s Ivan Reynolds drained a half-court 3-pointer at the first-half buzzer. The Gamecocks then scored the first two baskets of the second half to get within 38-34. But Wisconsin held Jacksonville State scoreless for the next four minutes.
The Gamecocks finished 6 of 15 (40%) from 3-point range.
Crowl said the Badgers must play tough every game, no matter the opponent.
“That was something we really pushed in the pregame speech. ‘If we want to be great, we have to show up every night,’” Crowl said. “We did that, I think, for the most part. I was happy with how we played.”
BIG PICTURE
Jacksonville State: Tandy and Brigham made critical baskets, but their shooting needs to be more consistent. The Gamecocks also need to stay out of foul trouble.
Wisconsin: The win at the Kohl Center gave Gard his 100th victory on the Badgers’ home court in nine seasons.
UP NEXT
Jacksonville State: At Tarleton State on Monday.
Wisconsin: Hosts Chicago State on Dec. 22.
TOP PHOTO: Wisconsin’s Chucky Hepburn (23) drives against Jacksonville State’s Travis Roberts (3) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Andy Manis)