MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said it was a simple formula against Green Bay on Wednesday night.

When the Badgers were dribbling east-west and not sharing the ball, things bogged down. When they moved the ball, cut and screened for each other, things clicked.

Shaking off some early sluggishness, Wisconsin beat Green Bay 73-59 as Nigel Hayes scored 24 points.

The Wisconsin offense was at its best when the Badgers (10-2) were sharing the ball, and they had 18 assists on 27 field goals.

"You're a lot harder to guard when the ball moves like that," Gard said.

While Hayes' offensive output wasn't much of a surprise, Zak Showalter's was. The senior guard is averaging less than 7 points a game and came in shooting less than 29 percent from behind the 3-point line.

But he connected on a career-high four 3-pointers as he scored 16 points, while Ethan Happ added 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Showalter credited Happ for some of his success, saying the Phoenix (4-6) were doubling down on him in the post. Happ made them pay with six assists.

"It's just good to see the ball go through, and it really felt good tonight," he said.

Green Bay coach Linc Darner said Showalter's shooting wrecked his game plan, which included sagging off Showalter when he was on the perimeter.

"It was almost like he knew we weren't going to come out and guard him and he caught them in rhythm," Darner said.

Kerem Kanter led Green Bay with 18 points.

The Badgers now get a break to take care of finals before one last tune up ahead of Big Ten play starting Dec. 27. UW hosts Florida A&M on Dec. 23.