Wisconsin Badgers
2-0,0-0Big Ten
Northern Illinois
1-1,0-0MAC
Badgers blitz Huskies, 97-72
November 07, 2025 | Men's Basketball
Boyd leads Badgers with career night
MADISON, Wis. – Thanks to a career-high 25 points by Nick Boyd, the No. 24 Wisconsin men's basketball team collected a 97-72 win over Northern Illinois on Friday night at the Kohl Center.
Boyd scored 20 of his 25 points in the first half to lead UW (2-0) to a 25-point win over the Huskies (1-1). John Blackwell had 15 points and 6 rebounds, while Nolan Winter added 12 points and 7 boards.
The Badgers raced off to a 12-2 lead in the first three minutes thanks to 7 points by Boyd and never looked back. They didn't trail the entire contest.
UW led 52-33 at the break as Boyd had 20 points, Blackwell had 9 and Winter and Aleksas Bieliauskas each had 8.
Bucky closed the contest with a balanced attack in the second half, seeing 11 players score overall.
Andrew Rohde and Austin Rapp each finished their day with 8 points a piece. Bieliauskas, a true freshman, finished off his night with 8 total points, thanks to two three-pointers, and added 4 rebounds.
Will Garlock and Hayden Jones earned their first collegiate baskets, each adding 5 points off the bench.
Graduate student Isaac Gard notched a career-high with 5 points in the game's final minutes. He drilled his second-career three pointer before earning two more points at the charity stripe.
Friday's win marks the fourth time in five seasons the Badgers have started 2-0, and the 13th consecutive non-conference victory at the Kohl Center.
From the Court
Head Coach Greg Gard
On the defensive performance:
"We were really intense from the beginning and were really focused for pretty much the whole game. I think the only thing defensively I didn't like was that we fouled too much at times…but I didn't think we got beat to the rim. I thought our help was there earlier and, we were better, for the most part, at containing the dribble."
Graduate Student Nick Boyd
On his career-high:
"It was honestly [about] being aggressive. I have to give respect to my teammates out on the court, they give me so much space to play, which is why I wanted to come here. When we get stops, I have the freedom to fly down the court, so I love that too. Between those two things, being aggressive - and them giving the ability to have space to shoot - that's just my type of game."
Senior Andrew Rohde
On the team's defense:
"I think that's a priority for us every game. Especially, since the last game. We went into this game after working on defense the last few days at practice and just communicating with each other. I think we did a good job tonight and defiantly took some steps."
Up Next: Wisconsin continues its homestand against Ball State on Tuesday with a 7:30 p.m. tip. Fans that can't make it to the Kohl Center can watch live on Big Ten Network.
