Wisconsin Badgers
UCLA
Badgers bludgeon UCLA, 80-72
January 06, 2026 | Men's Basketball
Boyd drops 20 points for eighth time this season
MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin men's basketball team bludgeoned UCLA, 80-72, Tuesday at the Kohl Center as four Badgers reached double-digit scoring.
Nick Boyd led the way with 20 points, while tallying 8 rebounds and 5 assists. He's scored 20-plus points in eight games this season, the second-most in the Big Ten. He is the first Badger to lead the team in all three categories this year.Â
Nolan Winter had 18 points on the day, hauling in 8 boards and matching a career-high with 3 assists. The big man finished 8-for-9 from the charity stripe, the second-most makes in his career at the line.Â
John Blackwell dropped 17 points of his own, adding 3 assists and 4 rebounds. Andrew Rohde had an efficient outing with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting. The Brookfield native grabbed 6 rebounds – a UW-high for the senior transfer. Â
The Badgers got off to a 16-4 start thanks to four triples. They held UCLA without a bucket for four straight minutes during a portion of that stretch. UW used another big spurt after the 12-minute media timeout, sparking an 11-0 run that was capped off by Winter's three-pointer.Â
UW converted that momentum into a 45-31 halftime lead. Wisconsin's eight made triples were the second-most in a first half this season as Boyd and Winter were each in double-figures.
Bucky came out of the break and stifled several UCLA comeback bids, thanks in part to Blackwell's 10 points in the period. Jack Janicki fought off a 13-4 Bruin run before the 8-minute media timeout with a huge three-pointer to all but bury the contest.Â
From the Court
UW Head Coach Greg Gard
On the win:
"The thing I liked about tonight is we showed some fight, some togetherness and some heart. It wasn't perfect but when you have heart and you have fight, you have a chance… we were physically emotionally, engaged and after it [all night]."
Junior Nolan Winter
On having scoring balance throughout the starting lineup
"It's really good to see us sharing the ball tonight, and having everyone's shots go in boosts confidence going forward in the season. That's what our offense is built on, moving the ball, getting pops and moving sides, that kind of stuff. Making that defense work. When shots go in, it makes it look even prettier."
Junior John Blackwell
On the team's offenseÂ
"You see your teammates shooting with confidence and you see them go ahead a few times. It's contagious. It rubs off on others to make other shots and just be aggressive."
 Up Next: The Badgers hit the road for a matinee matchup with No. 2 Michigan on Saturday in Ann Arbor. Tipoff is set for noon CT. The Wolverines (14-0, 4-0 B1G) beat Penn State on the road, 74-72, earlier Tuesday night. ÂMood pic.twitter.com/4beA05lSu6
— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) January 7, 2026
