March 12, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Wisconsin Badgers guard Nick Boyd (2) reacts after scoring in the first half against the Washington Huskies at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Image John Blackwell hit six 3-pointers and scored a game-high 34 points as No. 23 Wisconsin beat Washington 85-82 in the Big Ten Conference tournament Thursday in Chicago.
Nick Boyd added 23 points and nine assists for the fifth-seeded Badgers (23-9), who advanced to the quarterfinals against fourth-seeded Illinois on Friday. Wisconsin shot 15 of 39 (38.5%) from 3-point range.
Freshman Hannes Steinbach had 25 points and 16 rebounds for his 22nd double-double for 12th-seeded Washington (16-17). Zoom Diallo added 21 points and seven assists, and Kimari Peterson had 14 points and made 4 of 10 3-pointers for the Huskies.
The Badgers fell from an 18-point lead to 66-48 with 13 minutes, 23 seconds left after Blackwell hit a 3-pointer. The Huskies used a late 18-6 run to get within 83-82 with 17 seconds left when Diallo drove for a layup.
Andrew Rohde sank both ends of a 1-and-1 with eight seconds left in the Wisconsin game, and Washington had to hunt for a game-tying 3-pointer to force overtime. As time expired, Diallo’s pull-up 3-pointer misfired, allowing the Badgers to avoid the upset.
The Badgers, who played their third straight game without their top interior player in forward Nolan Winter (ankle), got off to a fast start. They took a 20-7 lead with 11:47 left in the first half when Hayden Jones converted a 3-point play.
The Huskies found some traction over the next seven minutes, cutting the deficit to 27-23 with 4:55 left in the first half when Wesley Yates III attempted two free throws. Wisconsin took the lead behind Blackwell and Boyd, who combined for 13 straight points.
Aleksas Bieliauskas sent the Badgers into the locker room at halftime with a 43-33 lead after a 3-point play with one second left in the first half.
–Field level media
