It was a tight basketball game for about 13 minutes on Friday night at the Kohl Center in Madison before the Badgers put their foot on the gas. The usual grind it out Wisconsin basketball team rained in three points at a record rate on their way to an arena record 116 points.

That defense allowed Wisconsin to score a record 116 points on 64.5% shooting and a record 21 3-point makes. Badgers guard Kamari McGee summed up the game: “We just knew that they didn’t want to play defense. All we had to do was play a little more defense than them and the game is ours.”

The Badgers set a Big Ten record for 3s in a single game. Here's why the performance might not be an aberration.

The Iowa basketball team will be looking to rebound after their most disappointing effort of the season, giving up 116 points in a loss at Wisconsin on Friday night. Hawkeye head coach Fran McCaffery isn’t focused on looking back.

MADISON, WISCONSIN – JANUARY 03: John Blackwell #25 of the Wisconsin Badgers reacts after making a three-point shot in the first half of the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Kohl Center on January 03, 2025 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

Illinois is getting better as the weeks pass. Its most recent statement was a 32-point win over a top-10 Oregon team. Wisconsin lost to Illinois, 86-80, on Dec. 10 and hasn’t defeated the Fighting Illini since 2019 (nine straight losses). Given that context, 47.2% feels a bit optimistic.

Iowa got rolled on Friday night in Madison as Wisconsin took down the Hawkeyes, 116-85, which moved Fran McCaffery's team to 10-4 and 1-2 in Big Ten play on the season. Wisconsin set a Kohl Center ...

Payton Sandfort called Iowa basketball's performance against Wisconsin less than two weeks ago his team ... “There’s a lot of reasons for it,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said of why USC shot 65% from the field Tuesday. “We got off to a bad start.

In roughly two minutes in the first half, Wisconsin gained some separation, turning a 3-point deficit into an 11-point lead. The Badgers torched Iowa’s defense in the first half, shooting an absurd 9-of-13 (69%) from deep and putting up 54 points. That allowed Wisconsin to take an 11-point advantage into halftime.

Fran McCaffery discusses Iowa's comeback win over rival Nebraska.