Wisconsin Badgers Forward Nolan Winter Says They Still Did Great in Loss to Spartans Despite Awful 15% From Three

 

 

Sunday saw clash of the giants in NCAA basketball as the the Michigan State Spartans and the Wisconsin Badgers battled it out in one of the best games of the season so far.

 

Michigan State Spartans vs Wisconsin Badgers

East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans center Szymon Zapala (10) hugs forward Jaxon Kohler (0) who tallied a double-double against the Wisconsin Badgers at Jack Breslin Student Events Center.

The Spartans used an intense defensive run in the last three minutes to overtake the visiting Badgers who made just one field goal in the last 4:07 minutes in the game.

 

Michigan State also lorded it over on the glass, finishing with 51 rebounds against Wisconsin’s 40.

 

Another thing that hurt the Badgers is their three point shooting as they shot five out of 32 from beyond the arc.

 

Despite the poor shooting, Nolan Winter believes they should go to the game still in high spirit. He thinks they still played great despite the loss.

 

Nolan Winter, Wisconsin Badgers

East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Nolan Winter (31) canÕt get this shot to go while defended by Michigan State Spartans guard Tre Holloman (5) during the first half at Jack Breslin Student Events Center.

“Knowing that we shot like that and we were still right there is a good thing. Just stupid mistakes we made at the end kind of killed us, kind of shot ourselves in the foot a little bit,” he told reporters after the game.

 

“But credit to them. Coch (Tom) Izzo is obviously one of the greatest to do it and when you play a team like that it’s going to be tough.”

 

3-point shooting is not the only one Wisconsin Badgers missed

The three point shooting was absent and so was the leadership of senior Max Klesmit.

 

The starting guard was ruled out for the game due to a tightness in his right lower leg. It is the second straight game he missed.

 

Fans should not be worried though as head coach Greg Gard confirmed that he is already recovering and that his injury is not that serious.

 

Wisconsin guard Max Klesmit (11) watches from the bench during the second half of their game Tuesday, February 25, 2025 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin. Wisconsin beat Washington 88-62.

“It’s day to day,” Gard said. “We’ll see how things go with the medical people. They’ll make the determination on when he’s able to come back.”

 

The Badgers return to action on Wednesday when they face the Minnesota Golden Gophers at the Williams Arena.