The Wisconsin Badgers‘ second-half collapse against Penn State might not be the biggest concern for fans moving forward.
With 11 minutes to go, sophomore Nolan Winter took a seat and did not retake the court. Postgame, coach Greg Gard confirmed the worst by acknowledging that the important Badger forward had sustained some kind of injury.
Nolan Winter Sits Most of Second Half in Wisconsin Badgers Deflating L
Limited to just 13 minutes of game time, Winter scored 7 points and grabbed 6 boards in the 86-75 loss to the Nittany Lions. He made 3 of 4 shots and canned his only three attempt.
The 6’11 power forward has provided key size for the Badgers this season, leading the team with 6 rebounds per game. He is also scoring 9.8 points and shooting 56.2% from the field.
Gard could not specify the cause and nature of his injury, but he did confirm that something isn’t right:
Something happened. I don’t know what. I haven’t talked to the trainer specifically yet. When he had that tip dunk, whether he hurt his arm or his shoulder, I don’t know exactly yet. So I haven’t had a chance to meet with their trainers and doctors. I put him back in. I didn’t feel he looked the same. Something obviously was bothering him. I’ll learn more here maybe later today or over the weekend.
Winter’s departure created more minutes for Carter Gilmore off the bench, who finished the day with 4 points. Center Steven Crowl and guard John Blackwell led the team with 19 apiece. Blackwell fouled out with 18 seconds left, the game beyond reach.
Star senior John Tonje had one of his worst games in 2025, shooting 2-13 to finish with 13 points and 7 rebounds.
The story of the day, however, was Penn State’s D’Marco Dunn, who poured in 25 points on 10-12 from the floor and went 4-5 on triples. Outscored 51 to 35 in the second half, Wisconsin ends the regular season on a deflating note, having dropped three of five to fall to 13-7 in Big Ten play. The comeback victory was only Penn State’s 6th conference win this season.
Big Ten Tournament Look-Ahead
Despite their poor finish to the season, the #12 Badgers will still receive a first round bye in the Big Ten Tournament as a 5-seed. Their first game is set for approximately 2:30 on Thursday.
Earlier Saturday, Wisconsin received some help from Illinois, who beat Purdue. A Boilermakers win and Badgers loss would have swapped their spots in the standings. Moreover, a Bruins win Saturday night as 9.5-point over the Trojans would have dropped the Badgers to 6th because of head-to-head tiebreaker rules. UCLA beat Wisconsin earlier this season.*
The way they concluded the regular season slate is not encouraging. As of Saturday evening, the Badgers remain the 13th-ranked team in KenPom Net Rating, third in the Big Ten behind Michigan State and Maryland, but their stock has dipped since their 58-55 loss to the Spartans last Sunday. What could have been a feel-good two-game win streak to end the season crumbled Saturday afternoon, at home on Senior Day, in embarrassing fashion.
Now the status of Winter, the team’s top rebounder and third-leading scorer, is up in the air. Hopefully Gard will have a positive update to share during the week leading up to Wisconsin’s Big Ten tourney debut.
*This article has been edited to correct the inaccurate statement that Wisconsin had been locked into 4th place by Purdue’s loss. With a win against USC, UCLA passed both the Boilermakers and Badgers in the standings, dropping Wisconsin to 5th.
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