Minus Davis, Wisconsin fends off feisty Nicholls 71-68

Dec 16, 2021, 03:40 am

MADISON, Wisc. -- — Brad Davison scored 19 points before fouling out and Tyler Wahl scored 12 and Wisconsin needed a second-half run and then held on to beat Nicholls 71-68 on Wednesday night.

Wisconsin (9-2) now leads all major Division-I level programs with three victories after trailing by double digits after halftime.

The Badgers played without their leading scorer Johnny Davis (20.9 ppg) due to non-related COVID-19 illness.

Wisconsin used a 16-0 run and turned a 42-30 deficit with 18:40 left to a 51-46 lead nearly eight minutes later. Despite the run Wisconsin never pulled away.

Ty Gordon missed a 3-pointer from the right baseline with three seconds to go with the Colonels down three. Manny Littles grabbed the offensive rebound and was fouled on the put-back attempt. He missed both free throws and Wisconsin secured the rebound for the win.

Gordon hit a 3-pointer 34 seconds in to give Nicholls a 3-1 lead and the Colonels maintained the lead for the duration of the first half.

Nicholls shot 57% (17 for 30) before the break while the Badgers went 35.5% (11 for 31). Despite its size disadvantage the Colonels outrebounded Wisconsin 20-12 before halftime. Nicholls scored 40 of its 68 points on the interior. The Colonels finished with a 36-33 rebounding advantage.

Gordon scored 26 points for Nicholls (7-4).

HELPING BACK HOME

Raised in Mayfield, Kentucky, Wisconsin's Chris Vogt played in his second game after learning of mass destruction to his hometown due to tornadoes over the weekend. As of late Wednesday, a GoFundMe page he established to help residents there had generated donations in excess of $131,000.

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