Game notes: No. 6 Wisconsin 71, No. 21 Minnesota 59

The Wisconsin Badgers (9-2 overall, 3-1 Big Ten) bounced back nicely from their loss to Maryland on Monday by beating the Minnesota Golden Gophers (9-2 overall, 2-2 Big Ten), 71-59.

Here are some fun facts and highlights from the New Year’s Eve tilt!

• UW tallied its third win over an AP Top-25 team this season. Gonzaga (four), Kansas (four) and Wisconsin are the nation’s only teams with three or more.
• The Badgers are now 11-6 at home against Top-25 opponents under Greg Gard.
• Wisconsin went 22-7 (.759) in the calendar year of 2020, owning the most wins and best win percentage among Big Ten teams.

• The Badgers’ 22 wins in 2020 tied for third in the nation among major conference teams. Only Kansas (26) and Baylor (24) won more games in 2020.
• Greg Gard improved to 6-2 all-time against Minnesota as the Badgers defeated the Gophers for 11th time in the last 13 meetings.
• Wisconsin tightened the all-time series with Minnesota and now trails the Gophers by just one win, 104-103.

• Wisconsin held Minnesota to a season-low 59 points, surpassing its previous low of 65 points at Illinois (12/15/20). The Gophers entered the game averaging 84.3 ppg.
• In a major change from the Maryland game, the Badgers owned a decided 40-18 advantage in the points in the paint category against Minnesota.
• UW had just nine turnovers in the game, marking the 29th consecutive game with 11 or fewer.
• Senior G D’Mitrik Trice recorded a line of 14 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals in 33 minutes. He also harangued Gophers star G Marcus Carr into a 3-for-13 shooting night and helped hold him to only 10 points.
• Trice is now tied with Mike Kelley for No. 6 on the all-time assist list (344) for UW and he is tied at No. 32 on the all-time scoring list with Scott Roth (1,156).

• Senior F Micah Potter posted his second double-double of the season and the sixth of his career, finishing with a game-high 18 points and matched his season-high with 11 rebounds.
• Senior F Aleem Ford notched 14 points, marking his fifth straight game scoring in double digits.