Wisconsin Badgers lose it on the bench after freshman’s first career bucket vs. Central Michigan

The Wisconsin Badgers would not be denied a win against a lowly opponent on Tuesday night at Kohl Center in Madison, as they defeated the Central Michigan Chippewas, 88-61.

The Badgers flexed their muscle in the first half on their way to an easy victory. They had a 9-0 run in the first half to take a 12-point lead to halftime and did not look back since.

The game was too out of hand for the Chippewas that freshman guard Zach Kinziger was able to shine during the long garbage time. Kinziger will always remember this game as well for being where he scored his first points in his college basketball career. 

With a little over 10 minutes left in the second half and the Badgers leading by 29 points, Kinziger positioned himself behind the arc on the left part of the court and confidently swished in a 3-pointer off an assist from sophomore guard Jack Janicki. 

Of course, Kinziger’s teammates were pumped up after seeing him find the bottom of the net for the first time.

https://twitter.com/BadgerMBB/status/2003294024715608333

Kinziger also simply returned the favor to Janicki, who scored on a layup after an assist from Kinziger in a prior Wisconsin possession.

Wisconsin Badgers snap skid on Monday

When it was all said and done in the game, Kinziger had six points on 2-for-4 shooting from the floor (all from the 3-point region) with two assists and a rebound in 13 minutes of action.

His buckets against the Chippewas were a nice confidence-builder for Kinziger, who decided to take his talents to Madison after getting offers from Wisconsin, Cal Poly and Green Bay.

Wisconsin improved to 8-4 overall following the win against the Chippewas. Another chance to score a win against a light team will come next for the Badgers on Dec. 30 against the Milwaukee Panthers at Kohl Center.