Wisconsin
IU basketball: Wisconsin at Indiana — The report card
Sounds the alarms, Indiana won! Too soon for alarm jokes?
The Hoosiers started strong against nemesis Wisconsin, running out to a 32-17 lead with 6:09 left. But from there the Badgers started to chip away, and trailed by just five at halftime. At the 10:31 mark of the second half, Wisconsin completed the comeback, tying the game at 54. After the game was suspended for 20 minutes due to a fire alarm, Wisconsin led by two with 2:06 left. But Indiana closed the game on a 6-0 run to win it.
Let’s take a deeper look at how IU won 74-70 with another edition of The Report Card.
Indiana (15-13, 7-10) will next travel to Maryland for a Sunday afternoon contest.
COACHING (B+)
Mike Woodson deserves major credit for getting his team to show up and play hard. Yes, that’s his job, but it isn’t always a given in these situations when seasons appear to be spiraling out of control. It was apparent from the opening tip Indiana was ready to play.
Equally important: After his team dropped a 15-point lead, Woodson and his team were able to find answers late.
Woodson also continues to show he is not fixed on a set rotation. This time it was C.J. Gunn out of the lineup. In general the right buttons were pressed. Woodson did make a somewhat questionable decision to play Payton Sparks when Kel’el Ware needed a rest instead of inserting Reneau with two fouls. That was the point at which the lead started slipping away in the first half.
There was some kind of miscommunication late in the game that led to Malik Reneau’s fifth foul, and while the decision to use fouls late in games makes sense, Indiana’s execution always seems choppy at best.
OFFENSE (B+)
On paper Wisconsin should have matched up reasonably well with Kel’el Ware and Malik Reneau, given that they have their own 7-footer in Steven Crowl, and a solid power forward in Tyler Wahl. Ware and Reneau were certainly central to Wisconsin’s game plan.
But the IU big men were too much, combining for 41 points on 17-of-20 shooting.
“Those two draw a lot of attention and we didn’t do a good enough job on both of those guys,” said Wisconsin coach Greg Gard.
Part of the answer for IU was good spacing rather than a crowded lane. And Indiana went to a heavy dose of ball screen offense late in the game to secure the win. Trey Galloway was masterful at facilitating in those actions, producing 12 assists on the night.
The Hoosiers were unable to be effective on the offensive glass, with just four boards on that end.
Indiana scored 1.18 points per possession. That was their highest mark since the first Wisconsin game, and second-highest against a high-major team this season. Their effective field goal percentage of 68.1 percent was a season-high. That included 70 percent from two and 43 percent from three.
DEFENSE (B)
The Badgers closed the game with six straight misses. That was the end of a 4-of-16 finish to the game by them over the final eight minutes as Indiana clamped down. The Hoosiers were also solid at the start of the contest, when UW made just 7-of-23 over the opening 14:22.
In between things got dicey.
Wisconsin made the wise decision to put their big man Steven Crowl out on the perimeter, which pulled Kel’el Ware out with him. That opened up driving lanes for the Badgers and they took full advantage. Indiana didn’t always have the quickness to stay in front of ball on those drives. But led by Reneau, they did limit Wahl to a 4-of-11 game from the field.
Indiana survived some open Wisconsin looks from three, but the Badgers made just 8-of-26 from long range.
The unheralded stat of the night might have been that Wisconsin only shot three free throws. This is a program that has seemingly lived at the stripe against IU. Credit the Hoosiers for being fundamentally sound and only committing eight fouls for the entire game, including some that were intentional. The Badgers are a very good free throw shooting team, so keeping them off the line matters.
That low volume of freebies helped offset just three forced turnovers by IU. Wisconsin had to score from the field to win, and they weren’t efficient enough, especially at crunch time.
Wisconsin scored 1.11 points per possession, which isn’t a great figure, but a massive improvement over the 1.4 the Badgers scored against IU in Madison.
MORE GAME COVERAGE
THE PLAYERS
*Trey Galloway (B) For the second time in two weeks, Galloway produced a 12 assist game. Four of the assists came in the game’s final six minutes, along with a floater in the final two. You know the story, he didn’t make threes. But he also didn’t practice the last two days due to a foot injury, and he was exceptional in this game otherwise.
*Mackenzie Mgbako (B+) In the game’s final 5:35 Mgbako made a three, had a block and made two critical free throws. He was clutch. Mgbako wasn’t a factor on the glass and got caught up in some difficult defensive matchups, but this was another step forward.
*Malik Reneau (B+) Foul trouble once again limited Reneau’s role, and he had late game turnover that could have proven costly. But on the whole this was a solid effort, including a difficult shot in the paint with under a minute remaining that proved to be the game-winner. He’s also continuing to improve when it comes to reading post doubles.
*Kel’el Ware (A) The sophomore center was in the zone in the first half, making his first eight shots including a three. His five blocks were a career high, and he took care of the ball. Ware is the second player this season in Division I College Basketball to record at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, and five blocked shots in a game. This was a game that made his NBA Draft status a no-doubter.
*Gabe Cupps (C+) The freshman guard was steady if not a major factor in this one. He wasn’t a great defensive matchup once Wisconsin started emphasizing the dribble drive.
Anthony Leal (B) The senior guard gave IU solid minutes in the clutch with a tough, physical defensive presence, and he made a three.
Xavier Johnson (D) Johnson made a couple shots in his return, but obviously his five turnovers in just 15 minutes were problematic. He tried to force the issue into crowds at times.
Anthony Walker (B) Walker played important minutes with Reneau in foul trouble.
Payton Sparks saw limited action.
C.J. Gunn and Kaleb Banks did not play, coach’s decision.
————————
Jakai Newton (knee) is out long-term.
The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”
Related
Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield shares his biggest spring takeaway
Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield shared his biggest takeaway from the spring following the Badgers’ four-set win over Northern Illinois.
MADISON – Kelly Sheffield has coached All-Americans, national players of the year, national champions and future Olympians in his 13 years as Wisconsin volleyball coach.
So Sheffield’s unique praise of Decelise Champion – a star pin-hitter from Puerto Rico who committed to the Badgers last fall – carries a lot of weight.
“Her highest-end potential is certainly as high as about anybody we’ve ever brought in,” Sheffield said. “She’s got a lot of work to get to where she’s capable of, and that’s on us as coaches and on her to help reach those dreams and goals. But when you’re watching people around her age, she’s different.”
That work is beginning earlier than initially expected after Wisconsin announced that Champion will reclassify from the 2027 recruiting class and join the Badgers as a freshman for the 2026 season.
Champion – currently 16 years old and turning 17 in September – will arrive with a resume that includes experience on Puerto Rico’s senior national team and the elite Italian club Volleyro Casal de Pazzi. That’s all while being strong enough academically to earn a GED degree and the necessary NCAA waiver for a few missing core classes.
“What made it really a lot better is that all of her grades at the different schools she’s been at have been fantastic,” Sheffield said. “She’s an excellent student. Was crushing it at a really, really good academic school in Italy in her third language.”
The timing of the June 12 announcement accounted for the second-last open roster spot for the 2026 season, but Champion and UW’s efforts to make the reclassification possible go back much earlier than that.
“We’ve known she’s wanted to do this since February,” Sheffield said. “We told our team in February that was the plan. And then we didn’t let anybody know publicly until she was done with her season. She just didn’t want to be a distraction for her team.”
Badgers have even more competition at pins
Wisconsin already had plenty of competition at the pin-hitting positions before Champion’s move to the 2026 class.
Grace Egan had a major role on the 2025 Final Four team, and Eva Travis had an impressive spring after transferring from UC-Santa Barbara. Others include Grace Lopez, Madison Quest and the highly-touted freshman duo of Halle Thompson and Audrey Flanagan.
Even with the upcoming addition of one more pin-hitter – and one with such a high potential – UW did not lose any players in the spring transfer portal cycle. Even the idea of someone leaving seemed outlandish to Sheffield.
“If they’re just going to get up and leave because somebody came, I would say that that person is probably chicken s—,” Sheffield said.
Sheffield’s praise of Champion’s proposal obviously does not come with a guarantee of playing time either at the crowded pin-hitting positions.
“I would say, yeah, she does have a chance of being out on the court for us this year,” Sheffield said. “But we’ve also got some other really talented people that play the pins.”
The outside and right-side hitters already on UW’s spring roster will have at least one key advantage over Champion in her freshman season – time.
Egan, Lopez and Quest are returning players (although Egan and Lopez spent their spring recovering from injuries). Travis, Thompson and Flanagan all enrolled in time to spend the spring with the Badgers and impressed in UW’s spring matches.
Champion’s arrival, on the other hand, will follow her participation in an Olympic-qualifying event for Puerto Rico. Sheffield expects that to be Sept. 2, which is the day before fall classes begin and already after UW’s first four matches of the season.
“She’ll be drinking out of a fire hose early on, no doubt about it,” Sheffield said. “Even though she’s been playing with her senior national team this summer, it will be a lot of things coming at her in her secondary language at 16, so there’ll need to be some patience along the way.”
His advice to Champion when she was on campus earlier in June was to “be where your feet are.”
“When she’s with her national team – even though we will have started our preseason, playing matches – don’t worry about us here,” Sheffield said. “Be where your feet are. Be the best you can be for your team there. … Then when you get here, you’re not thinking about your national team.”
Champion’s NCAA eligibility clock starts earlier
Champion’s reclassification comes with the drawback of beginning her NCAA eligibility one year earlier in her volleyball career.
Had she stayed in the 2027 recruiting class, she theoretically would have begun her college career shortly before her 18th birthday and exhausted her eligibility at age 22. Instead, she will begin her college career shortly before her 17th birthday and likely exhaust her eligibility at age 21.
Those scenarios take into account the NCAA Division I Cabinet’s unanimous approval on June 23 of a new eligibility model that will give players five seasons of eligibility in five years. (That replaces the current system with four seasons, redshirts and other waivers.) The NCAA noted that its decision is not final, however, until the meeting concludes on June 24.
“We’re certainly excited to have her this year, but if you kind of think over the course of five years, it’s probably worse for us that she comes a year early,” Sheffield said. “You expect her to be better at 20 and 21 than what she is at 16 or 17. … It really wasn’t something that we were pushing for, but she was ready.”
Of course, volleyball at age 16 or 17 looks different for someone like Champion who has been competing against much older players as a senior national team member and studying halfway across the world from her hometown of Dorado, Puerto Rico.
“When you talk to her, she doesn’t come across as somebody who’s 16,” Sheffield said. “She’s very mature, very easy to talk to, very driven. She’s independent. … She’s had a lot more life experience than most people her age, and that certainly comes across when you’re around her.”
Wisconsin
Cult-classic filmed in central Wisconsin returns to big screen, with enhancements, this weekend
STEVENS POINT, Wis. (WSAW) – A giant spider isn’t actually invading central Wisconsin this weekend.
But an enhanced, big-screen version of the cult-classic 1975 film The Giant Spider Invasion is crawling back into local theaters — and it’s bringing some central Wisconsin nostalgia with it.
The movie was famously filmed in Merrill and Stevens Point, and the updated 2026 release adds enhancements designed for a modern theatrical experience.
What’s new in the 2026 enhanced version?
Executive Producer J.B. Thompson says the team took the original 1975 film and enhanced it for the big screen in 2026, giving audiences a refreshed way to experience a movie that’s long been a Wisconsin oddity — and a point of pride.
Actor and Producer Dan Davies is featured in newly filmed scenes created specifically for this updated release.
Stevens Point’s role in the original film
While much of the film is associated with Merrill, Stevens Point Mayor Mike Wiza says Point also played a major role in the production — another reason the film’s return matters to local history buffs and movie fans alike.
Why does this movie still capture attention 50 years later?
Whether it’s the over-the-top creature feature story, the uniquely Wisconsin filming locations, or the nostalgia of seeing familiar places on screen, the group says the film’s staying power is real — even five decades later.
Screenings this weekend
The enhanced version of The Giant Spider Invasion is set for local screenings this weekend in Central and North Central Wisconsin. To purchase tickets for showings in Stevens Point, Marshfield or Waupaca, click here.
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Copyright 2026 WSAW. All rights reserved.
A Wisconsin man has been arrested in Colorado in connection with a fatal north suburban hit-and-run earlier this year that left a 50-year-old woman killed.
According to the Winthrop Harbor Police Department, Travis Kern, 35, of Pleasant Prairie, turned himself into police in Lakewood Colorado on an arrest warrant. Kern was charged with two felonies, police said, and remains in custody in Colorado pending extradition proceedings.
About 11:10 p.m. on February 26, a pedestrian was struck in the 1400 block of Sheridan Road in Winthrop Harbor by a driver of a vehicle heading northbound. The vehicle then fled the scene, police said.
The pedestrian, later identified as Shanna White, 50, of Waukegan, was transported to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead.
According to court documents, Kern’s next scheduled court date is set for July 22.
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