MADISON, Wis. – There have been some fantastic shooters and scorers who have called the Kohl Center home since the building opened its doors in 1998. Max Klesmit is quickly seeing his name ascend toward the top of the list.

One of the last players people would have picked to be Wisconsin’s next big-game hunter, the junior from Neenah, Wis., set off more offensive fireworks Friday, scoring 23 second-half points in No.11 Wisconsin’s 91-79 victory over Indiana.

It’s the most points the Badgers (14-4, 6-1 Big Ten) have dropped on the Hoosiers since 2015. That game saw Frank Kaminsky score 23 in 30 minutes. Klesmit equaled that total in a little under 20.

“I scored pretty well in high school a little bit, but that’s a totally different game than the college game,” Klesmit said. “Really, just doing whatever is asked of me each and every night. Whether that’s running around chasing a shooter, helping out offensively, just helping out, just trying to play my role and do whatever is asked of me.”

Over the last four games, Klesmit has been the scorer. He’s 14-for-20 from three-point range for the Badgers, which lead the Big Ten by a full game.

Here are my takeaways from the Kohl Center, where Indiana (12-7, 4-4) lost for a program record 20 consecutive time.

Klesmit has teased a performance like this for the better part of the season. He scored 21 points in the first half against Marquette, 16 in the second half against Ohio State, and a UW career-high 24 against Northwestern six days ago.

But his performance against the Hoosiers might top all of them for the ferociousness that the points were delivered.

More than the UW career-high 26 points, the run of 20 straight points started simply enough, a pair of three-pointers on consecutive possessions to push Wisconsin’s lead to 16. But after the Hoosiers rattled off nine points in 46 seconds, cutting the lead to seven, Klesmit became the star in one of the best individual stretches of basketball you’ll see.

We submit to The Academy for your consideration.

Steven Crowl passes out from the post to a moving Klesmit, who shoots in rhythm to hit a three-point bucket that doesn’t graze the rim.

One possession later, with Crowl inbounding, Klesmit runs off a screen to receive the pass, hits a three-pointer shooting in rhythm, gets fouled by Trey Galloway, and converts the free throw for a four-point possession. Crowl had eight assists, six leading to three-point buckets and three went to Klesmit.

A made pull-up jumper in the paint on the third possession drew another foul, resulting in a three-point play, while the next possession – which started with a Klesmit steal – ended with Klesmit finishing a left-handed layup over the flailing arms of center Payton Sparks.

The final points on the run probably hurt the most, as Klesmit took an intentional elbow to the right jaw from reserve C.J. Gunn during a stoppage in play. The flagrant-2 technical foul and subsequent ejection let Klesmit hit two free throws.

“It’s things that happen within the game,” Klesmit said if he feels he gets under his opponent’s skin. “It’s nothing ever intentional, personal. Competitive spirit out there playing basketball. With the chip I play on my shoulder, some guys can look at that as super aggression. In my mind, it’s nothing that’s ever out of my control.”

Thanks to those 14 points in five possessions, Klesmit was responsible for 20 consecutive Wisconsin points. He had Indiana so flustered that after letting Kamari McGee hit a jumper, Klesmit looked ready to shoot another rhythm three-pointer, collapsed the defense on him, and hit an open Carter Gilmore under the rim for an easy two.

Klesmit finished 8-for-11, 5-for-7 on threes, and 5-for-6 from the line.

“It gets everybody hyped,” guard Chucky Hepburn said of Klesmit. “We love to see it. It could be any guy on any different night. The past couple nights have been Kles. We love to see that from Max. We love the confidence he’s got going right now. If we can keep that for everybody, we’re going to be a tough team down the stretch.”

Jordan Taylor still has the top spot for best scoring heater in program history with what he did to No.1 Ohio State in 2011. Remember? When the Buckeyes took a 47-32 lead, Taylor scored 21 points, made six of seven shots, and assisted on four other baskets — three of them 3-pointers. Taylor had a direct hand in 34 of Wisconsin’s final 39 points.

Klesmit is too humble to talk about his accomplishments but it’s a performance that certainly belongs, especially since head coach Greg Gard admittedly didn’t think Klesmit could be this type of offensive player when he brought him in last season as a transfer from Wofford.

“He’s obviously extremely confident, but he’s worked on his game though, too,” Gard said. “He’s better physically. He’s quicker. He’s changed his body in the positive way. The confidence for him started late last year and blossomed into the offseason and obviously it’s showing now, too.”

Indiana was without sophomore center Kel’el Ware (right foot injury), a blow to a struggling Hoosiers offense to miss a big who was averaging 14.2 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game.

Naturally, Indiana controlled the first four minutes. In their eight possessions before the first media timeout, UW was 1-for-5 from the field with three turnovers, digging itself into an 8-3 deficit and being outrebounded, 7-1.

It’s the second straight game Wisconsin has come out flat. But while the Badgers could never fully recover from the 12-2 rut they dug themselves into in State College, UW rebounded aptly because its reserves delivered a boost. John Blackwell had seven of his 12 points in the first half, including a pretty drive to the lane between three Hoosiers.

Forward Carter Gilmore added some critical hustle plays, including an offensive rebound that led to a Blackwell three-pointer and delivering a side-door pass to a cutting Blackwell on the baseline for a layup.

McGee delivered good minutes and productivity (two points and two steals) when Hepburn got sped up, and Connor Essegian had a terrific sequence, faking a three-pointer to put the ball on the deck to hit an easier pull-up jumper to cap a 12-2 run.

UW’s bench outscored the Hoosiers, 24-10, and saw its top five players (forward Nolan Winter included) have a combined plus/minus ratio of 67, a sign that the reserves are building the lead while on the floor.

“It’s a credit to their work ethic, pushing us five (starters), pushing one another,” Klesmit said. “It’s a direct correlation in the box score … That’s a credit to them, keeping their head down, waiting for their moment to be called, staying ready so they never have to get ready.”

Being pummeled by speedy, slashing guards in an ugly defensive showing, Wisconsin got the perfect opportunity for a bounce back: a forward-focused opponent with suspect guard production playing without its best rebounder.

The first half looked the part. The Badgers were bogging things down inside, not giving Indiana space on the perimeter, and registered five steals and six assists. The second half, as Gard referred to it, looked like an NBA All-Star Game.

The Hoosiers were ninth in the league in field goal percentage (44.9) and 13th in free throws (65.7), but Indiana shot 66.7 percent (18-for-27) in the second half, went 5-for-9 from the three-point line (55.6 percent) and 80 percent (12-for-15) from the foul line.

Gard said that’s part of the blessing and the curse of having a team that can score so effectively (1.444 points per possession against the Hoosiers), but the Badgers know giving up 1.61 points per possession in a half isn’t sustainable.

“We did poor on defense tonight, definitely the second half,” Hepburn said. “First half we were good. Second half we weren’t good at all. There’s definitely major tweaks we’ve got to fix on our defense. Teams are starting to find our flaws, so we got to start fixing that up. We definitely will … You’ll be able to see more improvement next game.”

Added Gard: “If they want to go where they say they want to go and what we’ve talked about (to) accomplish, we have to become more complete, specifically on that end.”

12 – Wisconsin pushes its streak of 70+ points to 12 straight games, the longest run for the Badgers since stringing together 13 in a row in the 1970-71 season.

20 – Wisconsin’s 20 straight home wins over Indiana is the Badgers’ second-longest home win streak against a single opponent, trailing only their active 22-game streak against Penn State. The Nittany Lions don’t visit Madison this season.

34 – Combine his 12 points with the 22 points he created with his passes, Crowl was responsible for 34 of Wisconsin’s points (37.4 percent).

77.7 – In going 25-for-29 from the line, the Badgers increased their Big Ten-leading free throw percentage. It’s the eighth time UW has attempted at least 25 free throws, and the Badgers are undefeated in those games.

_________________________________________________

*Chat about this article in The Badgers’ Den

*Check out our videos, interviews, and Q&As on our YouTube channel

*Subscribe and listen to the BadgerBlitz.com podcast (as seen on Apple, Google, Spotify and wherever you listen to podcasts)

*Follow us on Twitter: @McNamaraRivals, @TheBadgerNation, @RaulV45, @seamus_rohrer, @DonnieSlusher_

*Like us on Facebook