Wisconsin
Kel’el Ware’s dominance and a fire alarm evacuation highlight IU’s win over Wisconsin
BLOOMINGTON — Deep in the throes of a woeful season seemingly getting worse with each passing game, Indiana men’s basketball experienced a night unlike most others this year.
It’s not just that the Hoosiers snapped a four-game losing streak with a 74-70 victory over Wisconsin on Tuesday. It’s what transpired both inside and outside of Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall that led to the result.
Kel’el Ware caught fire and rode it to one of IU’s strongest individual performances of the season. And as that played out, Assembly Hall dealt with an actual fire scare.
‘The best player on the floor’
Ware got started early, with a defensive rebound on the game’s first possession. And he soared from there.
The sophomore dominated, particularly in the first half. By halftime, Ware racked up 20 points on a 9-for-10 clip, with seven rebounds and three blocks. He just overpowered Steven Crowl and the Badgers’ frontcourt.
Ware’s points came from all over. He scored in the post, in mid-range, and from beyond the 3-point line. There were stretches in that first half when it seemed like the center could score at will, regardless of what the Badgers did.
By the end of the night, Ware finished with 27 points on an 11-for-12 line, with 11 rebounds and five blocks.
“It was unbelievable. He had a man’s game. He really did,” IU head coach Mike Woodson said after the game. “Maybe we didn’t go to him enough, but he was fantastic tonight. We needed every bit of it in order to win this game.”
Ware missed Indiana’s first matchup against the Badgers in Madison. His absence was noticeable in that game, as IU lost by 12.
Wisconsin limited Ware’s looks some more in the second half, as he had just two points in the first 13 minutes after halftime. But he was able to redevelop the sort of rhythm he had in the first half, scoring some important points for IU when the Badgers made their push.
Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard lamented his team’s defensive performance against Ware but praised the sophomore several times after the game, saying he had “an All-American-type night.”
“Ware and (Malik) Reneau have been really good. I don’t know if this is the best that Kel’el’s played, but it’s got to be right near the top,” Gard said. “The credit goes to Ware, specifically, and to Reneau for the job they did inside. Kel’el was the best player on the floor. He was really good tonight.”
Ware has been Indiana’s most consistent player all season, and has had plenty of other big games this season. This wasn’t even his highest-scoring game of the year — he put up 28 points against Harvard, on a 12-for-13 line.
The sophomore has recorded eight 20-point games, and 12 double-doubles. His 23-point, 10-rebound effort during IU’s win over Iowa was one of the team’s grittiest performances of the season.
Entering Tuesday’s game, Ware ranked third in the Big Ten in rebounding, sixth in blocks, and 15th in scoring. He entered this season at IU with some question marks surrounding him after a tough freshman year at Oregon, but he’s been as good as IU could’ve realistically hoped for.
Ware is firmly on the All-Big Ten radar, because of performances like these.
A chaotic scene
Ware wasn’t the only thing in Assembly Hall that was hot on Tuesday.
A fire alarm went off in one of the balconies and spread to the concourses on both sides of the arena around the under-12 media timeout. Wisconsin’s radio broadcast reported smoke in an elevator set off the alarms.
The game went on for a few minutes as the alarms continued going off, but some fans made their way towards the exits even with play ongoing. And then more fans. And then even more.
Then, out of nowhere, the game stopped. The public address system cut out. The scoreboard displayed a generic IU logo. Teams retreated to their sideline, and soon their locker rooms. Security guards and emergency personnel sprung into action, more sternly alerting fans to evacuate the building.
But fans, media, and others in attendance didn’t know why the evacuation was happening. Nobody delivered a clear message within the venue, whether there was a fire or if it was related to the tornado warnings throughout the region. And that uncertainty caused some apparent hesitation for some people about going outside — closer to windows — if it was tornado-related.
But arena staff continued to assertively direct fans to get up from their seats and find the closest possible exit. And it led to a chaotic scene in Assembly Hall’s south lobby and in the space outside it.
Fans flocked to the doors, with many carrying concessions they’d already bought. One man approached an exit holding a beer can, and a security guard stopped him and told him he had to drink it before leaving; he wasn’t allowed to take the beer outside the building — as outlined by Indiana state liquor laws — even during a fire alarm evacuation.
Outside the arena, fans crowded the space by the doors. They tried to stick together with their groups as much as possible as more and more people flooded the area. It was a hectic scene — and it remained that way when everyone was apparently informed they could re-enter after just a few minutes outside.
A sizable number of fans didn’t come back after the evacuation. The ones who stayed kept Assembly Hall loud as Indiana pulled out its 15th win of the season.
This sort of thing doesn’t happen regularly. Asked if he’d ever encountered anything like it, on his way to the exits after the game ended, longtime IU radio voice Don Fischer laughed and said, “Never had one of those.” Both Woodson and Gard said they, too, had never experienced a situation like this.
When play stopped, Wisconsin was on a 9-2 run over the previous four minutes of game time. The Badgers had tied the game at 54 apiece less than 30 seconds before the stoppage. They continued that run when the game resumed, but Gard clearly thought the pause in action impacted his team’s momentum.
“I thought it was a great timeout for whoever from Indiana pulled the fire alarm, for them. Cause we were making a run,” Gard said. “I mean, we had a little time in the locker room, not as much as what they originally had told us. And then you get five minutes to go warm back up and go play. So was kind of like having two halftimes.”
The game went back and forth the rest of the way after play resumed. The Hoosiers pulled it out because they held Wisconsin scoreless for the last two minutes of the game.
This win is a reprieve for Indiana during a rough month of a rough season. The result doesn’t change anything about IU’s season.
But the way it played out, with Ware’s heroics and the mid-game evacuation, may help this game stick out in the minds of those who both left Assembly Hall and came back in.
“I want to thank our fan base, the crowd, for going through what we all went through and still came back into the game and gave us the support we needed to get over the hump and win the game,” Woodson said. “So I truly thank the fans.”
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MADISON, Wis. (Gray) – Wisconsin is working to assess damage from last week’s severe weather that brought extensive flooding, wind damage and 25 reported tornadoes across the state.
“We have pretty widespread damage, really in most areas of the state,” Greg Engel, a Wisconsin Emergency Management administrator, said.
As Wisconsin begins its path to recovery, Gov. Tony Evers is urging Wisconsin’s congressional delegation to start conversations with the Trump administration to “convey the importance of FEMA assistance.”
In a Friday letter to Wisconsin’s congressional delegation, Evers wrote, “It would be unfortunate if Wisconsin’s anticipated requests for emergency assistance are once again declined.”
The historic storms come after August’s thousand-year floods in Wisconsin, which particularly impacted Milwaukee. While FEMA approved homeowner relief funds, it denied Evers’ request for more than $26 million to support public assistance and hazard mitigation for six impacted counties.
Now, Wisconsin is still working to tally up the extent of the destruction from April’s storms. Some communities likely won’t complete their damage assessments until early next week, Engel explained.
Marathon County Emergency Management said they’ve already assessed nearly 150 damaged residences, and Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson said recovery will be expensive.
“It is not an exaggeration to say that all those communities together will be millions of dollars worth of damage,” Nelson said.
After the end of these severe weather events, Evers will have 30 days to submit an application to FEMA for federal assistance. Engel said they’re working to collect as much information as they can for their report and will continue to provide resources for recovering communities.
A White House official said they “continue to monitor forecasted weather and flooding that is affecting Wisconsin.”
If you are an impacted homeowner, Rock County is encouraging homeowners to contact their insurance early, start a claim, ask what they are required to do or not do, ask about temporary housing or emergency coverage and not throw out major items until approved.
Click here to download the WSAW news app or WSAW First Alert weather app.
Click here to submit a news tip or story idea.
Copyright 2026 WMTV. All rights reserved.
Wisconsin Lutheran High School basketball star Zavier Zens has officially committed to play for the University of Illinois next season.
Zavier Zens Makes It Official with the Illini
Zens, a tenacious 6-foot-7, 215-pound senior forward, initially committed to play collegiately for Northern Iowa but reopened his recruitment as the result of a head coaching change, ultimately narrowing his final choices to Illinois, Utah State, and Wisconsin.
On April 17, the highly touted three-star recruit signed a Big Ten Conference Athletics Scholarship Agreement to compete for Illinois, ending the greatly anticipated recruitment journey.
A Chance to Maximize His Development Was the Key
“What I was looking for was the best chance to develop and become the best player I can become,” said Zens, in an interview with Zac Bellman of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Illinois, they arguably have the best team in the country coming in next year, and the chance to get to go up against them every day, along with the good development program and their record of developing guys, was really big to me. Obviously, the fit and culture was right as well.”
Illinois tied for second in the Big Ten Conference under the guidance of head coach Brad Underwood, advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four for the first time in 21 years (2005), and finished with a 28-9 overall record.
“Zavier first and foremost is a winner,” said Underwood, in an official release posted on fightingillini.com. “He is an extremely high IQ player who has been well coached and brings a championship pedigree to the table, winning three straight state titles. He fits our recruiting mold as a 6-foot-7 versatile wing who can score at all three levels and process the game.”
Zens Helped Wisconsin Lutheran to a WIAA Three-Peat
Zens averaged 23.4 points per game (including a 61.8% field-goal percentage) with 5.4 rebounds, and 4.4 assists this season in leading the Vikings to a third consecutive WIAA state championship and statement-making 30-0 overall record.
Wisconsin’s Mr. Basketball contributed 20 points with four 3-point baskets, six rebounds, three assists, two blocked shots, and one steal as top-seeded Wisconsin Lutheran defeated third-seeded Madison Memorial 57-37 in the WIAA Division 1 state championship game at the University of Wisconsin’s Kohl Center on March 21.
The 2026 Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year finished his memorable four-year high school career with a 109-7 overall record (including an 88-2 mark during the three-year championship run) and as the third-leading scorer in program history (1,611 points).
Zens Continues the Trend of Mr. Wisconsin Playing Out-of-State
In an interesting twist, Zens (a cousin of NBA rookie sensation Kon Knueppel who competes for the Charlotte Hornets) joins an elite group of seven recent Wisconsin Mr. Basketball recipients who opted to play out of state.
Wisconsin, under current head coach Greg Gard, has advanced to the NCAA Tournament eight times, with the fifth-seeded Badgers most recently falling to No. 12-seeded High Point 83-82 in this year’s opening round on March 19.
The impressive list of Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association honorees includes:
2025: Xzavion Mitchell, Oshkosh North (Iowa State)
2023: (co-winner) Milan Momcilovic, Pewaukee (Iowa State)
2023: (co-winner) John Kinzinger, De Pere (Illinois State)
2022: Seth Trimble, Menomonee Falls (North Carolina)
2021: Brandin Podziemski, St. John’s (Illinois, Santa Clara)
— Jeff Hagenau | jeffreyhagenau@gmail.com
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WISCONSIN (WBAY) – Wisconsin residents contributed more than $36 million in marijuana taxes to Illinois last year and nearly $6 million to Michigan in 2024, according to new numbers released by the state Legislative Fiscal Bureau.
The revenue comes from counties bordering Wisconsin that legally sell marijuana, while bills to legalize both medical and recreational marijuana remain stalled in the Wisconsin Legislature.
Wisconsin will have a new governor, new speaker in the Assembly and a new majority leader in the state Senate next January.
All three people holding those leadership positions decided not to seek re-election.
State lawmakers will have a fresh debate regarding marijuana for the first time in a while, and the latest numbers from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau are likely to be a big part of it.
Illinois dispensaries generate millions from Wisconsin buyers
On the Wisconsin border, from Michigan to Illinois, marijuana sales have become big business.
“The economic value to restoring this plant back to our economy is huge. We can’t even put a dollar amount on it,” said Jay Selthofner, founder of the Wisconsin Cannabis Activist Network.
According to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau memo, Wisconsin residents contributed $36.1 million last year to the overall marijuana tax collected by Illinois.
That’s based on data from 36 dispensaries located in five of the six counties bordering Wisconsin. Jo Daviess, Lake, McHenry, Winnebago and Boone counties have dispensaries, while Stephenson County does not.
Among the five counties with dispensaries, a total of $319.4 million in sales was generated. The report concludes $132.4 million, or 41.5%, of these sales were made to out-of-state residents.
“It’s concerning that yeah, revenue is leaving the state both tax wise and tourism dollars without being a state that is looked at as recreational marijuana, we’re losing some tourism there,” Selthofner said.
Michigan collects nearly $6 million in taxes from Wisconsin residents
On the other side of the state, Michigan is making money off Wisconsin residents.
The most recent data from 2024 shows the state with 854 retailers and microbusinesses licensed to sell cannabis. Of those licensees, 22 were located in counties bordering Wisconsin: Gogebic, Iron, Dickinson and Menominee.
The report states, “Assuming that each retailer/microbusiness makes an equal amount of sales,” those businesses in the Upper Peninsula brought in $85.4 million. Using the same estimate as Illinois, 41.5% of sales came from Wisconsin residents, translating into $5.8 million in tax revenue collected.
Minnesota is also mentioned in the report. The state began legalized cannabis sales in September 2025, but so far there is no data on taxes paid by Wisconsin residents.
Gubernatorial candidates weigh in on legalization
If Wisconsin makes changes, it’s likely to be next year after the November election.
Republican candidate for governor Tom Tiffany said he is open to medical marijuana and supporting veterans.
“I think in particular we should look out for our veterans. I’ve heard from so many veterans that suffer from PTSD and I’m very open to that as well as medicinal. I think we just work our way through it and get to a good spot in regards to marijuana,” Tiffany said.
Among the Democrats running for governor, at least seven have come out supporting efforts to legalize marijuana, aligning with the state party platform.
“A lot of people look at it as the wild west right now here in Wisconsin, it’s not. It’s the wild Wisconsin and what Wisconsin is going to do is it’s going to show the rest of the country how innovative a state can really be on cannabis,” Selthofner said.
Twenty-four states, along with the District of Columbia, legalize recreational marijuana, and 40 total legalize medical marijuana. The most recent additions are Ohio, Minnesota and Missouri.
Copyright 2026 WBAY. All rights reserved.
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