Blackwell, Tonje lead No. 19 Wisconsin over UCF

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. (AP) — John Blackwell scored 17 points, John Tonje added 15 and No. 19 Wisconsin rode a hot start to an 86-70 victory over UCF in the Greenbrier Tip-Off on Friday night.

Kamari McGee added 14 points while Nolan Winter had 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Badgers (6-0), who are off to their best start in six seasons.

Jordan Ivy-Curry led UCF (4-1) with 13 points, and Keyshawn Hall and Dior Johnson scored 11 apiece.

Both teams played for the first time outside of their respective campuses. The game was held inside a ballroom at The Greenbrier resort, which has hosted presidents and royalty.

Takeaways

Wisconsin: Despite being outscored 26-12 from the free-throw line, the Badgers looked dominant from the start four days after a shaky 87-84 comeback win over UT Rio Grande Valley.

UCF: The Knights shot 29% (10 of 34) from the floor in the first half, missing all nine 3-point attempts, and fell into a hole they couldn't recover from. UCF shot 34% (21 of 62) for the game.

Key moment

Wisconsin 7-footer Steven Crowl picked up his fourth foul seconds into the second half, and UCF trimmed a 22-point deficit to 13. But Winter made a hook shot in the lane and a 3-pointer on back-to-back possessions, and Tonje followed with a fast-break layup to push Wisconsin’s lead to 53-33. UCF got no closer than 15 after that.

Key stat

Wisconsin made 11 layups over the first 13 minutes of the game and eventually built a 42-20 lead. Tonje was mostly an observer early and didn't score his first basket until 12 minutes had passed.

Up next

Wisconsin plays Pittsburgh in the championship game on Sunday, while UCF faces LSU in the consolation game the same day.

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