Boyd and Winter lead No. 24 Wisconsin past Iowa, 84-71

Iowa forward Alvaro Folgueiras (7) scores against Wisconsin forward Nolan Winter, center, and Wisconsin forward Austin Rapp, right, during the first half of an NCAA basketball game Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Kayla Wolf)

JIM HOEHN | Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Nick Boyd scored 27 points and Nolan Winter added 18 as No. 24 Wisconsin pulled away late for an 84-71 victory over Iowa on Sunday.

Bennett Stirtz’s layup trimmed Iowa’s deficit to 68-65, but Austin Rapp hit a pair of 3-pointers to fuel a 10-point Wisconsin run. Boyd’s layup put the Badgers ahead 78-65 with just under four minutes remaining.

John Blackwell hit four free throws after a deadball technical foul to extend the lead to 82-69 with 1:02 left.

Rapp scored 14 points and Blackwell had 13 for Wisconsin (19-8, 11-5 Big Ten), which bounced back from an 86-69 loss at Ohio State.

Stirtz had 23 points for Iowa (19-8, 9-7), which was coming off a 57-52 win at home over No. 9 Nebraska. Alvaro Folgueiras and Tate Sage scored 11 apiece.

Wisconsin shot 53.8%, including 10 of 24 beyond the arc. The Badgers hit 18 of 20 free throws, including 14 of 15 in the second half. Boyd shot 9 of 16 and Winter 8 of 11.

Stirtz opened the second half with a 3 to put Iowa up 44-41, but Wisconsin answered with an 11-0 run, going in front 51-44 on Boyd’s driving layup.

Andrew Rohde’s 3-pointer put the Badgers in front 64-57, but Stirtz hit a jumper and followed with a steal and layup to make it 64-61.

Wisconsin, which trailed by nine early, was within 41-40 at halftime despite Blackwell being limited to 10 scoreless minutes with two fouls.

Boyd and Winter combined for 29 of Wisconsin’s first-half points, making 11 of 16 shots, while the rest of the team was 4 for 12.

HEAR FROM IOWA HEAD COACH BEN MCCOLLUM
“I didn’t think we did a very good job defensively, and honestly, I thought we were really poor at executing a lot of our stuff, but part of that had to do with just Wisconsin and what they do offensively. I was disappointed in our transition defense and disappointed in our ball screen coverage. Offense was actually fine, but then we started pressing in that second half from an offensive perspective. That’s where those low percentages come in, you just kind of press because you’re not getting stops consistently. So, you know, you have to be better than that to beat them here, and we weren’t.”

IOWA GAME NOTES

The Hawkeyes dropped an 84-71 road decision at No. 24/25 Wisconsin on Sunday afternoon at the Kohl Center.
The Badgers used a 10-0 run over a two-minute stretch late in the second half, turning a three-point lead to 78-65 with 3:57 left.
The loss drops Iowa’s record to 1-6 against ranked opponents this season.
Iowa had four players finish in double figures: Bennett Stirtz (23), Tate Sage (11), Alvaro Folgueiras (11), Tavion Banks (10)
- Stirtz scored 20+ points for the ninth time in the last 10 games and for the 16th time this season (11 in Big Ten play). He finished 9-of-16 from the floor with three 3-point field goals.
- He played all 40 minutes for the second straight game and for the 11th time this season.
Sage landed in double figures for the sixth time this season and for the first time since Jan. 20.
- He went 3-of-7 from the field and 4-of-6 from the free throw line.
Folgueiras finished in double digits for the 12th time. It’s the first time Iowa has lost this season when he has been in double figures.
Wisconsin shot 53.8 percent from the field and made 10 3-pointers en route to 84 points.
- The Badgers are the second team this season to score above their season scoring average against Iowa.
The Badgers used an 11-0 run over a 2 1/2 minute stretch early in the second half to take a 51-44 lead.
Iowa and Wisconsin finished tied with 29 boards apiece.
Wisconsin went 18-of-20 from the free throw line; Iowa was 8-of-11.
Iowa opened the game by making eight of its first 11 shots, including three 3-pointers to take a 19-11 lead at the 13:44 mark. Wisconsin followed with a 10-0 and 13-2 run to take a 24:21 lead at the 9:17 mark.
- The Hawkeyes shot 56 percent (14-of-25) in the opening 20 minutes; Wisconsin was 53.6 percent (15-of-28).