Trevon Hughes scored 16 points to help No. 23 Wisconsin knock off No. 15 Ohio State 65-43 in both teams' Big Ten opener on Thursday.
Wisconsin (11-2) won easily despite a quiet first half from leading scorer Jon Leuer, who played only 4 minutes in the first half after picking up a pair of fouls and committing a turnover early on. Leuer's play has been one of the most pleasant surprises of the Badgers' season to date.
Leuer was back on the floor after halftime, when he scored all 11 of his points.
William Buford scored 14 points to lead Ohio State (10-3), but appeared to hurt his leg in the second half.
It was the first step in a punishing opening stretch to Big Ten play for the Buckeyes, who are still without star Evan Turner because of a back injury and must play four of their first five conference games on the road.
Hughes also led the Badgers with seven rebounds, while Jordan Taylor added 12 points.
Wisconsin's defense held Jon Diebler to eight points and David Lighty to 10 points, and both players shot 2 for 7 from the floor.
Diebler and Lighty are the Buckeyes' top scorers behind Turner. Lighty had a career-high 30 points in Ohio State's Dec. 22 win over Cleveland State.
Leuer immediately made his presence known in the second half, hitting a 3-pointer on the Badgers' first possession.
He went on to score 11 points during Wisconsin's 16-5 run in the first 8 minutes of the second half.
With Ohio State trailing by double digits in the second half, Buford appeared to be favoring his right leg when he left the game with 7:13 remaining.
Ohio State stumbled through a scoreless streak of nearly five minutes in the first half, falling behind 28-12 after the Badgers went on a 14-0 run that included 3-pointers by Hughes, Rob Wilson and Keaton Nankivil on three straight possessions.
But the Buckeyes ended the half on an 8-2 run to cut the Badgers' lead to 34-25 at the break.
Ohio State shot 8 for 21 from the floor in the first half.
