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Key takeaways from the Indiana basketball 76-64 loss to Wisconsin

Indiana basketball falls to Wisconsin on Tuesday night in disappointing fashion — trailing for all 40 minutes.

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Indiana basketball falls to Wisconsin on Tuesday night in disappointing fashion -- trailing for all 40 minutes. ( Dani Meersman/Indiana Athletics)

Indiana basketball fell to Wisconsin in Tuesday night, 76-64, but the score was not indicative of how lopsided the game was.

Indiana never had a lead while it was down by 20 points for the majority of the night.

Here’s a look at the key takeaways from IU’s loss to Wisconsin.

Can’t spot a team 20 points: It doesn’t matter who you are, who you’re playing and where you’re playing — no team can spot the other 20 points at any point, especially midway though the first half. Indiana saw an early 26-4 deficit at the 9:15 mark and before that, it was a 19-2 lead in the first five minutes. After that, Indiana settled in and continued to fight and battle — but it didn’t matter. Wisconsin came out the higher energy team, better coached team and the only team that seemed to have any sort of game plan in place. It was a horrendous start that had the Hoosiers battling uphill all night. Despite cutting the lead to 12 at the half, it quickly ballooned to 20 again and stayed there for most of the second half — a result of all the energy needed in the first half to maintain some sort of striking distance.

Abysmal 3pt defense … due to lack of communication: Wisconsin came in averaging 10 made 3s a game and the Badgers knocked in nine in the first half, including four in the first five minutes. IU’s lack of communication was on full display, whether it was in half court sets of in transition. Numerous of Wisconsin’s first-half 3s were wide open and uncontested. Indiana was slow moving on switches, slow contesting jump shots and slow on hedges or running shooters off of the three-point line. The scout on the Badgers revolved around their ability to shoot 3s, hitting 36 percent on the year and with 12 games this year of more than 10 made 3s. The Badgers finished 12-of-29 from three, outscoring Indiana by 15 and shooting almost 20 percent better from three.

Bryson Tucker’s minutes: There was one clear positive and it was the time that freshman wing Bryson Tucker was on the floor. After three straight DNPs and then just four minutes against Purdue, Tucker saw 13 first half minutes en route to 24 for the game and was a reason why the score was as ‘respectable’ as it was in the first half. He hit two of the four 3s before halftime and had a few hustle plays with offensive rebounds to keep possessions going. While he still has his freshman moments, Tucker has the talent to compete offensively and, even better, create shots for himself. He’s terrific with the ball in his hands and finding ways to get his shot off, something a lot of the other wings for Indiana basketball can’t do. He’s also showing an increased ability cutting off the ball. He’s going to be inconsistent as most freshmen are, but IU needs to let him play through those moments because the potential is clearly there — he just needs the minutes. He finished with nine points and six rebounds.

At some point, these opportunities are just that and nothing more: Indiana basketball came into this difficult stretch with numerous opportunities to find some notable, resume wins and have come away empty. Lack of execution gave IU losses to Maryland and Purdue. And then a terrible performance against Wisconsin gave Indiana another loss. There are still four quad 1 games in a row and six total, but at some point it’s a moot point …  because Indiana can’t find a way to grab a quality win. While it continues to be the discussion, and there seemed to be some glimmer of hope based on how IU had played in the last few games, Tuesday’s loss was a major, major step back for Indiana. And now those “opportunities” are quickly disappearing.

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Alec Lasley is the owner of Hoosier Illustrated, a comprehensive site covering news, updates and recruiting for Indiana University athletics. Alec has covered Indiana for six years and is a credentialed media member. He has previously worked for both Rivals and 247Sports.

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