No. 6 Wisconsin responded to its first Big Ten loss of the year with an overwhelming effort in a it-wasn’t-as-close-as-the-score-indicates 71-59 win over No. 21 Minnesota on Thursday night at the Kohl Center.

Player of the Game: Micah Potter

Wisconsin forced the ball into the paint early and Potter was the biggest beneficiary. He scored 10 of his 18 points and grabbed nine of his 11 rebounds in the first half as the Badgers took a 7-point lead at the break. All but three of his shots came from inside the 3-point line as Wisconsin outscored the Gophers 40-18 in the paint.

As a team, the Badgers shot 50.8% from the field, including 65.4% in the second half.

The good: The defense

Three days after a disastrous second-half performance against Maryland on the defensive end of the floor, the Badgers held Minnesota to its lowest point total of the year. The Gophers shot just 31.3% from the floor, the second-worst they’ve been this year, and only 7-for-31 (22.6%) on 3-pointers, which was the lowest in conference play.

Guard Marcus Carr came into the game averaging 24.0 points per game but Wisconsin held him to just 10 points on 3-for-13 shooting. His first points in the second half didn’t come until there was just 2:22 left.

The not so good: Defensive rebounding

Wisconsin won by double digits and dominated the second half, but it could have been even more if the Badgers kept Minnesota off the offensive glass. The Gophers finished with 16 offensive rebounds and it led to 19 second-chance points.

Stat of the Game: +24

Wisconsin was that many points better than Minnesota when guard D’Mitrik Trice was on the floor. He finished with 14 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals. The senior was also the main defender on Carr for much of the night.

In Case You Missed It

— Wisconsin was without freshman Ben Carlson again due to what the team is calling an upper body injury. The forward hasn’t played since Dec. 15 and has seen the floor for just 4 minutes since Dec. 4.

— Aleem Ford had 14 points and has now scored in double figures in five straight games, the longest streak in his career. In that streak he’s averaged 12.4 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.

What’s next?

Wisconsin (9-2, 3-1) will hit the road on Sunday to face Penn State (3-4, 0-3)