No. 6 Wisconsin rebounded from a disappointing weekend to hammer Penn State 6-0 Friday night and move to within a point of first place in the Big Ten.

The Badgers dropped a pair of games to Ohio State a week ago on the road, including one in overtime. But they would not suffer a similar fate against the Nittany Lions.

Coach Mike Hastings’ club jumped on the home team from the start, getting a pair of goals in the first period. That included William Whitelaw finding the back of the net 6:11 into the game before Cruz Lucius doubled the lead with a power-play goal.

Wisconsin kept the pressure on in the second with two more goals. Mathieu De St. Phalle got the first, while Lucius scored again, giving him a team-leading 12 on the season at that point. Another two goals would follow in the third, as De St. Phalle picked up his second and Carson Battle netted his 12th to match Lucius for the most on the year.

David Sylie had three assists, while Ben Dexheimer had two.

Goaltender Kyle McClellan stopped all 27 shots he faced for his seventh shutout of the season.

The win pushed the Badgers to just a point back of the top spot in the Big Ten after Michigan State lost to the Buckeyes on Friday. It means no matter what happens for either team on Saturday, the conference title will be decided when the Spartans come to Madison next weekend for the final series of the season.