Wisconsin used a big second-half run to pull away from Rutgers for a 78-66 win Thursday night at the Kohl Center.

The Badgers trailed 47-40 with 14:35 left when they ripped off a 19-2 run to take control. That included nine points from Kamari McGee in his first game since January, while Steven Crowl had eight points in that stretch. On one possession he corralled four offensive rebounds before eventually getting fouled and sent to the line. He finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds, his sixth double-double of the season but just his second since January 16.

AJ Storr had a game-high 19 points, including one of the dunks of the year to put an exclamation point on just the third win in the last 10 for Wisconsin. John Blackwell gave Wisconsin a big lift off the bench, scoring 17 points, the second-most of his career and just the second time he had been in double figures since Jan. 23.

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Wisconsin’s defense held Rutgers to only .94 points per possession and forced 18 turnovers, including 14 steals. Chucky Hepburn accounted for five of them and Tyler Wahl had four. Hepburn came up with six points and six assists on the night, with Wahl giving the team three points and six rebounds in his final home game.

The win pushed the Badgers to 19-11 on the year and 11-8 in Big Ten play. That left them in a tie with Nebraska and Northwestern for third in the conference and in position to claim a coveted double bye at the Big Ten Tournament next week in Minneapolis.

Wisconsin will close out the regular season at Purdue on Sunday.