On Wednesday, senior Jolene Anderson?s 18 points began her tenure as Wisconsin?s all-time scoring record holder, and the Wisconsin women?s basketball team played one of its best games of the season, routing the Indiana Hoosiers 81-31 at the Kohl Center.

In an important game for Wisconsin?s NCAA Tournament hopes, the Badgers outplayed the Hoosiers in nearly every offensive category en route to the 30-point victory.

The Badgers jumped to an early lead before blowing the game wide open, opening the game on a 17-2 run before the Hoosiers began to cut away at the deficit.

Though the Hoosiers began to finish inside, Wisconsin?s balanced scoring attack was too much for Indiana to handle. The Badgers had three players scoring in double digits, led by Anderson?s 18 points.

?[Balanced scoring] is something we are really going to need,? Wisconsin head coach Lisa Stone said. ?It is a short turnaround. Our team is playing three games in four-and-a-half days and we showed some courage; I don?t think we showed fatigue, I don?t think. I thought we were crisp.?

Wisconsin also played fantastic defense, notching 12 steals, nine blocks and forcing 24 Hoosier turnovers. A team focused on the defensive side of the ball, Wisconsin played aggressively and contained most of Indiana?s outside shooters.

?I thought the defense was the key to our start,? Stone said. ?I knew we had to have a good start, and I thought we did a really, really good job switching on screens and getting outside to shooters.?

With a tall lineup in for most of the game, Indiana was unable to grab rebounds over the Wisconsin height advantage. Over the course of the game, the Badgers out-rebounded the Hoosiers 41-24.

?We didn?t attack the basket,? Indiana head coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. ?We certainly didn?t box out tonight, and it?s indicative on the rebounding from 24 to 41. That?s something that we took pride ? our box out and our rebound ? and we did a tremendous job in our last game. I certainly need to watch a little bit more film to find out what really went wrong, and we?re certainly going to make some changes in our team because we don?t take a 30-point loss and not make a difference.?

The Badgers finished their first domination of the Hoosiers with senior Janese Banks? 3-pointer with just under 30 seconds left.

In the second half, the Hoosiers were unable to make necessary adjustments, and the Badgers took advantage of Hoosier turnovers, scoring 26 points off Indiana?s miscues. On the offensive side, the Badgers played smart basketball from start to finish and continued to build on their already double-digit lead.

Throughout the second period, the Badgers found ways to score, and the Wisconsin bench played with confidence, outscoring Indiana?s bench 27-8 in the game. The Badgers built their lead to 32 points before winning the game with a 30-point margin.

?We had tremendous, balanced scoring and great bench production once again,? Stone said. ?Mariah (Dunham), Lin (Zastrow) and Alyssa (Karel) really gave us a lift. ? There?s a lot of good things happening right now and we want to keep it going.?

Sophomore forward Mariah Dunham, along with Anderson and senior forward Danielle Ward, led the Badgers in scoring, combining for 43 of Wisconsin?s 81 points and exhibiting Wisconsin?s ability to score from all parts of the court and from every player on the team.

?We definitely had a lot of confidence especially from the Northwestern game,? sophomore Mariah Dunham said. ?We went out there and just played, and that?s kind of how the game of basketball is. ? The game will come to you.?

With the win, the Badgers move to 7-8 in the Big Ten and continue to make their statement for the NCAA Tournament. With the Big Ten Tournament less than two weeks away, the Badgers are looking to finish the season on a positive note and play with energy and intensity in the remaining games.

?I thought this was by far our most complete game,? Wisconsin head coach Lisa Stone said. ?We came out with a very aggressive approach offensively and defensively. ? I?m excited about where we?re at, and I?m looking forward to the next game.”