The Wisconsin Herd’s 2025-26 season home opener was spoiled by the Windy City Bulls 127-114 Nov. 11 at the Oshkosh Arena.
Guards Stephen Thompson and Cormac Ryan led the way for the Herd (0-2) both scoring 17 points while forward Alex Antetokounmpo came in a close second with 15 points of his own, he additionally grabbed four rebounds. Cormac only played in 16 minutes and didn’t finish the game due to an ankle injury.
Another notable performance for the Herd came from guard Johnny Davis. Davis wrapped the game up with 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
The Herd had seven different double-digit scorers in the contest but were no match for Bulls forward Noa Essengue who scored 28 points and the seven other double-digit scorers on the team.
From 3-point range, Wisconsin was outmatched shooting merely 28.6% compared to Windy City’s 34.5%. As a whole, the Bulls shot 48.9% from the field whereas the Herd finished the game with a team shooting percentage of 41.4%.
Ryan paced the Herd in the first quarter with nine points, three rebounds and an assist, but newly donned Herd player Victor Oladipo got the scoring going with five straight points for the Herd to open the game.
Essengue and forward Mouhamadou Gueye brought the energy for Windy City (2-0) in the first quarter. Essengue provided 14 points, going 5-for-8 from the field and 2-for-3 from the 3-point line along with a made free throw. Gueye delivered seven points and two rebounds for the Bulls.
Regardless of having more turnovers than the Herd in the quarter, the Bulls went into the second leading 30-26.
Windy City’s Caleb Grill brought a spark off the bench in the second quarter by hitting two 3-pointers in his first two minutes on the court to accompany Essengue tacking on another nine points. An 8-0 run by Ryan and the Herd wasn’t enough to close the gap as Windy City fended it off and headed into half leading 71-65.
In the third quarter, the Bulls outscored the Herd 29-22. Emanuel Miller found rhythm in the quarter, scoring seven of his 13 points for the Bulls, while tacking on three rebounds and an assist. For the Herd it was a collective effort that quarter with no player amassing over six points.
As for the fourth and final quarter of the game, Wisconsin was able to keep pace with the Bulls in terms of scoring but it wasn’t enough to secure the comeback and sneak away with a victory.
The Herd’s participation in the NBA G League Tip-Off Tournament journey continues Nov. 14 against the Cleveland Charge at the Public Auditorium in Cleveland at 6 p.m.
