Why Owen Foxwell is embracing Badgers' growing pains

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Former South East Melbourne Phoenix NBL guard Owen Foxwell led the Wisconsin Badgers to their first win of the 2026-27 NCAA Division I men's season but conceded, "We know we have a lot of things to work on."

Point guard Foxwell, 23, started, played 34 minutes and had 14 points and seven assists on his college debut as the Badgers beat Denver 75-68 in front of 13,518 at the Kohl Center in Madison.

"I think that's normal," Foxwell said after the Badgers led by 14 at the half but didn't put Denver away in the second, being outscored 38-31.

"I think you get into a real game and you see things that you may not have seen over the last four months, like a little bit of adversity.

"I think that's good for a new group. We talked about that in the locker room just now: a little bit of adversity to see how we bounce off the canvas when things aren't going right.

"For sure, I think early on in the season there's going to be things that you need to work on.

"Even all the way through until the end of the year, we're probably never going to be a finished product. You never want to be.

"We're looking forward to getting better, and we know we have a lot of things to work on."

Foxwell shot 6-for-12, with one three, though he went 1-for-5 at the charity stripe, while the Badgers shot just 7-for-18 from the line.

"We've just got to make our free throws," Foxwell added.

"We know we can make them. I shot one of five. That's uncharacteristic for me. I can't be missing that many free throws.

"That's part of the game that we let slip. If we make our free throws, we probably put them away in that first half, and the game's over.

"Maybe after this I'll go make 100, and then we'll be good for next game."

Foxwell set the tone early, assisting Eian Elmer's opening layup, and then scored 13 points in a burst either side of half-time: three driving layups in 90 seconds, a three with 41 seconds left in the first half that made it 44-28, and two more layups to start the second half that pushed the lead to 51-34. Denver never led.

When Denver cut the lead to 56-48, Foxwell set up three straight Wisconsin baskets, two for Braeden Carrington and one for fellow Australian Austin Rapp, to make it 65-54 with 5:40 left.

"I think as we play more games, I'll learn a lot more about my teammates as far as their tendencies in games," Foxwell added.

"But it's more about the trust. I have complete trust in all my teammates and what they can do on the floor.

"I'm trying to facilitate and do what I can to get them the best looks, get myself the best looks and, at the end of the day, win the basketball game.

"Like I said before, we've got a lot of stuff to work on, and that's the same for me. I didn't particularly think I played well tonight.

"I think that's also going to take time. Multiple games, seeing different coverages, seeing different athletes and seeing my teammates in different situations as well is going to be huge for me and my development throughout the year."

Other Aussies with NBL connections

Former Melbourne United guard Campbell Blogg had the most productive night of the rest, with nine points, four rebounds and four assists in just 12 minutes off the bench as Northern Colorado beat Colorado College 117-64.

Ole Miss senior Ben Henshall, who played three NBL seasons with the Perth Wildcats, scored five points and added two assists in 17 minutes, going 3-for-3 at the line, as the Rebels beat Alcorn State 99-58. Former Sydney Kings forward Goc Malual had four points, five rebounds, a steal and a block in 16 minutes off the bench for Colorado in a 94-59 win over Abilene Christian.

Two others did not play. Washington freshman Tristan Devers, released by the Brisbane Bullets after three seasons, stayed on the bench as the Huskies beat Colgate 90-76.

Hawai'i sophomore Lueth Awan, who has come through the Sydney Kings, also did not play in the Rainbow Warriors' 74-73 win over Seattle U.