MADISON — The Wisconsin women’s basketball team is 2-2 on the season after splitting a pair of home games against Rutgers and North Dakota.

The Badgers struggled to maintain control of the ball against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights Dec. 11, committing 27 turnovers en route to a 70-65 defeat. Wisconsin had led by one point at halftime, but Rutgers held a 10-point advantage with 3:45 to play in the fourth quarter.

Monroe graduate Sydney Hilliard, a guard, led the Badgers with 22 points on 7 of 9 shooting from the field in the contest. She was 8 of 12 from the free throw line and added 3 rebounds and 4 assists, along with 9 turnovers. Imani Lewis had 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Badgers, while Edgewood graduate Estella Moschkau had 13 points.

Rutgers had four players in double figures, with Zipporah Broughton leading the way with 18.

On Dec. 13, the Badgers dominated North Dakota, winning 80-60. The Badgers took a 41-30 lead into the locker room at halftime, and pushed the advantage to 61-42 after the third quarter

Hilliard led her team in scoring again with 18 points. She has led the team in score in each of the four games this season, and is averaging 24 points per contest. She’s also the team leader in field goals (36), field goal percentage (62.0), free throws made (15), free throws attempted (21) and assists (20).

Next up for the Badgers are Valparaiso (Dec. 20), then Nebraska at Omaha (Dec. 22) and Michigan (Dec. 31). Wisconsin coach Jonathan Tsipis tweeted Dec. 9 that the team has open dates Dec. 14, 15 and 17, and said that the school was actively looking to fill those dates. The Badgers have had two games canceled already this season due to COVID-19, the original Nov. 25 season opener against Miami of Ohio, and a Dec. 8 matchup against Prairie View A&M.