5 takeaways from Wisconsin football’s 38-21 loss to No. 16 USC

LOS ANGELES – The magic was gone for the Wisconsin football team in the second half Saturday.

Unable to generate much offense or make significant stops during the third and fourth quarters, the Badgers‘ chance of upsetting No. 16 USC in their Big Ten opener fell by the wayside in front of 74,118 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

UW lost, 38-21, allowing 28 unanswered points in the second half.

The Badgers were outgained 469-285 for the game. The numbers were 205-82 in the second half.

Sophomore Braedyn Locke completed 13 of 26 passes for 180 yards, one touchdown and one interception in his first start of the season. Senior running back Tawee Walker ran for 55 yards on 12 carries and scored twice. Junior Vinny Anthony had a team-high 70 yards and caught his first collegiate touchdown on a 63-yard play in the first quarter.

Here are five takeaways from the game.

The Badgers’ inability to make third down stops proved costly

Wisconsin’s defense set up the third-and-long situations that usually help a unit wreck havoc on offenses. The Badgers, however, couldn’t finish the job.

USC scored two third quarter touchdows. Its success on third down was critical to getting those points. The Trojans converted five straight third downs when the averaged needed for a first down was 8.4 yards.

USC gained an average of 14 yards on those plays. That included a 32-yard gain from quarterback Miller Moss to Duce Robinson on third and 7 to set up a first down at the 11 and touchdowns of 6 yards to Ja’Kobi Lane and 8 yards to Robinson.

That success helped USC turn a 21-10 deficit at the half into a 24-21 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Replay:Wisconsin vs USC football score, live game updates, highlights

Badgers’ margin for error too slim to overcome turnover

Wisconsin won the turnover battle, 3-2. It turns out the Badgers couldn’t even afford that one.

Tyrell Henry’s muffed punt came after the Badgers forced USC to go three and out on the first possession of the second half and gave the Trojans a first down at the Badgers’ 30.

USC turned the short field into a nine-play, 30-yard drive that ended with Miller’s touchdown pass to Lane.

More:Wisconsin-USC football history: All-times series record between Badgers, Trojans

Testing Trojans defense plays dividends

Attacking a defense vertically doesn’t always pay off, but UW showed the value of it against the Trojans.

The Badgers were aggressive twice during the first half. The first time resulted in a 63-yard touchdown pass from Locke to Anthony.

In the second quarter Locke found Bryson Green blanketed by DeCarlos Nicholson but managed to complete a 35-yard reception that led to a 4-yard touchdown run by Walker that gave the Badgers a 21-10 edge with 6:29 left in the first half.

Atticus Bertrams flips the field

One of the MVPs of the first half was sophomore punter Atticus Bertrams, who punted three times for 150 yards during the first two quarters. Twice he flipped the field.

In the first quarter his 74-yard punt pinned USC at its 1-yard line. The shift in field position forced the Trojans to drive the length of the field and the Badgers ultimately ended the threat with an interception by Preston Zachman at the UW 25.

And early in the second quarter, Bertrams hit a 39-yard punt that took a wicked bounce and was muffed by Zachariah Branch. Anthony recovered the ball at the USC 18. On the next play Walker scored on an 18-yard run that following the extra point gave the Badgers a 14-7 edge with 14:44 to go in the half.

Wisconsin closes first half strong

We saw in the Alabama game how the complexion of a game can turn during the final minutes of the half when the Crimson Tide completed two long plays to score a touchdown that gave it a 14-3 edge.

This week UW won the final 4 minutes of the half when Leon Lowery’s pressure caused Moss to fumble. Badger Ben Barten recovered the ball to end a Trojans drive that was on the verge of reaching the red zone.

Instead, the Badgers took over with 3 ½ minutes left in the half. They didn’t score, but took 2:19 off the clock before Bertrams hit a 32-yard punt that was fair caught at the 7.

USC had 71 seconds to work with before the half but couldn’t past 36-yard-line before time ran out. Lowery’s forced fumble was one of three turnovers forced by Wisconsin in the first half. It had just two during the first three games.