The Wisconsin Badgers were picked to finish near the bottom of the pack in the preseason Big Ten Women’s basketball poll, but that does not mean the Badgers are devoid of talent.

In their 78-55 win over St. Thomas on Wednesday at Schoenecker Arena, St. Thomas coach Ruth Sinn saw a few players dressed in red who she certainly could put on her wish list this holiday season.

A physical, 6-foot-4 center who impacts both ends of the floor? The Badgers have one in sophomore Serah Williams, who finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds — including nine on the offensive glass.

A veteran 6-foot guard who plays tough defense, can nail the 3-point shot and drive the basket? The Badgers have one in senior Brooke Schramek, who had 15 points and was 3 of 4 from 3.

Finally, how about a precocious guard who has the looks of a star in the making? D’Yanis Jimenez, who fits that bill for the Badgers, dazzled at times with 20 points.

The teams met last December in Madison, with the Badgers coming out on top, 72-64. Wisconsin (6-4, 0-1 Big Ten) came into Wednesday’s game having lost two in a row while the Tommies (5-6) had won two in a row.

St. Thomas center Jo Langbehn, who led the Tommies with 14 points but also fouled out, said the Tommies’ confidence was high coming in.

“This was a big opportunity for us,” Langbehn said. “We were all hyped. The past three days we were all talking about how we wanted to win this game, our third game in a row. That’s what sucks; we had this game.

“We’re a more talented team, I feel. They just outhustled us.”

Williams was the true difference-maker in the game.

“We went against her last year and Jo did a good job against her,” Sinn said. “Unfortunately, Jo was in a little bit of foul trouble, and that makes a big difference. But (Williams) does a really nice job, especially on the offensive glass.

“If we could have done a little bit better on her second shot. We know her first shot doesn’t always go in. I don’t know if we did the best job on the offensive glass with her.”

The teams traded baskets for most of the first quarter, with the lead changing nine times. But the Badgers went on a 5-0 run at the end of the quarter to take a 21-16 lead into the second quarter.

Wisconsin’s lead grew to 36-19 midway through the second quarter, and the Badgers took a 42-29 advantage into halftime.

The Tommies trimmed their deficit to eight at 44-36 with six minutes to play in the third quarter. But the Badgers went on another run and led 57-42 heading into the final quarter.

Wisconsin’s lead ballooned to 22 points at 64-42 early in the fourth quarter.

“The first quarter we were going punch for punch,” Sinn said. “Then all of a sudden they had a 15-0 run. The thing with this game is you can’t get into a 15-0 run. So, we talked as a group, give Wisconsin a lot of credit.

“They got after us on the offensive boards. Defensively, they had hands all over and got a lot of steals and caused turnovers. If we could have eliminated those things, maybe it would have been a different outcome.”

The Tommies will look to rebound in a nonconference game against Wisconsin-Stevens Point on Saturday before starting Summit League play.

“The takeaway for me as a coach is that I saw moments,” Sinn said. “Now, how can we get the consistency to have moment-to-moment, so we don’t have the lapses that we saw in the game.”

Briefly

Former Como Park High School guard Ronnie Porter, the 2022 Pioneer Press East Metro Player of the Year, started for the Badgers and contributed 5 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists.