In one month, Michigan State altered the Badgers’ season in two very distinct ways. 31 days ago, Wisconsin defeated the Spartans at the Kohl Center, the beginning of a seven-game win streak that enabled them to get back into the NCAA Tournament picture.
After losing to No. 6 Michigan in a shootout last Saturday, the Badgers (6-13-7 overall, 1-8-3 Big Ten) welcome Michigan State (7-20-3, 3-10-1) to the Kohl Center, looking to earn at least another series split with the Spartans.
If you’re reading this column, I assume that you follow the basketball team at least casually. So unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past four weeks, you know that we haven’t lost a game for four weeks (knock on wood). In the basketball world, we call this a winning streak. Most recently, we defeated Maryland, a Big Ten goliath which hasn’t lost on its home court since its inception in the conference two years ago.
The last time Wisconsin went into the Breslin Center and knocked off the Spartans, Bo Ryan was in just his third year as head coach of the Badgers. Needless to say, it’s been awhile. Wisconsin (8-4 Big Ten, 16-9 overall) will take on No. 8 Michigan State () Thursday night at 8 p.m.
The No. 2 Wisconsin Badgers (24-1-1 WCHA, 30-1-1 overall) have already clinched the fifth WCHA conference championship in program history, but the regular season isn’t done yet.
In their penultimate game at the Kohl Center this season, Wisconsin (3-13 Big Ten, 7-18 overall) looked to seek revenge against an Illinois team (2-13, 9-17) whose lone win this conference season came against the Badgers in a close 71-65 game in Urbana-Champaign.
Head swim and dive coach Whitney Hite and his team were ready to head off to Ann Arbor, Mich., earlier this week to participate in the Big Ten Championships.
After battling against each other for Big Ten supremacy for nearly 15 years, Bo Ryan and Tom Izzo could be headed into the Hall of Fame together. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced the 14 finalists for its class of 2016 last Friday, and included among them were Ryan and Izzo.
The Wisconsin Badgers (3-11 Big Ten, 7-17 overall) haven’t won a lot. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t going to try to finish on a strong note. With only two home games remaining, a senior-laden Wisconsin team is staring the end of the season in the face.
Maryland is currently in just its second season as a member of the Big Ten, but the Terrapins already look like they’re destined to become Wisconsin’s newest rival. Wisconsin and Maryland have only squared off 10 times in their history, including thrice since the Terrapins joined the conference, but their meetings over the past two years suggest that some bad blood could be brewing between the two programs (or at the very least, their fan bases). The first matchup between UW and the Terrapins as Big Ten brethren came last February, when Frank Kaminsky and the Badgers made the trip out to College Park in their only meeting of the season. Entering the game, Wisconsin was 13-1 in conference play, ranked fifth in the country and on a 10-game winning streak.
Men’s Basketball The red-hot Wisconsin Badgers (8-4 Big Ten, 16-9 overall) picked up two more wins this past week after taking down Nebraska (6-7, 14-12) Wednesday with a convincing 72-61 victory at the Kohl Center and ending No. 2 Maryland’s (10-3, 22-4) home win streak Saturday with a 70-57 upset at the Xfinity Center.
At a small Catholic high school near Antwerp, Belgium, a 6-foot-10 basketball player took classes heavily based on discussion and conversation.
The last time the Wisconsin women’s hockey team won the WCHA championship was in 2012, a year before this year’s senior class came to Madison.
The Wisconsin softball team ended the Kajikawa Classic with a bang Sunday, defeating UC Riverside by a score of 9-1.
The Wisconsin Badgers tied the Michigan Wolverines 4-4 in a back-and-forth battle Saturday night at the Kohl Center.
Nicole Bauman is ready to return home. After scoring 10 points in the Wisconsin Badgers’ (3-11 Big Ten, 7-17 overall) loss to the Michigan Wolverines Thursday evening, Bauman struggled yet again Sunday afternoon, scoring just eight points in their 67-57 loss to the Indiana Hoosiers (9-5, 17-9). Bauman hit her last basket as time expired in the first quarter and, while the Badgers did not necessarily miss Bauman’s offensive production in the second period, they struggled in the second half, getting outscored by 16 points over the game’s final 20 minutes. For the third-straight game the Badgers went into the break with a lead, but yet again were unable to close the deal. While the Badgers and Hoosiers were tied at 16 after the first period, Wisconsin opened a lead in the second period, holding Indiana to just seven points.
It was a special atmosphere at LaBahn Arena Sunday, as the No. 2 Wisconsin Badgers (24-1-1 WCHA, 30-1-1 overall) paid respect to the eight seniors on the squad who played their last regular season game at LaBahn.
In the Big Ten season opener almost a month and a half ago, the Badgers (3-10 Big Ten, 7-16 overall) hosted Indiana (8-5, 16-9) and earned their first win of the conference season, 73-69.
Wisconsin (3-1) took care of business Saturday, beating Nevada 3-2 and Portland State 13-5 in the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz.
Every time the Maryland Terrapins made a run and got within striking distance Saturday night, Wisconsin seemed to have an answer. As a result, the Badgers picked up their seventh win in a row and the biggest boost yet to their blossoming NCAA Tournament résumé. Wisconsin (8-4 Big Ten, 16-9 overall) upended No. 2 Maryland (10-3, 22-4) 70-57 on the road, snapping the Terrapins’ 27-game home winning streak and handing them their first conference home loss as a member of the Big Ten. Junior forward Vitto Brown scored a career-high 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds, while junior guard Bronson Koenig added 16 points and six rebounds in UW’s victory.
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