The Wisconsin Badgers return to the Kohl Center to take on the Central Michigan Chippewas. Tip-off is at 7:00 PM on the Big Ten Network, and the Badgers are 30.5-point favorites.
The Badgers dropped a tough one last Friday in Milwaukee, falling to the Villanova Wildcats 76-66 in overtime. Wisconsin found themselves down 15 in the second half before mounting a rally to tie the game up in the final minute. Unfortunately, the Wildcats outscored the Badgers 20-10 in the extra period. Of the Badgers’ losses
so far, this one hurt the most.
What should Badger fans know about the Central Michigan Chippewas?
Opponent Preview
The Chippewas are 4-8 in their first season under longtime Ferris State head coach Andy Bronkema and bring in an entirely new 15-man roster. Like Wisconsin, Central Michigan is also coming off a painful loss. The Chippewas held a 20-point second-half lead at Northern Illinois on Saturday before falling 74-73 on a tip-in at the buzzer.
Central Michigan leads the Mid-American conference with 4.33 blocked shots per game and allows 77.1 points per game. However, the Chippewas rank 11th out of 13 MAC teams with 73.4 points per game.
Seven-foot center Nathan Claerbaut leads Central Michigan with 13.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game. The Ferris State transfer had his best game back on December 17th against Division II Olivet, where he scored 31 points and gathered 12 rebounds. It was Claerbaut’s third double-double of the season.
The Chippewas will start two guards who can run the point. Wayne State transfer guard Tamario Adley leads Central Michigan with 1.4 steals per game while averaging 10 points, while Michigan transfer Phat Phat Brooks leads the Chippewas with 3.7 assists per game. At the third guard spot is Jaxson Whitaker, whose 35 percent three-point shooting percentage is tops on the team.
At the second forward spot is Nick Mullen, who averages 8.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game. He is second on the team behind Claerbaut with 1.3 blocks per game.
Score Prediction
This Badgers team needs to get back on track, and a MAC team with a losing record just might be what the doctor ordered. We saw after last Friday’s loss how frustrated Greg Gard’s team was with how the season has recently played out.
I have a strong feeling that we will see an angry Badgers squad return to the Kohl Center and dominate a team that ranks 277th in KenPom’s offensive efficiency and 343rd in defensive efficiency.
Prediction: Wisconsin 93-69.
