Heading into the Big Ten Tournament, the Wisconsin Badgers have all but locked up an NCAA Tournament berth, with them currently projected as a No. 6 seed one week out.
Wisconsin has done well to revitalize its stock this season after it was on the outside looking in with some Bracketology projections following an up-and-down start to the season. Following a blowout loss to Purdue at home in early January, the Badgers were 10-5, needing a major spark to save their season.
And boy, did it come. Wisconsin
snapped into shape, beating the Michigan Wolverines 91-88 on the road in what has remained the best win in college basketball so far this season. From the Purdue loss, Wisconsin has gone 13-4 with wins over Michigan (then No. 2), Illinois (then No. 8), Michigan State (then No. 10), and Purdue (then No. 15).
On Thursday, the Badgers improved to 23-9 with an 85-82 win over the Washington Huskies to kick off their Big Ten Tournament. The win advances them to the quarterfinals on Friday, when they’ll take on the Illinois Fighting Illini at 1:30 p.m.
Wisconsin is well-accustomed to runs in the Big Ten Tournament. In each of the past two years, the Badgers were a No. 5 seed and made it all the way to the Championship Game, beating the No. 4 and No. 1 seeds along the way.
Wisconsin is a No. 5 seed again this year, and they’re moving along after the win over Washington, which classifies as a Quad 2 win in the NET rankings. Tomorrow’s game with Illinois and any further game will almost certainly be a Quad 1A opportunity, providing the Badgers one more chance to boost their resume before Selection Sunday.
While it’s always unclear how much conference tournament wins ultimately impact seeding, the Badgers have several opportunities to show the type of team they can be this weekend, with Illinois being the first test.
Currently, they’re hovering around the six-seed line, which is one of their highest rankings of the season, and are in the AP Top 25 at No. 23. Could they see a jump in seeding with a strong showing at the Big Ten Tournament this weekend?
If they do go on a run, it’ll be against most odds. The Badgers are 8.5-point underdogs against the Illini on Friday, and they’ll probably be an even bigger underdog if they face Michigan on Saturday. But a win (or even two) will continue to bump them up in KenPom and other predictive metrics.
Wisconsin’s offense is already up to No. 11 in KenPom, and they’ve now cracked the top 25 teams. Let’s see what happens on Saturday.
