Wisconsin basketball faces one of their toughest tests of the season, traveling to Milwaukee to take on No. 5 Marquette. Read below for a full Wisconsin vs Marquette prediction and preview.
General Information:
Teams: Wisconsin (8-1) and Marquette (8-1)
Tip-off: 12:30 p.m. CST
Where to watch: FOX
Latest on Marquette basketball:
Marquette is coming off their first loss of the season against No. 6 Iowa State. They struggled from the field, going just 27-for-70 (39%).
Marquette’s one high-caliber win this season came on Nov. 19 against No. 6 Purdue (76-58). Maryland gave the Golden Eagles some trouble on the road in mid-November, but Marquette was still able to come away with a four-point win. Every other game has been a decisive victory for Marquette.
The Golden Eagles play with three guards and two forwards. Kam Jones has led the team in scoring with 19 points per game. Jones played all 40 minutes against Iowa State.
Marquette does not have a true center, but they do have 6’11 forward Ben Gold. Gold is going to have a tough task guarding either Steven Crowl or Nolan Winter in this game. If Gold, who averages under four rebounds per game, can defend the paint well, Marquette should be able to come away with a victory.
Latest on Wisconsin basketball:
Wisconsin is also coming off their first loss of the season against Michigan (64-67). Wisconsin got torn up in the paint by Michigan’s two seven-footers, Vlad Goldin and Danny Wolf. John Tonje (18 points) and John Blackwell (16 points) both had nice performances, but no other player added more than eight points.
This game will have a much quicker pace than the game against Michigan. Wisconsin is going to need an improved shooting performance, particularly from three, where they were just 6-for-27 against Michigan.
Wisconsin had some struggles playing against smaller teams this year such as UT-Rio Grande Valley. As mentioned above, Marquette plays with no true center. Is this an advantage or disadvantage for Wisconsin? That remains to be seen. If Wisconin’s guards can help out on defense, making Nolan Winter’s life easier, then Wisconsin can likely capitalize on offense. If not, Winter and Steven Crowl will likely have limited minutes, and forwards Carter Gilmore and Xavier Amos will see increased playing time.
The Badgers need two things to win this game. They need to control the paint, and they need a player not named John Tonje to have a big afternoon. This is going to be fun. I think Nolan Winter and Wisconsin will capitalize on the mismatch on the floor.