Wisconsin basketball returns home to face Indiana after picking up a 75-69 win at Northwestern. Continue reading for a full Wisconsin vs Indiana prediction and preview.
Wisconsin comes into this matchup ranked 21st in the nation, while ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has Indiana listed as a team in the “next four out.” That might change if the Hoosiers can pull off an upset in Madison. Wisconsin enters the game as a 9.5-point favorite.
Game Information:
Teams: Wisconsin (17-5, 7-4) and Indiana (14-8, 5-6)
Tip-Off: 8 p.m. CST
Watch: Peacock
Listen: Badger Radio Network
Latest on Indiana Basketball:
The Indiana Hoosiers were oh-so-close to pulling off a huge upset against Purdue in West Lafayette. Indiana led 76-75 with 31 seconds to play following a jump shot by Trey Galloway. Unfortunately for Indiana, Trey Kaufman-Renn made a hook shot with twelve seconds to go, and Indiana could not find a response on the next offensive possession. The final score was 81-76 after the final foul shots.
Indiana’s loss is its third in a row. They fell to Maryland by just one point, a team that has also beaten Wisconsin over the past week. Indiana has now lost five of its past six games.
Head coach Mike Woodson has been going with a new starting 5: Luke Goode and Anthony Leal, replacing Myles Rice and Malik Reneau. There is no doubt that Goode can put up solid shots from downtown, as Leal has been a very smart player. His veteran leadership skills have been showing on the court.
Oumar Ballo and Mackenzie Mgbako are unique threats because of their physicality in the paint. Ballo is averaging a double-double (14.5 ppg and 10 rpg), and Mgbako has put up 13.3 points per game. Indiana as a team averages 11.5 offensive rebounds per game, and second-chance points will be a big factor against Wisconsin. However, they also average 12.5 turnovers per game, and taking care of the basketball will be a must if they want to pull off the upset.
Latest on Wisconsin basketball:
John Tonje has put up some crazy numbers for the Badgers over his past four games. In those four games, he has scored 101 points, including 27 against Northwestern. However, it was a lesser-known name that led the Badgers second half charge against Northwestern. Carter Gilmore had a career-high 15 points, all of which came in the second half. Gilmore also grabbed seven rebounds in one of the best performances of his career.
Wisconsin has established itself as one of the upper-echelon teams in the Big Ten and are currently in the 4-5 range depending on whose bracketology you are looking at. The reason they are there is because they have so many players that can step up on any given night, as Gilmore showed against Northwestern. No one would bat an eye if any of the five Wisconsin starters scored between 15 and 20 points on any given night. The question is not if, but who.
Wisconsin vs Indiana prediction: Badgers by 3
I think Indiana makes this a very close and competitive game throughout all 40 minutes. Wisconsin’s top two guards, John Tonje and John Blackwell, have been head and shoulders better than Indiana’s top two guards, Myles Rice and Trey Galloway. While Indiana will try to make up for this disparity with their size, I do not think it will be enough.