The Wisconsin Badgers men’s basketball team, currently ranked No. 15 in AP voting, will be looking for a fifth straight win when they face Western Michigan on Friday.
After missing two weeks of play due to weather concerns related to the Grambling State Games, the Badgers hope to avoid the throw and close out their 2022 schedule with a non-conference victory.
With that in mind, here’s a preview of Wisconsin vs. West Michigan to help you prepare for Friday night’s matchup.
Game details and TV information
- Wisconsin Badgers (9-2 overall) vs. Western Michigan Broncos (4-8 overall)
- Tipping time is set for 7:00 PM CST at the call center in Madison, Wisconsin.
- The game airs on Big Ten Network+
- Matt Lepay calls 1310 WIBA
- live stats
Series history
Friday’s matchup will be the second time Wisconsin and Western Michigan have met in men’s basketball. The Badgers won his only other tournament in 1954 when he went 80-68. Wisconsin’s head coach at the time was Bud Foster, but the main scorer was Dick He Cable.
Badgers are consistently 41-12 against MAC’s team.
Wisconsin forward Tyler Wall hit a three-pointer at Coal Center against Maryland.
Kayla Wolfe – USA TODAY Sports
West Michigan Season Summary
The Broncos are under new leadership this season, with former Marquette and Michigan State assistant Dwayne Stevens as head coach. is not necessarily there. The Broncos lost their season opener to Minnesota, where he narrowly lost by one point, followed by losses to Valparaiso, Rice, Georgia Southern, Cleveland State, Dayton, Illinois-Chicago and Iowa State.
Western Michigan hasn’t played in a conference game yet this season, but they came to the call center with a one-game winning streak in Kalamazoo, Michigan, with a 61-41 win over Siena Heights. The Broncos are averaging 68 points per game, led by senior guard Lamar Norman Jr., who averages over 18 points per game.
top scorer
Wisconsin
- Tyler Wall (female): 14.5 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists per game
- Chucky Hepburn (G): 12 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists per game
- Connor Ethesian (G): 10.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.0 assists per game
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western michigan
- Lamar Norman Jr. (G): 18.3 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists per game
- Trey Maddox Jr. (G): 10.5 points, 4.1 rebounds per game
- Titus Wright (female): 7.3 points, 4.8 rebounds per game
Wisconsin guard Chucky Hepburn pulls his opponent off the dribble against Marquette at the Fiserv Forum.
Jeff Hanisch – USA TODAY Sports
Biggest problem for Wisconsin
Between exams and the cancellation of the Grambling State game, the Wisconsin Badgers haven’t played in weeks. It helped them rise in the polls, but it will be interesting to see if Wisconsin can get back into action soon without rusting.
Western Michigan hasn’t been great this season, but Wisconsin could start a little late in a non-conference game in late December, when the team hasn’t faced another opponent in quite some time. You need to be fresh enough for Friday night’s game.
Against Lehi, it took the team nearly half the time to get used to it, and I hope it doesn’t take that long against the Broncos.
game notes
- The Badgers are now 5-1 overall against Quad 1 and Quad 2 teams and have 6 wins against KenPon Top-100 teams.
- Former Wisconsin guard Trevon Hughes is UW’s honorary captain.
- Wisconsin is allowing 60.8 points per game this season. That number ranks him third in the Big Ten, the team ranks him fourth in the Big Ten, and he’s shooting 37% from his three-point range.
- The Badgers rank 13th nationally in turnovers per game, averaging just 10.3 per game.
- Connor Essegian is one of only five players in the last 20 years at the University of Wisconsin to average 10 or more points in the first 11 games of a season as a freshman.
- Sophomore guard Chucky Hepburn ranks third in the Big 10 with a 3-point percentage of over 48%.
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