I shouldn’t have made this a weekly series. It’ll be hard to face the music when there are performances like Friday night for our Badger basketball team.

Last Week

The Badgers dropped 9 spots in the AP poll, down to lucky No. 13. This could also be unlucky, usually is decided on a case-by-case basis.

Beat UW-Green Bay 82-42

The Badgers rolled past Green Bay with ease. The game started slowly with the Badgers up 9-4 nine minutes into the contest. That’s when Micah Potter caught an entry pass, power dribble, and rose like the Phoenix UWGB is named after and slammed one home.

The only starter not in double figures was Trice. However, it wasn’t needed with Tyler Wahl adding 11 points and dominating the glass with 15 rebounds.

The Badgers dominated defensively. They allowed Green Bay to shoot a preposterous 28% from the field. That would obviously be no match for the Badgers 45% (9-20) from the Capitol (AKA downtown AKA 3 point range).

Lost 67-65 @Marquette

One would assume a large rant is coming. Normally, you’d be right. In my non-fatherhood years, when I had nothing else to worry about, I would’ve broken at least 2 remotes.

Marquette was coming off a loss to a very talented Oklahoma State squad, and the Badgers didn’t look particularly good. The lights were dimmed in the Fiserv Forum and there was little energy from both sides.

Poor shooting from Wisconsin ended up being the difference. 37% from the floor will rarely ever cut it. Not to mention Brad Davison fouling out.

The game ended up coming down to fundamental basics. Boxing out. After D.J. “Milk” Carton made the front end of his 1 and 1 opportunity, Micah Potter was bested by Justin Lewis who rose above Potter and tipped in the winning points with no time left.

Upcoming Badger Basketball Slate

After a couple excruciating bounces, the Badgers left Milwaukee Friday night unsure of their next opponent. Issues with Louisville and their program with COVID left the Badgers in a crunch to find an opponent for Wednesday. Luckily, early Monday afternoon, the Badgers finalized a contract to bring Rhode Island to Madison.

12/9 vs. Rhode Island

The lone, currently scheduled game this week is a very strong Rhode Island team. Led by seniors Fatts Russell and Jeremy Sheppard, Rhode Island is 3-2. DO NOT let that record fool you.

They lost their first 2 games to ranked Arizona State and Boston College. They have rattled off wins against South Florida, San Francisco (who beat #4 (at the time) Virginia), and Seton Hall. All 5 opponents are seeking and probably will get a March Madness bid.

A very long team, Rhode Island will use that to their advantage. After the Badgers had a tough time shooting on Friday, it’ll be important to take quality shots against this team because they could suffocate teams with their defense.

A win on Wednesday night would re-establish Badger Basketball as a top 10 team in the country and be a great win to bolster the resume.

On Wisconsin.